Beginner bandsaw questions

[Zhent]

Hi all,

I'm setting up my bandsaw for the first time, and not being terribly familiar with them I've run into a few questions. I have watched many videos on bandsaws, how to set them up, and how to tune them, but I'm unfortunately lacking real hands-on experience.

First - when I start a cut, the blade seems to shift out [away from the wheels] a little bit. Here are a few pictures I hope help explain:

http://i.imgur.com/9gQKkbV.jpg

This photo shows my cut lined up 

http://i.imgur.com/DBDfQ1V.jpg

This is what I get about halfway through - it's slid from the inside of the line to the far outside. I thought it was bandsaw drift, however my understanding from Youtube is that is more of a increasing problem over the cut, while this jumps out and then stays constant? Or am I mis-understanding it

http://i.imgur.com/OVxw9Q9.jpg

Here's the flip side of that same cut - they line up perfectly, which is what is confusing me on the drift piece.


Question 2: When I complete a cut and turn the saw off, the piece of wood between the blade and the fence is held in place and the blade continues to rub against the wood. If I cut halfway through a piece of wood and try to remove it, the back of the blade sort of cuts its way back out of the wood - it follows the cut but you can hear it rubbing against the inside of the cut the entire way up. The blade is a 1/2" blade and I tried to tension it properly - I know the indicators in the saws are usually inaccurate, but I'm well past the 5/8 indicator. Is this a blade tension issue?

Thank you!

[K. L. McReynolds]

Why is the blade guide assy not being used  for those cuts? That would control blade drift better.

My band saw is a tiny 10" model and a 1/2" blade is the widest I can use. I can tension it a lot(solid cast aluminum frame), but I also found a straight fence is not as good a choice as a curved point of contact fence---easier to adjust the stock for blade drift.

[Zhent]

Thanks - is that what is going on, blade drift? I always sort of thought that blade drift meant it cut in a straight line that just wasn't parallel with the fence, like this |/ , where as I'm sort of getting that and then it evens out after a little bit, more like |) ish.

The guard was down on a prior cut, I moved it so I could take the photos.

[JGrout]

I am going with inadequate tension on the band. 

Wandering in the cut is inevitable if the band is not tensioned enough. considering the stock cut you are making (not a resaw) the beam is not stiff enough in the cut to prevent the wandering you show. 

Joe

[Zhent]

Thanks - I was concerned about over tensioning it and snapping a blade so it is entirely possible I swayed too far on the other direction. I will check that this afternoon and see if I can tension it properly without breaking anything!

[JGrout]

In most cases you will lock the spring down ( fully collapsed) until it cannot move any longer before you risk breaking anything. I am not saying that is what to do I am saying

 you can go a long ways before that is an issue. If you are not tone deaf tuning the band by plucking the off side to a low G on a guitar will get you in the ball park  

Joe

[Alan S]

This is blade drift. Note that the blade is trying to cut at an angle away from the fence, but once it moves a bit to the side that increases the tension and it cuts parallel to the fence.

I'd try it without a fence. Draw a line on the stock, and follow that. With a sharp blade and a well set up saw you should be able to cut along a fence, but it's more forgiving and can help to diagnose problems to cut freehand. If it does not cut straight at all, you need more tension, a different blade, or to cut more slowly. If it will cut straight but not parallel to the fence, there are adjustments you can make to fix it. The expert opinion (above) is that low tension is the most likely culprit.

[ez-duzit]

Take the time to view this before proceeding.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGbZqWac0jU

[Rob Young]

Take the time to view this before proceeding.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGbZqWac0jU

+1

[PedroOhare]

Thanks - is that what is going on, blade drift? I always sort of thought that blade drift meant it cut in a straight line that just wasn't parallel with the fence, like this |/ , where as I'm sort of getting that and then it evens out after a little bit, more like |) ish.

The guard was down on a prior cut, I moved it so I could take the photos.

But did you move it back down when you made these cuts? It is not really a guard, it is a guide. I just wanted to make sure all the bases are covered.

Pedro