bandsaw tracking

[Eric John]

Good morning,
I'm setting upu new bandsaw and need a bit of help when it comes to tracking the blade.
is there a consensus or correct way ? in regards to should the teeth be centered on the crown? or the center of
the blade beam?

Regards
Eric

[Randy Heinemann]

According to Alex Snodgrass (Carter Products for bandsaws) the deepest part of the gullet between the teeth should be centered on the wheel (assuming your wheel is crowned rather than flat). Check YouTube for his video. He goes through the setup for resawing step by step. His video is very simple to follow, to the point, and his setup process works. Since I started using it, my resawing results is consistently high quality. It talks about tracking, blade tension, guides, and making sure the blade is 90 degrees to the table.

Carter also has a DVD and a small booklet detailing the setup process, but the video from Alex's demos at Woodworking Shows is online and always available.

Someone who has flat wheels will need to verify the process is the same for centering the blade on the wheels.

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi, with crowned wheels I adjust the tracking so the saw cuts straight, which means the blade somewhere around the center of the crown.

Now set your table so the mitre track is parallel to the blade, then set your fence if adjustable so it's parallel to the mitre track. Now you never adjust the fence or table again, any "drift" is solved by putting a good blade on the saw or adjusting the tracking.

With flat wheels I set with the teeth off the front edge of the tire............Rod.

[Zachary Hoyt]

I like to have my blade centered front to back, counting the blade from the tip of the tooth to the back. Both my saws have crowned wheels.
Zach

[Edwin Santos]

Hi, with crowned wheels I adjust the tracking so the saw cuts straight, which means the blade somewhere around the center of the crown.

Now set your table so the mitre track is parallel to the blade, then set your fence if adjustable so it's parallel to the mitre track. Now you never adjust the fence or table again, any "drift" is solved by putting a good blade on the saw or adjusting the tracking.

With flat wheels I set with the teeth off the front edge of the tire............Rod.

+1 on this. He summed it up in three sentences.

The only small thing I might add - one way to check your setup is to make a partial cut, the depth of the blade width, stop the saw, and assess from the back whether the blade is centered in the kerf. You don't want to see it rubbing one side or the other. This is after you have set the fence parallel to the mitre track.

[Joseph Quattro]

I've tried various ways to get a bandsaw to track (Jet 14" CS). To be honest, it always seems that a decent blade has always made the most difference for blade tracking, in my experience, regardless of where the blade is centered. I have almost always used Timber Wolf.

[Robert Engel]

I saw a video by Michael Fortune on adjusting the table to the drift and this has worked out pretty well for me.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

My bandsaw has no crown so I use Rod Sheridan's method.

That being said here's a link to the video someone referenced earlier. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNdrkmx6ehI&app=desktop

[Eric John]

Thanks guys
I watched alex snodgrass' video and for first try i tried that.
seems to work well i was surprised that there is no drift at all.
laguna suv 14, nice to have a tool that is going to do what i need without a lot of hassle.
now i gotta get to work.
regards
Eric