On 20 Jan 2007 13:11:14 -0800, "
wrote:

You are probably right about the metal and wood bi-metal blades, and I
should have maybe been more specific in that I was talking about the
metal sawing bi-metal blades, that I use on my band saw, I have hung a
second motor plus a jack shaft on my band saw, to bring the speed of
the blade down to be able to saw metal on my band saw.
And those metal sawing blades need more beam strength and are thicker
as well, TPI are many more than 3 or 4, however I would expect that
there are blades with that number of TPI, but the Idea that there be at
least 3 teeth in the piece that is cut, would indicate the piece to be
at more than 1" thick, seems slow going with that few cutting edges,
but there are of course exceptions.
The metal sawing blades have mostly 12 or many more TPI.

Ah, now I see what you're talking about- those hacksaw-type blades you
can get for the bandsaw. As far as I know, those are for making nicer
cuts in things like sheet metal. What I was referring to are blades
for cutting off pipe or solid stock on a horizontal hydraulic or
gravity-fed bandsaw. In the case I was referring to, a higher tooth
count will give a nicer edge, but takes forever to cut anything- the
standard is a much lower TPI, and they can rip right though most
metals very quickly compared to what you're describing- though I am
thinking that if you were to put on on a vertical bandsaw and tried to
use it to cut thin metal, it would be a dangerous situation. Not bad
if you're resawing wood, though.

The silicon steel instead of bi-metal is I think a result of the use of
smaller wheels and less HP, bi-metal are normally made with just the
front edge of the band being harder, the rest just more flexible steel,
making thus the name BI-METAL, however that harder edge is still
vulnerable to breaking, shortening the life of the band, silicon steel
has added wear resistance build in and is less likely to break, making
it the better choice for smaller saws IMO.
And as almost always there are exceptions, like very abrasive wood
etc., just my 2cents

You may certainly be right there- a small woodshop bandsaw is not the
same thing as a big saw in a metal shop. Despite what I've said about
it in this thread, I just use the cheap bands they sell at Farm and
Fleet- they hold up well enough for the price, and I only have to
change them once or twice a year in any case. *But* I do not do any
resawing with my little 10" delta.