Crowning band saw tire or not

[davecarothers@comcast.net]

Hello, folks, Looking for opinions on whether to crown a urethane band saw tire. Just newly installed on an old Walker Turner 14". Any help?

[Bill_de]

Hello, folks, Looking for opinions on whether to crown a urethane band saw tire. Just newly installed on an old Walker Turner 14". Any help?

I have a 14" Powermatic. When the original tires wore out I replaced them with a urethane tires right out of the package. It was like getting a new, better than new, bandsaw. 

I would try that first.

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[OneStaple]

You need a crown in the tires for proper tracking of the blade. Some wheels have a crown built in, which effectively crowns the tires when installed. I don't have as much experience with urethane tires (have used rubber on old machines), but I think some come thicker in the middle to give a crown.

The methods above give good/decent results. The best results come from crowning the tires on the machine, as that accounts for any irregularities or things slightly out of line. I would suspect that the size of the bandsaw may also make a difference in how much difference in results between methods there are.

Tyler

[Bob Vaughan]

You need a crown in the tires for proper tracking of the blade. Some wheels have a crown built in, which effectively crowns the tires when installed. I don't have as much experience with urethane tires (have used rubber on old machines), but I think some come thicker in the middle to give a crown.

The methods above give good/decent results. The best results come from crowning the tires on the machine, as that accounts for any irregularities or things slightly out of line. I would suspect that the size of the bandsaw may also make a difference in how much difference in results between methods there are.

Tyler

This take complies with the laws of physics. Flat bands track in the center of crowned pulleys (or wheels).  This is true for flat belts, sanding belts, and other belted things.

Below is an example of crowned pulleys driving a flat belt.  The belt stays on because of the crown.  Note the twisted belt for proper rotational direction.  Here, 'coplaner' is out the window.

   

[rwe2156]

I don't think it matters.

One of my bandsaws is crowned, the other is flat. If the wheels are lined up properly they will track.

I can't tell the difference, if anything, the flat one tracks better.

[Stwood_]

We used to crown the hard rubber bands back in the day when the wheels were flat.
I don't ever remember seeing or hearing about crowning urethane. I presently don't have anything with urethane.

[castguy2003]

Urethanes are, by nature, very resistant to abrasion. That's one reason they are used for foundry patterns continually exposed to sand. Thus, they would be very difficult to crown. The ones I recently installed on my 14" Jet were molded with the center thicker than the edges giving a natural crown.

[Aram]

I don't think it matters.

One of my bandsaws is crowned, the other is flat.  If the wheels are lined up properly they will track.

I can't tell the difference, if anything, the flat one tracks better.

Agreed. My MM16 has flat wheels, and the bands are flat too. As long as you take care to align the wheels, it tracks perfectly. It has never been a problem.

[doobes]

I crowned the tires when I replaced them on my 16" Walker Turner.

On another topic, using your e-mail as a username is a guarantee way to get an inbox full of spam.

DAMHIKT....