"Terry Coombs" wrote in message ...

On 3/5/2019 11:30 AM, Terry Coombs wrote:
This morning I braved the cold to make an alignment block so I could
try welding that broken bandsaw blade . Milled a half inch wide by .023"
deep slot down the length of a piece of aluminum ingot (from melted
scrap) followed by a quarter inch slot along one edge , .050" deep , for
tooth clearance . Added a .050 deep cross slot in the middle for
clearance under the blade so shield gas could get down there . I clamped
the blade with the ends just touching using a couple of short bar
clamps - which will be replaced with a screw and washer - and welded it
at about 12 amps using some 1/16" ER312 . Tested it on a piece of half
inch steel 2" wide cutting thru the half inch dimension . Left it cutting
for a quick run into the house and when I came back the blade had stalled
. I checked , I hadn't ground the blade all the way back to original
thickness and it was hanging in the cut . Couple of minutes with the
Dremel and we be jammin' now . I'm not planning on making my own bands ,
but it sure is handy to be able to repair one if needed - I did melt a
couple of teeth , so this band will not be used for stock under 1/4" .

Oops , spoke too soon . It broke on the second cut right at the weld .
I'm not sure if it's because of my filler selection or because I didn't
anneal it afterward . But hey , I still got the block and somewhere around
here is a coil of silver solder . So not a totally wasted morning anyway .

It knew you needed an excuse to cut out that little section with the melted
teeth and practice another weld :-).

--
Regards,
Carl Ijames