best resaw blade for flame maple on 14" 1-3/4" HP saw

[John TenEyck]

I have a lot of experience with a 14" Delta cast iron BS. I've done a lot of tension measurements as well. With a high tension spring it can comfortably apply 12 ksi to a 1/2" blade. If you try to apply more the frame will deflect and throw the upper blade guides out of alignment as the frame bends. You want 20 ksi or higher on a carbide tipped blade. Save your money. Also, if you put a wider blade on that saw the tension will go down proportional to the increased width and there will be no increase in performance.

The best you can do on these 14" cast iron saws for resawing is a 1/2" x 3 or 4 tpi blade. I cut a lot of 10" veneer on mine so it's possible. The key is a sharp blade, a really good setup so that the blade cuts straight, and a slow and steady feed rate. FWIW, I found the Woodslicer to perform very poorly. Bimetal blades are my preferred choice for resawing on that saw.

John

[Dean Nikou]

note: a couple of mistakes on pricing in my OP, will try to correct.
thx for all the replies - to briefly summarize(and feel free to correct me)...
*1" completely off the table for my saw
*most here do well with(and recommend) a 1/2" but if I go 3/4"(which I'm still leaning towards based on my experience) stay with thinner blade/low tension
*will likely avoid the expense of a carbide for now until I get a bit more time resawing - I'm also guessing that even a thinner carbide still has more tension and best for a more robust machine than mine(at least for resawing)?
*will either try a 3/4" bimetal(need to research the models mentioned) or retry another woodslicer and see if I can get better/more cuts out of it with better technique

[Dean Nikou]

forgot to ask, do most stay close to (or even trust) a saws built-in tension meter? LSS, my Jet arrived brand new with the wheels/set-up way off (2 visits from the warranty repair guy and a whole lot more time/research from me to get it to where I consider it 'good') so I'm mildly gun shy from maybe pushing it too hard but I'm finding a bit better control with a step-up in tension with my current 1/2" WS.

[John TenEyck]

forgot to ask, do most stay close to (or even trust) a saws built-in tension meter? LSS, my Jet arrived brand new with the wheels/set-up way off (2 visits from the warranty repair guy and a whole lot more time/research from me to get it to where I consider it 'good') so I'm mildly gun shy from maybe pushing it too hard but I'm finding a bit better control with a step-up in tension with my current 1/2" WS.

I think it depends on the saw, but there's no way to know for sure until you measure the tension. Think about it. Even if the onboard tension indicator is accurate, what tension should it read? 18 ksi for carbon steel blades or maybe 25 ksi for carbide tipped blades? Until you measure it you won't know. Fortunately, it's pretty simple to measure. Here's one approach that doesn't cost much: https://sites.google.com/view/jteney...ter?authuser=1

You can use nothing more than a set of 6" Vernier calipers and two little C-clamps, too. It's the same process and the same calculation.

John

[Dean Nikou]

thx for the link and info

[Dean Nikou]

A fresh 5/8" or 3/4" woodslicer/kerfmaster is going to be about the best thing for resawing with that class of saw. They are very thin, so can be tensioned well by a lightly built saw, and when new they seem sharper (requiring less feed pressure) than any other type I've tried. They do dull faster than other types but I think its somewhat overblown on internet forums, where they act like it is worthless after the first cut. I haven't found that to be the case at all. You can touch them up with a dremel in a few minutes, too.

Spectrum Supply sells the same sort of blade stock the Woodslicer is made from. They call it the Kerfmaster and sell it in in 1/2", 5/8" and 3/4" widths with a variable 3-4 tpi skip tooth pattern. You can specify the length and they weld it. The price is very good but shipping tends to be high with them.

A 3/4" laguna resaw king may also work on that saw. I use one with success on a Laguna 14bx which I think is pretty similar to your Jet. Its a good blade and leaves a great finish , even better than the Kerfmaster. But it does take more more feed pressure to make the cut, and of course it is many times more expensive.

Thanks for this - going the Spectrum route.

I wanted to try a bi-metal blade but now can't find any .5-.75 wide 116" length ones available? The TW appears discontinued and the lenox BM B one I found is now only showing a 1"+ available?

The Kerfmaster appears similar to the WS(maybe the same?) and has a 5/8" option - for the money(and if freight is a bit high) will likely buy a both 5/8 and 3/4 along with some bend options to try. I may one day invest in a resaw king or trimaster but am guessing at that time will likely replace my modded central machinery(now collecting dust) with something dedicated to resawing.

thanks again all for the replies