selection of bandsawblades to buy

[Rasmus Petersen]

i just bent my only blade on the band saw. the one that came with it. so now i´m looking at getting some more blades, but the great ? for me is witch blades to get ? how wide and with how many teeth.. i plan on sawing stock for spindle turning and bowl blanks, down to pen blanks..

So any and all information will be more than welcome (me being the complete band saw novice)

[Gary Max]

Tell us about your bandsaw------ie----size ---HP-----lenght of Band

[Rasmus Petersen]

Jet BS18mkII blade length 3480mm think its a 2 hp

[Terry Quiram]

I use my bandsaw mostly for sawing blanks to turn. I only buy 3/8 3 tpi blades. The cut is fairly smooth and the blade cuts as aggressively as I want.

Terry

[Gary Max]

I resaw for flat stock or pen blanks----3/4 wide----3 TPI
I chainsaw for bowl blanks
Your saw is big enough to pull 3 TPI
3/8 will turn coners better than what I am using but my bands last longer becuase they are thicker steel.

[robert hainstock]

Ramus, I buy my blade from Highlandwoodworking. @highlandwoodworking.com/.
Thier woodslicer and woodturners blades are exelant, and sty sharp realy long. The woodslicer leaves a realy smooth edge, and will cut vaneer grade thickness if needed. I stay away from the bargain blades belierving you get what you pay for. :)
Bob

[Pete Jordan]

I buy the same a Robert.

[Jim Becker]

Ok, given your physical location, Rasmus, you'll have to take the size information given by folks and apply it to what is available to you in your market place. I use blades that are "Swedish steel" (lower tension) and have been happy with them...perhaps you can source something similar.

Long, straight cuts are best done in most cases by a wider blade. You'll need to check your particular saw for it's limits in this respect. But honestly, for turning, I cannot see any need for a blade wider than 1/2" (12mm or so). That's for the pen blanks and spindle billets. For bowl blanks, if you really feel the need to pre-cut them into rounds (I don't...right from chain saw to lathe), a 3/8" (9mm or so) blade will probably be a good choice.

That brings me to something to consider. Wet wood is better cut with a thicker blade designed for the purpose. My supplier has that available. You also don't need a lot of teeth per inch for this purpose. Smooth doesn't matter. Efficient cutting does. I never use more than about 3 tpi for cutting turning stock.

[Reed Gray]

With 2 hp, you can handle bigger blades, up to 3/4 or 1 inch. This is for resawing, or bowl blanks. I would recomend bi-metal blades. They are similar to metal cutting blades, but are made for wood. I use the Lennox brand, but don't know what you have available. If you live in a bigger urban area, find a saw shop, and ask. I got lucky and found one here in my town. I asked the gut there about what I needed, and he asked me a bunch of questions about my saw and what I was cutting. I followed his recomendations and they have worked well. I use half inch 3 tpi thicker blades for cutting out rounds, and on my big 5 hp saw, 1 1/4 inch blade with teeth at 3/4 inch spacing (this is what the band saw mills use).
robo hippy

[Dick Strauss]

Rasmus,
I like the Timberwolf 3/8"-3tpi A/S blades best for wet wood. I tried standard Morse blades that were horrible for wet wood.

I've heard good things about the Woodslicer 1/2" variable pitch 2-3tpi blades for cutting straight dry wood (though I don't have any forst-hand experience with them).

[Johnny Kleso]

I'll give you the low down on band saw blade..
My last job before I was disabled for good was at a place making band saw blades for the meat cutting insdustry.. I worked for about 35 year cutting metal as a machinest using band saws..

I general you alway want 3 teeth in the work at all times.. IE: 1/2 stock = 6 tip.. one entering, one in the middle one leaving...

For re-sawing you would want a 3 tip (for think cuts)
The more teeth the slower the blade cuts...IE:in over think stock a 6tip in 3" stock, if you push to get a faster cut like in a 3 tip in 1" it loads up gullets and makes more heat (heat can ruin a blade)

If you stock is less than 2" I would say get a 3-6 tip

The wider the blade the truer it cuts straight, if you cut a lot of curves you want a more narrow blade to make tighter curves...

I would say a 1/4-3/8" good middle of the road...

Starrett makes the best saw blades..
Lenox is a close second with Do-All brand but I dont think Do-All makes their own blades..

Treat them like gold and dont put them in upside down, more easy to do than you think when you get in a hurry :)

When you change sizes you may have to re-set up you saw, you want the blade to track in the center of the wheels.. Do this with guides removed, then set guides to blade where it tracks the wheel..

Dont make the guides push the blade to track wheels where you want..

[Burt Alcantara]

I have a 14" 1hp Grizzly. I saw logs up to what will pass under the guides. I've had good success with Timberwolf 1/2x3 AS blades. I also used a similar blade from BCSaw with good results but they don't last as long.

For veneering I use a 1/2x4 Timberwolf.

I think the biggest key is blade tension. I've found, for my style of sawing and my particular saw, that maximum tension will give me the best results. This goes against 95% of advise. I tension the blade so high that I can barely close it down with the release lever. After sawing, I release most of the tension.

Now I can cut even 1/32" veneers as well as 13" logs with virtually no drift. Of course, I go slower then a snail but this way I get cuts that are smooth as...well, not quite like silk but...smooth.

Burt

[Jason Solodow]

I use my bandsaw for cutting rounds out of wet wood. I use a 105" 3TPI 1/2" blade. The 1/2" blade will cut rounds at 5" diameter without a problem. I purchase my blades from a online order place called bandsawblades.com. I get 10 blades for about $80 and when I'm cutting rounds I usually get approximately 100-125 rounds per blade before it's dulled out. Obviously this varies depending on the density of the wood. For example, I only got 80 rounds when cutting some osage orange, but almost 150 when cutting some black cherry.

[Steven McLoon]

I received an 18" bandsaw from my wife for Christmas. It only took a few minutes to realize that the blade that came with it was junk. I got the best information from the people at Suffolk Machinery. I told them what I wanted to cut (kiln dried vrs green, the thickness and tightness of the curves), and they told me which blade to buy. They sell Timber Wolf blades. Their wibsite also is very helpful. I use 5 blades now. It took me a while to figure out that it is better to take the time to change to the correct blade for the job than it is to just use the one that is mounted.
http://www.suffolkmachinery.com/
-Steve

[Rasmus Petersen]

Thank you all. it´s always nice to ask the Sawmill... lots of good information..