Dumb ( but tasty!) idea

[Ian Welford]

Not one of my better ideas- got a 10lb Scottish Salmon from a friend . Frozen solid so thought I'd cut it into steaks on the bandsaw.

Made a zero clearance insert for the table, covered all surfaces in newspaper to catch the ice etc. Yup worked like a dream. 2" thick steaks, clean cut- all was well I thought! Oh and I did this on a real nice hot evening.

When finished there was a bit of a fishy scent. Then I opened the blade cover doors- Oh boy what a mess. Took me two and a half hours to strip the saw down completely and clean it. Everything had to be oiled up and reassembled / realigned. Flies everywhere whilst I'm doing this- shop spiders have never eaten so well!

Next time I get the bush saw out and do it by hand- takes more time initially but not as much hassle. Having said that the salmon tastes devine and I've got 6 more steaks to go....

Turning's more fun though than cleaning.

Ian

[David DeCristoforo]

Arrg matey! That's a pretty fishy tale if yer asks me.....

Butchers use bandsaws to hack up cows and pigs but those saws are all stainless steel, very slow speed etc. Never seen anyone cut up a fish that way tho.... Anyway, I'll bet the fish is good....

PS "Next time" getcha one of these:
http://www.cutleryandmore.com/details.asp?SKU=9953
or these:
http://www.instawares.com/f-dick-frozen.fdi-9102735.0.7.htm
or if ya just gotta have power:
http://www.kenwoodworld.com/product_detail.php?cat=101&id=7

[Ian Welford]

Nah- already got a few fish knives. I've even got a power carving knife but didn't think of that ( Stomach speaks louder than brain!)

The idea was "quick and easy". The blades I use are the "meat and fish" type 3 to 6 tpi skip with a fair degree of set on them. They're ideal for cutting out bowl blanks quickly from logs.

Should have thought it through and used the saws lower speed though.

Fish was pretty good though!

Ian

[Bill Wyko]

I have the best recipe in the world for Salmon. PM me and I'll try to find it for ya.:D Try the hand saw next time.

[Tim Morton]

I did something similar once with some ground beef...same ending.:(

Live and learn:p

[Richard M. Wolfe]

I had a little of the same problem routing dovetails in pork loin. And the dado cut in the rump roast didn't turn out so good either.:D

I know, I know.

I'lll go stand in the corner now.

[mark page]

We process all our own meat, etc. They are meat saws designed for this type of thing. There is a "what's the weirdest thing you ever cut with a sawzall" thread. Now you have to start "the bandsaw thread".:D

[Pat Germain]

When I was in high school, I worked at a restaurant where the owner would cut his own meat on one of the those stainless steel and aluminum band saws.

What really ticked me off is he would come in and cut meat when I wasn't working. He would wipe down the outside of the saw after using it. A few days later, that saw would start to emit a foul aroma and the owner would tell me to clean it. What I would find inside was too disgusting for a horror movie! :eek: Yes, it would be "alive" with larvae.

The owner did that to me many times. If I was smart, I would have checked that saw every day to see if it had been used. Alas, I was just a dumb kid.

I did learn how to tear down and re-assemble that band saw. I had to teach myself, so I really knew that saw.

[David G Baker]

Ian,
Ya should of used your Sawzall, they clean up much easier.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

To cut frozen meat ( or anything really) use a coarse & clean hacksaw blade. It's fast and clean.

[David DeCristoforo]

"...use a coarse & clean hacksaw blade..."

I was thinking chainsaw......

[Luciano Burtini]

I did the same thing with a chinook salmon. In the end it cost me a new set of rubber tires for the bandaw though! Make sure yours are really clean. Mine hardened and cracked after the fish..... Hope you have better luck.

[Dave MacArthur]

wow! I read the initialk post, and though "OMG who would do such a ____ thing?" (with a laugh of course for your kindly sharing your misfortune with us!)... but after reading the thread, it's obvious that many of us share a common "problem solving, try to use the power tool whenever possible, hey THIS would save some time!" mindset LOL

[Dan Gill]

Now you need to clean out your dust collector.:D