Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

I've got one that has done a fantastic job for custom wood parts, flooring,
etc. I was wondering if it would be a stupid idea to pick up some bi metal
blades for some metal cutting that might be easier than some other tools?

I guess my biggest concern might be driving metal particles into the bicycle
tire on the pulleys and messing them up.

You can use one to cut aluminum, nothing else. And the tires do pick up
a lot of aluminum chips.

A good wood bandsaw runs 2000 to 3000 feet per minute. A good metal
cutting bandsaw runs 80 to 200 feet per minute.

Bob La Londe wrote:
Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

I've got one that has done a fantastic job for custom wood parts,
flooring, etc. I was wondering if it would be a stupid idea to pick up
some bi metal blades for some metal cutting that might be easier than
some other tools?

I guess my biggest concern might be driving metal particles into the
bicycle tire on the pulleys and messing them up.

"RoyJ" wrote in message
m...
You can use one to cut aluminum, nothing else. And the tires do pick up a
lot of aluminum chips.

A good wood bandsaw runs 2000 to 3000 feet per minute. A good metal
cutting bandsaw runs 80 to 200 feet per minute.

Ok... I'll probably pass then. It is a good band saw, and I have all the
little block and roller adjustments all figured out too. Thanks.

"Bob La Londe" wrote in message
...
Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?


As I am sure none of my colleagues at work read this group...

http://www.faxmentis.org/html/tripod.html
(second and third thumbnails from the top)

Standard (skip-tooth, IIRC) wood-cutting blade which, incidentally, seemed
to cut better after cutting the brass, due to the brass removing gum and
resin build-up.

Aluminium I cut routinely - absolutely trouble-free.
Brass (this job) was a one-off, but I wouldn't hesitate to do it again.

--
Jeff R.

"Bob La Londe" wrote in message
...
Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

I've got one that has done a fantastic job for custom wood parts,
flooring, etc. I was wondering if it would be a stupid idea to pick up
some bi metal blades for some metal cutting that might be easier than some
other tools?

I guess my biggest concern might be driving metal particles into the
bicycle tire on the pulleys and messing them up.

OK, I'll admit to it. But not ferrous metals. I've cut bronze on a small
benchtop woodworking bandsaw, to trim 5/16 and 3/8 bronze carriage bolts to
specific and individual lengths, about a hundred of them. And yes, I used a
fine-tooth wood-cutting blade, for lack of anything else at hand. And went
through about three of them while I was doing it. But, you know what, it
worked out OK.

I was working down on the dock where the boat was, and I got it done a hell
of a lot faster than I would have if I'd used a hacksaw. And, yes, it took
me a while to get the wheel tires back in shape after the project was over.

No big surprises here. Sometimes the best tool for the job is the one you
have on hand. But I wouldn't do it with a shop saw.

Tom

I have a 10" Delta vertical bandsaw that I have been using to cut steel
for over 20 years. It's a light duty home version.
The big issue is that you have to slow it down a LOT for steel. To
do that, I simply mounted a second, slow speed motor in the stand, right
above the "wood speed" motor. To change from wood to metal, I just
install a shorter belt to the slow motor, instead of the longer belt to
the "wood" motor. The slow motor I used is a gearmotor that runs about
105 rpm and used to run a copy machine. It has a 1 1/2" diameter
pulley, so I get about 125 sfm on the blade. I have other metal cutting
tools now, so I don't use it for heavy metal cutting anymore, but I used
to cut stock as thick as 1". Slow, but got the job done. I even had
blades made that were as wide as 1/2" and as narrow as 1/8". You'd be
surprised at how long the 1/8" blades lasted!

Pete Stanaitis
----------------------

Bob La Londe wrote:
Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

I've got one that has done a fantastic job for custom wood parts,
flooring, etc. I was wondering if it would be a stupid idea to pick up
some bi metal blades for some metal cutting that might be easier than
some other tools?

I guess my biggest concern might be driving metal particles into the
bicycle tire on the pulleys and messing them up.

"spaco" wrote in message
.. .
I have a 10" Delta vertical bandsaw that I have been using to cut steel
for over 20 years. It's a light duty home version.
The big issue is that you have to slow it down a LOT for steel. To do
that, I simply mounted a second, slow speed motor in the stand, right
above the "wood speed" motor. To change from wood to metal, I just
install a shorter belt to the slow motor, instead of the longer belt to
the "wood" motor. The slow motor I used is a gearmotor that runs about
105 rpm and used to run a copy machine. It has a 1 1/2" diameter pulley,
so I get about 125 sfm on the blade. I have other metal cutting tools
now, so I don't use it for heavy metal cutting anymore, but I used to cut
stock as thick as 1". Slow, but got the job done. I even had blades made
that were as wide as 1/2" and as narrow as 1/8". You'd be surprised at
how long the 1/8" blades lasted!

I've got 1/8 wood blades for detail work. They take forever to wear out,
but only a few seconds of ham handedness to break.

On Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:05:35 -0700, "Bob La Londe"
wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

Yes..they cut aluminum very well. And they also do a damned fine job
when butchering deer and pigs. One should wipe off the blade and run it
a bit before cutting meat, and of course afterwards.


I've got one that has done a fantastic job for custom wood parts, flooring,
etc. I was wondering if it would be a stupid idea to pick up some bi metal
blades for some metal cutting that might be easier than some other tools?

I guess my biggest concern might be driving metal particles into the bicycle
tire on the pulleys and messing them up.

If you only cut aluminum, any that stick in the rubber..and its pretty
damned tough stuff...will simply get bent over and not bother things.
Even metal cutting bandsaws have rubber tires.

Gunner



The current Democratic party has lost its ideological basis for
existence.
- It is NOT fiscally responsible.
- It is NOT ethically honorable.
- It has started wars based on lies.
- It does not support the well-being of americans - only billionaires.
- It has suppresed constitutional guaranteed liberties.
- It has foisted a liar as president upon America.
- It has violated US national sovereignty in trade treaties.
- It has refused to enforce the national borders.

....It no longer has valid reasons to exist.
Lorad474

On Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:05:35 -0700, "Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?


I've used mine for aluminium (no issues) and brass (marginal). The worst stuff
I've tried to cut was cement bonded particle board. That is _very_ bad for the
blades. Frozen meat is simple, but needs cleanup afterwards.


Mark Rand
RTFM

On Jan 23, 12:58*am, spaco wrote:
I have a 10" Delta vertical bandsaw that I have been using to cut steel
for over 20 years. It's a light duty home version....
Pete Stanaitis
----------------------
Bob La Londe wrote:
...
I guess my biggest concern might be driving metal particles into the
bicycle tire on the pulleys and messing them up.

I have a 10" Delta wood bandsaw with yellow covers that I rebuilt and
then modified as needed, first with a tablesaw table to add the rip
and crosscut guides, then to cut metal, finally as a sawmill. It
really wasn't very good for the other jobs but it's so simple that the
changes were easy.

As a sawmill it ran up to 3/4" wide x 0.030" blades, though the 10"
wheels reduced their life considerably.

The local industrial distributor couldn't order new rubber wheel tires
for it so I made some out of slices of truck inner tubes. Their
irregular thickness didn't cause any trouble, You could make a set for
steel and use the originals for wood.

Even if you do get it to cut steel you'll be limited by the throat
depth. Upright bandsaws are specialized tools that won't cut long
stock to length. Even for wood you need another saw for that, I
returned the 10" Delta to its original configuration and bought a 4x6
like this:
http://toolsandmore.us/ProductImages/shopfox2/W1715.jpg
to cut steel and PT framing timbers. It's a second-hand Delta that
seems to be built better than average. They can be fussy but probably
no more than a jury-rigged lightweight wood saw.

It works quite well on framing timbers, it's not as fast as a wood saw
but more precise and doesn't slip. It can cut up to a 6x6 by turning
it. I balance the wood on the saw table first and set up roller stands
under the ends.

jsw

In article ,
Mark Rand wrote:

On Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:05:35 -0700, "Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?


I've used mine for aluminium (no issues) and brass (marginal). The worst stuff
I've tried to cut was cement bonded particle board. That is _very_ bad for the
blades. Frozen meat is simple, but needs cleanup afterwards.


Mark Rand
RTFM

I prefer cleaning both before and after cutting meat.

--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by

I used my standard 14" import band saw to cut four 24" diameter disks
from 3/8" 6061-T6 plate for a friend's project. 25' or so of cut, buzzed
right though them. You have to watch for galling, once it starts things
go down hill very rapidly.

Mark Rand wrote:
On Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:05:35 -0700, "Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?


I've used mine for aluminium (no issues) and brass (marginal). The worst stuff
I've tried to cut was cement bonded particle board. That is _very_ bad for the
blades. Frozen meat is simple, but needs cleanup afterwards.


Mark Rand
RTFM

On Sat, 23 Jan 2010 09:42:43 -0500, Ecnerwal
wrote:




Mark Rand
RTFM

I prefer cleaning both before and after cutting meat.


I'm not too worried about the odd bit of sawdust. Adds interest :-)


Mark Rand
RTFM

On Sat, 23 Jan 2010 09:42:43 -0500, Ecnerwal
wrote:

In article ,
Mark Rand wrote:

On Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:05:35 -0700, "Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?


I've used mine for aluminium (no issues) and brass (marginal). The worst stuff
I've tried to cut was cement bonded particle board. That is _very_ bad for the
blades. Frozen meat is simple, but needs cleanup afterwards.


Mark Rand
RTFM

I prefer cleaning both before and after cutting meat.


Ive always considered that cutting meat on a bandsaw not sold for the
purpose..was like offering regular sacrifices to the gods. This means
they get a regular taste of blood, they dont wonder about it and on
impluse, take a chunk out of me..


G

Gunner

The current Democratic party has lost its ideological basis for
existence.
- It is NOT fiscally responsible.
- It is NOT ethically honorable.
- It has started wars based on lies.
- It does not support the well-being of americans - only billionaires.
- It has suppresed constitutional guaranteed liberties.
- It has foisted a liar as president upon America.
- It has violated US national sovereignty in trade treaties.
- It has refused to enforce the national borders.

....It no longer has valid reasons to exist.
Lorad474

"Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

They tend to go too fast. Aluminum you can get away with. I'm wondering how mine would
do with a 7/8" pitch 1 1/4 wide band. I think I'll stick to wood though.

Wes
--
"Additionally as a security officer, I carry a gun to protect
government officials but my life isn't worth protecting at home
in their eyes." Dick Anthony Heller

On Jan 23, 3:22*pm, Wes wrote:
"Bob La Londe" wrote:
Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

They tend to go too fast. *Aluminum you can get away with. *I'm wondering how mine would
do with a 7/8" pitch 1 1/4 wide band. *I think I'll stick to wood though.
Wes

Bob, cutting steel at wood speed dulls the blade in seconds. When
someone did that I hid the good blades and left the dull one on until
I needed the saw, then I put the dull one back on afterwards. When
they complained I asked them what they needed to cut, often revealing
the perp. I couldn't stop them, they were engineers and I was only the
lab tech, but at least they had to sit through an explanation.

Wes, Suffolk Saw told me that those blades should run at 5000 feet per
minute. I think they said to set the guides about 1/8" outside the
straight line between the tires and use rollers on the inside only. I
did that, skate bearings in and generic Cool Blocks out, and it worked
fine.

jsw

"Jim Wilkins" wrote in message
...
On Jan 23, 3:22 pm, Wes wrote:
"Bob La Londe" wrote:
Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

They tend to go too fast. Aluminum you can get away with. I'm wondering
how mine would
do with a 7/8" pitch 1 1/4 wide band. I think I'll stick to wood though.
Wes

Bob, cutting steel at wood speed dulls the blade in seconds. When
someone did that I hid the good blades and left the dull one on until
I needed the saw, then I put the dull one back on afterwards. When
they complained I asked them what they needed to cut, often revealing
the perp. I couldn't stop them, they were engineers and I was only the
lab tech, but at least they had to sit through an explanation.

Wes, Suffolk Saw told me that those blades should run at 5000 feet per
minute. I think they said to set the guides about 1/8" outside the
straight line between the tires and use rollers on the inside only. I
did that, skate bearings in and generic Cool Blocks out, and it worked
fine.

You must have worked at NASA. LOL. I remember my grandfather making the
same kinds of comments about scientists when he was working at Lewis
Research Center. That and having the new eggheads asking for mechanical and
tool up for a bunch of new experiments. 2/3 of which had been done a decade
earlier and nothing new was introduced. They were just repeating history.

On Jan 23, 7:19*pm, "Bob La Londe" wrote:
"Jim Wilkins" wrote in message
...
You must have worked at NASA. *LOL. *I remember my grandfather making the
same kinds of comments about scientists when he was working at Lewis
Research Center. *That and having the new eggheads asking for mechanical and
tool up for a bunch of new experiments. *2/3 of which had been done a decade
earlier and nothing new was introduced. *They were just repeating history.

http://www.mitre.org/
It was great for a while, until they decided to drop hardware and
focus on consulting.
I mainly build prototypes of digital radios for the FAA etc, and ran a
CAD network and small machine shop on the side.

jsw

On 2010-01-23, Bob La Londe wrote:
Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

I've got one that has done a fantastic job for custom wood parts, flooring,
etc. I was wondering if it would be a stupid idea to pick up some bi metal
blades for some metal cutting that might be easier than some other tools?

What metal? For aluminum, you should be fine. For steel or
many others, it is way too fast and you will burn the balde.

I guess my biggest concern might be driving metal particles into the bicycle
tire on the pulleys and messing them up.

That can be a problem only when you subsequently use it for
wood, as you will get chips embedded in the wood unless you take the
time to clean it all.

Good Luck,
DoN.

--
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

Wood saws run far to fast for metal.

I have a 14" extended Delta for wood work and a 11x7 Horizontal bandsaw for
metal. The surface speed is so much different.

Martin

Bob La Londe wrote:
Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

I've got one that has done a fantastic job for custom wood parts,
flooring, etc. I was wondering if it would be a stupid idea to pick up
some bi metal blades for some metal cutting that might be easier than
some other tools?

I guess my biggest concern might be driving metal particles into the
bicycle tire on the pulleys and messing them up.

On Sat, 23 Jan 2010 11:50:40 -0800, Gunner Asch
wrote:

On Sat, 23 Jan 2010 09:42:43 -0500, Ecnerwal
wrote:

In article ,
Mark Rand wrote:

On Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:05:35 -0700, "Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?


I've used mine for aluminium (no issues) and brass (marginal). The worst stuff
I've tried to cut was cement bonded particle board. That is _very_ bad for the
blades. Frozen meat is simple, but needs cleanup afterwards.


Mark Rand
RTFM

I prefer cleaning both before and after cutting meat.


Ive always considered that cutting meat on a bandsaw not sold for the
purpose..was like offering regular sacrifices to the gods. This means
they get a regular taste of blood, they dont wonder about it and on
impluse, take a chunk out of me..


G

Gunner

It works best if the meat is frozen. Ditto for running the meat thru a
wood chipper...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qWFhDvURLg

On Sun, 24 Jan 2010 00:33:59 -0600, Don Foreman
wrote:

On Sat, 23 Jan 2010 11:50:40 -0800, Gunner Asch
wrote:

On Sat, 23 Jan 2010 09:42:43 -0500, Ecnerwal
wrote:

In article ,
Mark Rand wrote:

On Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:05:35 -0700, "Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?


I've used mine for aluminium (no issues) and brass (marginal). The worst stuff
I've tried to cut was cement bonded particle board. That is _very_ bad for the
blades. Frozen meat is simple, but needs cleanup afterwards.


Mark Rand
RTFM

I prefer cleaning both before and after cutting meat.


Ive always considered that cutting meat on a bandsaw not sold for the
purpose..was like offering regular sacrifices to the gods. This means
they get a regular taste of blood, they dont wonder about it and on
impluse, take a chunk out of me..


G

Gunner

It works best if the meat is frozen. Ditto for running the meat thru a
wood chipper...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qWFhDvURLg


True..but Ive run enough meat through my 20" Walker Turner variable
speed WITH 2 range gearbox to discover it cuts fresh meat pretty damned
well.

Gunner

Whenever a Liberal utters the term "Common Sense approach"....grab your
wallet, your ass, and your guns because the sombitch is about to do
something damned nasty to all three of them.

Here's one way of doing it-

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=12817


H.

"Gunner Asch" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 24 Jan 2010 00:33:59 -0600, Don Foreman
wrote:

On Sat, 23 Jan 2010 11:50:40 -0800, Gunner Asch
wrote:

On Sat, 23 Jan 2010 09:42:43 -0500, Ecnerwal
wrote:

In article ,
Mark Rand wrote:

On Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:05:35 -0700, "Bob La Londe"
wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?


I've used mine for aluminium (no issues) and brass (marginal). The
worst stuff
I've tried to cut was cement bonded particle board. That is _very_ bad
for the
blades. Frozen meat is simple, but needs cleanup afterwards.


Mark Rand
RTFM

I prefer cleaning both before and after cutting meat.


Ive always considered that cutting meat on a bandsaw not sold for the
purpose..was like offering regular sacrifices to the gods. This means
they get a regular taste of blood, they dont wonder about it and on
impluse, take a chunk out of me..


G

Gunner

It works best if the meat is frozen. Ditto for running the meat thru a
wood chipper...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qWFhDvURLg


True..but Ive run enough meat through my 20" Walker Turner variable
speed WITH 2 range gearbox to discover it cuts fresh meat pretty damned
well.

Don't know about all meats, but I broke down enough beef in my mom's grocery
store growing up to know if your blades are sharp you can cut all day long
on stuff if its kept at the required (by health codes) temperatures. Even
before we had a refrigerated meat department (30 years ago) we would only
cut stuff fresh out of the cooler, and then immediately packaged the cuts to
go in the meat cases or put the left over sections back in the walking
cooler. Nothing ever got warm. You know too. That's when it got
dangerous. At about 40 degrees beef starts to get sloppy and it will gum up
on the blade and suck your hand into the saw. At 33-35 degrees it just
whizzes through the saw.

Howard Eisenhauer wrote:

Here's one way of doing it-

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=12817


H.

I saw another way, guy attached a ring gear from a torque converter to the bottom band
wheel and built a drive using a starter pinion for metal cutting.

Sadly, I didn't get a chance to chat, it was an estate sale, his.

Wes
--
"Additionally as a security officer, I carry a gun to protect
government officials but my life isn't worth protecting at home
in their eyes." Dick Anthony Heller

Wow what a train wreck on the way!

I'd just buy a nice or get a nice 90V DC motor
and a speed controller - or a three phase motor and a 3P controller.

The latter is stock items. Motors are often for the taking
at motor repair places - they might want a fee for cleaning and checking...

VFN as I recall is the variable frequency controller that drives motors.
Single phase and it will generate three.

Martin

Howard Eisenhauer wrote:
Here's one way of doing it-

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/s...ad.php?t=12817


H.

Jim Wilkins wrote:
On Jan 23, 3:22 pm, Wes wrote:

"Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

They tend to go too fast. Aluminum you can get away with. I'm wondering how mine would
do with a 7/8" pitch 1 1/4 wide band. I think I'll stick to wood though.
Wes


Bob, cutting steel at wood speed dulls the blade in seconds. When
someone did that I hid the good blades and left the dull one on until
I needed the saw, then I put the dull one back on afterwards. When
they complained I asked them what they needed to cut, often revealing
the perp. I couldn't stop them, they were engineers and I was only the
lab tech, but at least they had to sit through an explanation.


Someone during the day used to do that at the votech college in Wichita
repeatedly. I was doing the machining evening class and many times spent
much of an evening cutting 2" aluminium with a hacksaw as it was quicker
than the bandsaw. The lecturers were helpful but didn't have access to
other replacement blades.

Wes, Suffolk Saw told me that those blades should run at 5000 feet per
minute. I think they said to set the guides about 1/8" outside the
straight line between the tires and use rollers on the inside only. I
did that, skate bearings in and generic Cool Blocks out, and it worked
fine.

jsw

--I use my Jet bandsaw for cutting aluminum plate. Best to use
'beater' blades; i.e. bent but still sharp, otherwise they'll drift a lot.

--
"Steamboat Ed" Haas : To help the helpless
Hacking the Trailing Edge! : To comfort the fearful...
www.nmpproducts.com
---Decks a-wash in a sea of words---

Jim Wilkins wrote:
On Jan 23, 3:22 pm, Wes wrote:

"Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

They tend to go too fast. Aluminum you can get away with.
I'm wondering how mine would
do with a 7/8" pitch 1 1/4 wide band. I think I'll stick to wood though.
Wes


Here's one I've never seen, only heard described as something that
U-Haul did in making trailers, maybe 30 years ago.

+ Set your band saw for very high speed

+ Cover the table with masonite or similar electrically insulating
material.

+ Attach one arc welder cable to the table and the other to the
metal workpiece.

+ Push the workiece into the blade. The blade strikes an arc
across the workpiece and table. The fast-moving blade blows the
molton metal/oxides out of the kerf but moves so fast that it
doesn't overheat. (And/or maybe there's a water- or air-jet
cooler in there somewhere?)

Allegedly, it was a means making cuts much cleaner than a torch in
stock too hard for an ordinary band saw and which took too long to cut
with an abrasive cutoff.

Anybody ever see this in operation? Or know that it's just a yarn?


--
Mike Spencer Nova Scotia, Canada

Mike Spencer wrote:
Jim Wilkins wrote:
On Jan 23, 3:22 pm, Wes wrote:

"Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

They tend to go too fast. Aluminum you can get away with.
I'm wondering how mine would
do with a 7/8" pitch 1 1/4 wide band. I think I'll stick to wood though.
Wes


Here's one I've never seen, only heard described as something that
U-Haul did in making trailers, maybe 30 years ago.

+ Set your band saw for very high speed

+ Cover the table with masonite or similar electrically insulating
material.

+ Attach one arc welder cable to the table and the other to the
metal workpiece.

+ Push the workiece into the blade. The blade strikes an arc
across the workpiece and table. The fast-moving blade blows the
molton metal/oxides out of the kerf but moves so fast that it
doesn't overheat. (And/or maybe there's a water- or air-jet
cooler in there somewhere?)

Allegedly, it was a means making cuts much cleaner than a torch in
stock too hard for an ordinary band saw and which took too long to cut
with an abrasive cutoff.

Anybody ever see this in operation? Or know that it's just a yarn?

OK, I just KNOW someone here is thinking about trying this.
Post a video please.

"RBnDFW" wrote in message
...
Mike Spencer wrote:
Jim Wilkins wrote:
On Jan 23, 3:22 pm, Wes wrote:

"Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

They tend to go too fast. Aluminum you can get away with. I'm
wondering how mine would
do with a 7/8" pitch 1 1/4 wide band. I think I'll stick to wood
though.
Wes


Here's one I've never seen, only heard described as something that
U-Haul did in making trailers, maybe 30 years ago.

+ Set your band saw for very high speed

+ Cover the table with masonite or similar electrically insulating
material.

+ Attach one arc welder cable to the table and the other to the
metal workpiece.

+ Push the workiece into the blade. The blade strikes an arc
across the workpiece and table. The fast-moving blade blows the
molton metal/oxides out of the kerf but moves so fast that it
doesn't overheat. (And/or maybe there's a water- or air-jet
cooler in there somewhere?)

Allegedly, it was a means making cuts much cleaner than a torch in
stock too hard for an ordinary band saw and which took too long to cut
with an abrasive cutoff.

Anybody ever see this in operation? Or know that it's just a yarn?

OK, I just KNOW someone here is thinking about trying this.
Post a video please.

Maaaaybe, but not with my saw. LOL.

Bob La Londe wrote:

(...)

+ Push the workiece into the blade. The blade strikes an arc
across the workpiece and table.

Did they have a set of carbon brushes grounding the blade?
The neoprene tires on my bandsaw wheels would prevent the necessary
current flow. That is a good thing because it would toast the
bearings muy pronto.

--Winston

On Jan 25, 10:30*pm, Mike Spencer wrote:

Allegedly, it was a means making cuts much cleaner than a torch in
stock too hard for an ordinary band saw and which took too long to cut
with an abrasive cutoff.

Anybody ever see this in operation? *Or know that it's just a yarn?

--
Mike Spencer * * * * * * * * *Nova Scotia, Canada

With an industrial grade saw with lots of hp, you can cut just using
friction. No teeth necessary on the blade.

Dan

"Winston" wrote in message
...
Bob La Londe wrote:

(...)

+ Push the workiece into the blade. The blade strikes an arc
across the workpiece and table.

Did they have a set of carbon brushes grounding the blade?
The neoprene tires on my bandsaw wheels would prevent the necessary
current flow. That is a good thing because it would toast the
bearings muy pronto.

--Winston

Not all bandsaws have rubber bands. The one we used for cutting meat in my
mom's grocery store did not.

On 1/26/2010 1:05 PM, Bob La Londe wrote:

(...)

Not all bandsaws have rubber bands. The one we used for cutting meat in
my mom's grocery store did not.

Heidi Klum: Oooh dash baaad.

Imagine the havoc created by current flow through the wheel bearings!

--Winston

On Tue, 26 Jan 2010 10:16:46 -0700, "Bob La Londe"
wrote:

"RBnDFW" wrote in message
...
Mike Spencer wrote:
Jim Wilkins wrote:
On Jan 23, 3:22 pm, Wes wrote:

"Bob La Londe" wrote:

Any of you guys use one for cutting metal ... and admit to it?

They tend to go too fast. Aluminum you can get away with. I'm
wondering how mine would
do with a 7/8" pitch 1 1/4 wide band. I think I'll stick to wood
though.
Wes


Here's one I've never seen, only heard described as something that
U-Haul did in making trailers, maybe 30 years ago.

+ Set your band saw for very high speed

+ Cover the table with masonite or similar electrically insulating
material.

+ Attach one arc welder cable to the table and the other to the
metal workpiece.

+ Push the workiece into the blade. The blade strikes an arc
across the workpiece and table. The fast-moving blade blows the
molton metal/oxides out of the kerf but moves so fast that it
doesn't overheat. (And/or maybe there's a water- or air-jet
cooler in there somewhere?)

Allegedly, it was a means making cuts much cleaner than a torch in
stock too hard for an ordinary band saw and which took too long to cut
with an abrasive cutoff.

Anybody ever see this in operation? Or know that it's just a yarn?

OK, I just KNOW someone here is thinking about trying this.
Post a video please.

Maaaaybe, but not with my saw. LOL.


You don't even have to fool about with all that electrical stuff. Just
put the blade in up side down and set the speed to High. It is called
"friction sawing" and works on all metals. The blade doesn't cut and
so heats the material and even up side down teeth will rake molten
metal away from the work..

Sounds rather horrendous but all/most DoAll saws were manufactured to
allow this.

Cheers,

John B.
(johnbslocomatgmaildotcom)

In article , spaco
wrote:

I have a 10" Delta vertical bandsaw that I have been using to cut steel
for over 20 years. It's a light duty home version.
The big issue is that you have to slow it down a LOT for steel. To
do that, I simply mounted a second, slow speed motor in the stand, right
above the "wood speed" motor. To change from wood to metal, I just
install a shorter belt to the slow motor, instead of the longer belt to
the "wood" motor. The slow motor I used is a gearmotor that runs about
105 rpm and used to run a copy machine. It has a 1 1/2" diameter
pulley, so I get about 125 sfm on the blade. I have other metal cutting
tools now, so I don't use it for heavy metal cutting anymore, but I used
to cut stock as thick as 1". Slow, but got the job done. I even had
blades made that were as wide as 1/2" and as narrow as 1/8". You'd be
surprised at how long the 1/8" blades lasted!

Where do you get 1/8" bimetal bandsaw blades? What's the TPI?

-Frank

--
Here's some of my work:
http://www.franksknives.com

On Tue, 26 Jan 2010 09:53:07 -0800 (PST), "
wrote:

On Jan 25, 10:30*pm, Mike Spencer wrote:

Allegedly, it was a means making cuts much cleaner than a torch in
stock too hard for an ordinary band saw and which took too long to cut
with an abrasive cutoff.

Anybody ever see this in operation? *Or know that it's just a yarn?

--
Mike Spencer * * * * * * * * *Nova Scotia, Canada

With an industrial grade saw with lots of hp, you can cut just using
friction. No teeth necessary on the blade.


Friction sawing doesn't require all that much HP. I can do 1/8" SS on
my little 16" DoAll with only 3/4 HP, but the top speed of 1500 FPM is
a bigger limitation than the power. The 36" saw I used to have had a 2
or 3 HP motor and ran at around 6000 FPM. It cut 1/2" SS pretty well,
and 3/4" in a pinch. The big dedicated friction saws can run over
10,000 FPM.

--
Ned Simmons

Ned Simmons wrote:

Friction sawing doesn't require all that much HP. I can do 1/8" SS on
my little 16" DoAll with only 3/4 HP, but the top speed of 1500 FPM is
a bigger limitation than the power. The 36" saw I used to have had a 2
or 3 HP motor and ran at around 6000 FPM. It cut 1/2" SS pretty well,
and 3/4" in a pinch. The big dedicated friction saws can run over
10,000 FPM.

Thanks for the info. I never heard of friction sawing of this type.

Perhaps the reported use of an electric arc across the workpiece/table
was a solution for a particularly difficult application, say, cutting
heavy structural shapes where ordinary friction sawing bogged down.

See also:

http://www.detroitbandsaw.com/store.asp?pid=21273


--
Mike Spencer Nova Scotia, Canada