I am cutting some walnut lumber. Using the advice I got here, and a new
Timberwolf 3tpi blade, things have been going reasonably well. The first 40
cuts (4' long, averaging 5" thick) were perfectly straight, but the last few
have developed a significant drift angle; the ends have become too thin to
be used and the wood is getting curved. I readjusted everything, but it
doesn't help. All I can think is that the blade is getting dull, but I
would expect a blade to last much longer than this.
Frankly though, I am a complete beginner with a band saw (14" Delta 1hp) and
really don't know. It was actually getting easier as I picked up a little
skill in feeding the wood, but I can't continue like this.

Could the blade be getting dull after 160' of 5" thick fresh walnut, or is
there another possibility I am over looking. Thanks.

In article , "Toller" wrote:

Could the blade be getting dull after 160' of 5" thick fresh walnut, or is
there another possibility I am over looking. Thanks.

Perhaps you hit a foreign object (nail, stone, etc) embedded in the wood. Have
you checked the teeth to make sure they're equally sharp on both sides?

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.

On Sat, 29 Apr 2006 12:04:43 GMT, "Toller" wrote:

I am cutting some walnut lumber. Using the advice I got here, and a new
Timberwolf 3tpi blade, things have been going reasonably well. The first 40
cuts (4' long, averaging 5" thick) were perfectly straight, but the last few
have developed a significant drift angle; the ends have become too thin to
be used and the wood is getting curved. I readjusted everything, but it
doesn't help. All I can think is that the blade is getting dull, but I
would expect a blade to last much longer than this.
Frankly though, I am a complete beginner with a band saw (14" Delta 1hp) and
really don't know. It was actually getting easier as I picked up a little
skill in feeding the wood, but I can't continue like this.

Could the blade be getting dull after 160' of 5" thick fresh walnut, or is
there another possibility I am over looking. Thanks.

IMHO, from 5 minutes to several weeks.. *g*

I buy pretty good quality blades, made up at a local saw shop.. If I'm cutting
dry wood for pen blanks or kiln dried and FLAT wood for bowl blanks, they seem
to last forever...

OTOH, cutting green wood usually beats them up pretty fast... my guess is
because not only does the green wood drag more, which heats the blade, but you
get more twists and binds because the surface resting on the table is not going
to be real flat and square..

I think that if I cut 160 feet of 5" stock with the same blade, I'd feel pretty
good about it... YMWV

Usually the first sign that my blade is not sharp anymore is wander... much like
a drill bit that is clogged or dull will wander on a deep hole...
I think that instead of cutting what you put in front of it, it tends to follow
grain or stress patterns or something, what ever the "point of least resistance"
is.. (just a WAG)





Mac

https://home.comcast.net/~mac.davis
https://home.comcast.net/~mac.davis/wood_stuff.htm

You can try tension, guides, etc. but I bet the blade is dull.
Everybody raves about Timberwolf blades, but I am totally unimpressed.
I switched to a Lenox bimetal blade (1/2", 4 tpi) and it lasts MUCH
longer (10x?) . You can buy it from Iturra Designs or carbide.com.

Another consideration is that heat totally destroys the carbon steel
blades. (As I understand it, "silicon steel" is essentially the same
as carbon steel.) If you pushed too fast and got burning, etc. that
can wipe out the blade instantly. Also, if the tracking was off and
the blade ever came off and hit the guards, that can destroy it.

Mark

In article , Toller wrote:

.....

Could the blade be getting dull after 160' of 5" thick fresh walnut, or is
there another possibility I am over looking. Thanks.


120V or 240V? Is the switch adequately rated for the HP? giggle




Seriously, I'd guess that the blade got a bit hot. and maybe stretched a
_little_. And not uniformly front-to-back.

In article ,
"Toller" wrote:


How long does a bandsaw blade last?


'Bout the same length of time as a lollipop.

And that is because a canary is yellow and the Eiffel Tower is also made
out of steel.
Which brings me to:
What is the price of a car?

Major yukkage

On Sat, 29 Apr 2006 22:14:10 -0400, Robatoy
wrote:

In article ,
"Toller" wrote:


How long does a bandsaw blade last?


'Bout the same length of time as a lollipop.

And that is because a canary is yellow and the Eiffel Tower is also made
out of steel.

Actually, it's made of iron, not steel.

In article ,
Wes Stewart wrote:

On Sat, 29 Apr 2006 22:14:10 -0400, Robatoy
wrote:

In article ,
"Toller" wrote:


How long does a bandsaw blade last?


'Bout the same length of time as a lollipop.

And that is because a canary is yellow and the Eiffel Tower is also made
out of steel.

Actually, it's made of iron, not steel.

Darn... I've been messin' with peoples' heads all these years?


From now on...iron it is.

originally was cast iron, but I think they've replaced most of it with
structural steel by now....

Toller wrote:
I am cutting some walnut lumber. Using the advice I got here, and a new
Timberwolf 3tpi blade, things have been going reasonably well. The first 40
cuts (4' long, averaging 5" thick) were perfectly straight, but the last few
have developed a significant drift angle; the ends have become too thin to
be used and the wood is getting curved. I readjusted everything, but it
doesn't help. All I can think is that the blade is getting dull, but I
would expect a blade to last much longer than this.
Frankly though, I am a complete beginner with a band saw (14" Delta 1hp) and
really don't know. It was actually getting easier as I picked up a little
skill in feeding the wood, but I can't continue like this.

Could the blade be getting dull after 160' of 5" thick fresh walnut, or is
there another possibility I am over looking. Thanks.



Make sure you're minimizing cutting through bark; better yet, remove the
bark entirely. Watch out about tensioning with the TimberWolf blade, it
is a low tension blade, read their instructions carefully.

Hey,
I can usually tell by just feeling the teeth and looking at the blade.

I think the belt could be dull especially if the wood was not that
clean.
Are you using a straight fence, doing free hand or using a resaw type
curved fence.
I found that when I used delta blades or even olson, 160' would have
used at least one or maybe more blades.

"Toller" wrote in message
...
I am cutting some walnut lumber. Using the advice I got here, and a new
Timberwolf 3tpi blade, things have been going reasonably well. The first
40 cuts (4' long, averaging 5" thick) were perfectly straight, but the last
few have developed a significant drift angle; the ends have become too thin
to be used and the wood is getting curved. I readjusted everything, but it
doesn't help. All I can think is that the blade is getting dull, but I
would expect a blade to last much longer than this.
Frankly though, I am a complete beginner with a band saw (14" Delta 1hp)
and really don't know. It was actually getting easier as I picked up a
little skill in feeding the wood, but I can't continue like this.

Could the blade be getting dull after 160' of 5" thick fresh walnut, or is
there another possibility I am over looking. Thanks.

Toller,

It's possible that there is something amiss with your setup (blade tension,
drift angle, technique, etc.) that was being masked by the sharp blade. But,
once the newness of the edge wore off and the blade became only semi-sharp,
these problems became apparent. Just a guess on my part here.

I just wanted to add that,according to Mark Duginske, while carbide-toothed
blades are 10 times more expensive, they last 50 times longer. Most people
think carbide bandsaw blades are more expensive, but they're actually much
cheaper in the long run. For the price of a new timberwolf blade, I can get
my carbide blade re-sharpened and then it lasts a long time...again.

I have a Laguna wood slicer (think that's what it's called) and it's fine.
Lenox makes a good blade too if your interested. Both are in the $200 range
though.

Good luck,

Mike