My birthday is coming. My usual gift to me is some sort of tool
that I need but haven't bought yet. I am thinking of a bandsaw tension
gauge.

The Iturra folks have one for $150. All others are way above that.

So... what should I buy? Or do I really need one?

MJ

" wrote:

My birthday is coming. My usual gift to me is some sort of tool
that I need but haven't bought yet. I am thinking of a bandsaw tension
gauge.

The Iturra folks have one for $150. All others are way above that.

So... what should I buy? Or do I really need one?


"Do I need" and "should I buy" are at their core personal questions
that only you can ask. But for myself, the answer would be that I
don't need that nearly as much as other things that $15 can buy.

I built the one described in FWW at
http://www.finewoodworking.com/Skill...F.aspx?id=2702
(subscription required for the pdf)

Basically, when you are measuring the tension of the blade, you are
measuring how much it has been stretched. The idea of this is that two
pieces of wood are clamped to the blade, with the pieces touching each
other and the clamp points 6" (or 8" or 12", some fixed distance)
apart on the blade, The blade is then tightened and the distance
between the pieces is measured with a feeler gauge (or a dial
indicator if you prefer--but I think that is false or useless
precision.)

The neat thing about these gauges is that they measure the stretch of
the blade, which is directly proportional to the tension. The built-in
indicator measures the compression of the spring, which is
proportional to the FORCE on the blade. That's why you have the scale
that varies by width (implicitly assuming all blades are the same
thickness). This scale converts from the read force to tension (PSI),

I find I use my gauge about every 6 months to recalibrate the spring
gauge built into the saw. With on small wood scrap cut in two, two
finish nails, and two claims that are not dedicated. And my $150 goes
elsewhere (maybe to Iturra for other of their fine products)



--
Alex -- Replace "nospam" with "mail" to reply by email. Checked infrequently.

wrote:
My birthday is coming. My usual gift to me is some sort of tool
that I need but haven't bought yet. I am thinking of a bandsaw tension
gauge.

The Iturra folks have one for $150. All others are way above that.

So... what should I buy? Or do I really need one?

I vote for not needed. You can build the version that uses feeler
gauges, use the "gut feel" method, or pluck it and use the pitch of the
blade. (See "http://www.cgallery.com/jpthien/tg.htm" for a fancy
version of this.)

Chris

On Aug 13, 1:13*pm, "
wrote:
My birthday is coming. My usual gift to me is some sort of tool
that I need but haven't bought yet. I am thinking of a bandsaw tension
gauge.

The Iturra folks have one for $150. All others are way above that.

So... what should I buy? Or do I really need one?

MJ


I'd echo everyone else except I'd add Happy Birthday!
If you don't have access to the fww article referenced above, buy
yourself an electronic subscription for your bday

cheers

wrote:
My birthday is coming. My usual gift to me is some sort of tool
that I need but haven't bought yet. I am thinking of a bandsaw tension
gauge.

The Iturra folks have one for $150. All others are way above that.

So... what should I buy? Or do I really need one?

MJ

No idea what you need, or want. Or whether it's a 'should'.

It's a birthday, and the way I consider that, is to think about what
someone dear to me might buy. I almost never get something that I truly
need, but I often get something that I want, or something the gifter
thinks I might want.

If you're treating yourself, I think it's the time to go for what
tickles your fancy. And that doesn't need analysis. You just feel it.

Tanus

On Thu, 13 Aug 2009 12:22:29 -0600, Chris Friesen wrote:

You can build the version that uses feeler gauges, use the "gut feel"
method, or pluck it and use the pitch of the blade.

I'm an advocate of the "twang" method. When it stops sounding dull and
starts sounding like a note it's tensioned enough.

--
Intelligence is an experiment that failed - G. B. Shaw

Thanks to all that replied.

1) I already have a Fine Woodworking on-line account. Best $14 I spend
all
year.

2) I searched for home-made gauges and found a couple more. There was
one
person who just used calibers. Opened the jaws to 5 inches. Zeroed the
dial, clamped the jaws to the blade and tightened until he got to .003
on the dial.
Seems to work, cheap (I own one) and easy to build (unlike the other
one in FWW).

Again, thanks all. I'm going to use my birthday money on something
else then.

MJ

wrote in message
...
My birthday is coming. My usual gift to me is some sort of tool
that I need but haven't bought yet. I am thinking of a bandsaw tension
gauge.

The Iturra folks have one for $150. All others are way above that.

So... what should I buy? Or do I really need one?

MJ

Go for gold, Get a Laguna HD series band saw, it has the tension gauge
built in. And those saws will make you look at a band saw in an entirely
different way. ;~)

"Leon" wrote in message
...

wrote in message
...
My birthday is coming. My usual gift to me is some sort of tool
that I need but haven't bought yet. I am thinking of a bandsaw tension
gauge.

The Iturra folks have one for $150. All others are way above that.

So... what should I buy? Or do I really need one?

MJ

Go for gold, Get a Laguna HD series band saw, it has the tension gauge
built in. And those saws will make you look at a band saw in an entirely
different way.


I used to use one at work that would cut a strait line (no kerf deflection)
in 7 inch thick titanium. After that, every other bandsaw seems kind of
wimpy.

"CW" wrote in message
m...

"Leon" wrote in message
...

wrote in message
...
My birthday is coming. My usual gift to me is some sort of tool
that I need but haven't bought yet. I am thinking of a bandsaw tension
gauge.

The Iturra folks have one for $150. All others are way above that.

So... what should I buy? Or do I really need one?

MJ

Go for gold, Get a Laguna HD series band saw, it has the tension gauge
built in. And those saws will make you look at a band saw in an entirely
different way.


I used to use one at work that would cut a strait line (no kerf
deflection) in 7 inch thick titanium. After that, every other bandsaw
seems kind of wimpy.

Exactly, but wait till you se one cut through 7 inches of "Diamond".

On Thu, 13 Aug 2009 10:13:22 -0700 (PDT), "
wrote:

My birthday is coming. My usual gift to me is some sort of tool
that I need but haven't bought yet. I am thinking of a bandsaw tension
gauge.

The Iturra folks have one for $150. All others are way above that.

So... what should I buy? Or do I really need one?

MJ


You don't need one. Keep plucking the blade just until the sound is
clear. A bandsaw upgrade might include cool blocks, new blades,
wheel base, or gooseneck lamp.