I've got a 14" Jet bandsaw on the way. I understand that the blade they supply out of the box is less than ideal, so I'd like to have a better quality blade here when it arrives. What would you bandsawing experts recommend in a 93 1/2" blade for general use, including rough shaping necks and cutting out tops and backs? Many thanks in advance.
Bandsaw Blades
- Thread starter mzuch
- Start date
thistle3585
Well-known member
I buy one off the shelf from a big box store. I think my resaw blade is 6 TPI. I resaw a couple times a year and go through about two blades a year, so a cheap one works for me. I also have 1/4" blade I use for cutting tight radiuses. I use my bandsaw almost daily but its usually to cut the waste away before fine trimming it with another tool. I just borrowed a friends bandsaw with a riser block on it and will be purchasing one of those in the near future and will invest more in a 3/4" blade for it. I've heard good things about Timberwolf blades.
Andrew
Andrew
I only have experience with three saw blades on my 14" Grizzly: the 1/2" that came with it and the Timberwolf 3/4" AS-S blade for resawing and the 1/8" Timberwolf 14 tpi I got for everything else. The 1/8" blade lets me do things like this one
, and has proven effective for a variety of other things, including resawing spruce for bracing and tonebars--properly tensioned, it cuts as straight as my 3/4 inch, albeit, much more slowly. I also use it for cutting out fretboards and bridges, as it cuts very cleanly, with no tearing. And, of course, I use it for cutting out my ukes tops and bottoms prior to gluing them on. The Timberwolf blades have a great reputation, and I haven't a single reason to give up on them yet.
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If you do not plan to build guitars in the future the 14 inch Jet will work just fine.
If you plan to build guitars in the future and want to resaw tops or backs, you may want to contact Jet and change your order to include the riser block installed on the saw. Installing the riser block at home is a bit of a pain because the nut used to reattach the upper half of the saw is very big (1 1/8 inch, if memory serves me) and there is not a lot of space to work. I found myself looking everywhere for someone with a wrench of socket that big. A crescent wrench wouldn't fit because of the tight space around the nut. It is also a 2 person job to add the riser block. Why not let the factory do it for you?
Two blades that are very good for resawing are the Timberwolf (see above) and the Wood Slicer from Highland.
Konala
If you plan to build guitars in the future and want to resaw tops or backs, you may want to contact Jet and change your order to include the riser block installed on the saw. Installing the riser block at home is a bit of a pain because the nut used to reattach the upper half of the saw is very big (1 1/8 inch, if memory serves me) and there is not a lot of space to work. I found myself looking everywhere for someone with a wrench of socket that big. A crescent wrench wouldn't fit because of the tight space around the nut. It is also a 2 person job to add the riser block. Why not let the factory do it for you?
Two blades that are very good for resawing are the Timberwolf (see above) and the Wood Slicer from Highland.
Konala
I wish I had gotten the riser block from Grizzly (which gets very good reviews, btw, even for use with the Jet). Even for ukes, it would be nice to resaw single piece tops and backs. On the other hand, it would have been nearly impossible to set it up in my basement. It would have to fit between some joists, and then good luck increasing blade tension with the knob right there at the ceiling. But someday...
Thanks for all the advice. Very helpful, as this forum always is. The saw arrives today, and I'm looking forward to assembling it. (Of course, first I've got to get it off the truck. Driver is unlikely to help much with that.) I've got a better-than-stock blade coming today. I'm hoping to avoid replacing the guide blocks with the more expensive rollers, but we'll see how the saw does out of the box.
One tip I might offer. For any new band saw, make sure it is set up, fine-tuned correctly. Especially make sure both wheels are set up co-planer so the blade tracks correctly. I'm sure there must be much info on the net concerning this adjustment. Or, there are many good books and articles in woodworking magazines regarding band saw set up. May not need it right out of the box but I wouldn't count on it. Have fun and be careful.
Ahnko Honu
Well-known member
I bought my 14" Grizzly used from a friend then ordered the riser from Grizzly. Installation was a breeze but I did already have the right tools. I got my saw for shaping blanks for woodturning. Back ingury, and 3 surgeries later I hadn't turned wood in over 5 years so was seriously considering selling it but glad I discovered the UU luthier's forum.
Cool Blocks have a very good reputation, and only run $15.
ps. offer the driver $20 to help, or get a friend over there--it's too much for one man.
Moore Bettah Ukuleles
Well-known member
I don't like to stop to change blades so I use the best blade I can buy. In my case that's a Lenox Woodmaster CT, carbide tipped. Half inch by 105" X 3 TPI is about $135. I use it for general work and it's always sharp. I don't resaw on my 14" Powermatic though. For resawing expensive wood I trust someone to do that job, someone with a saw dedicated specifically for resawing with a power feed. I supply my own blade (Lenox as well--$250) and it's used for cutting my wood only. In four hours we can cut more wood than I'll use in six months at 40 bucks an hour. No waste and the boards come out looking like they've been run through a sander. Well worth the money.
For smaller cutting I use 1/4" Timberwolves on my Delta 10" saw.
For smaller cutting I use 1/4" Timberwolves on my Delta 10" saw.
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Has anyone used the Laguna Resaw King carbide tipped blade. At $1.73 per inch ($181.65 for a 105 inch blade) it is a bit pricey but i believe that Laguna will sharpen it in the future for only a nominal charge.
Konala
Konala
Rick Turner
Well-known member
I tried some of the Laguna blades on my Baker resaw and they were terrible. Everything I've gotten from Suffolk Machinery...the TimberWolf folks...has been really good. I use the variable pitch ASS type blades for resawing, and our shop standard for the 14" Powermatic and 14" Delta bandsaws is the Timberwolf 6 tpi blade.
dave g
Well-known member
I get band saw blades made locally by a sharpening / toolmaking place (no website). You might look in the yellow pages and see if you've got something similar nearby.
Timbuck
Well-known member
Do you still use that petrol driven bandsaw Dave?
dave g
Well-known member
Do you still use that petrol driven bandsaw Dave?
Yeah, but I put a pushbutton for the start windings on the motor, so no more rope start is required
