Dull bandsaw blade
#11
Hello all,

How can I tell when my resaw king bandsaw blade is getting dull?

I've had it for a few years and never had it sharpened.  

The blade wants to wander left then right in the cut in such a was a setting up for any drift is not possible because it wanders.
It especially wanders in slow cuts which I make.  If I push the wood through quickly  then it seems to settle down and "pick a direction"

The surface of the cut is a bit rougher than I remember but the tips of the teeth still feel to have some type of an edge.

Finally I'm not sure if this is blade dullness or if the spring needs replacing or both.

I'm planning on replacing the spring but I'm wondering when I can tell that it's time to get it sharpened.

With regular steel blades its easy to tell but I'm not sure about carbide teeth.
Peter

My "day job"
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#12
(02-22-2018, 01:19 PM)Peter Tremblay Wrote: Hello all,

How can I tell when my resaw king bandsaw blade is getting dull?

I've had it for a few years and never had it sharpened.  

The blade wants to wander left then right in the cut in such a was a setting up for any drift is not possible because it wanders.
It especially wanders in slow cuts which I make.  If I push the wood through quickly  then it seems to settle down and "pick a direction"

The surface of the cut is a bit rougher than I remember but the tips of the teeth still feel to have some type of an edge.

Finally I'm not sure if this is blade dullness or if the spring needs replacing or both.

I'm planning on replacing the spring but I'm wondering when I can tell that it's time to get it sharpened.

With regular steel blades its easy to tell but I'm not sure about carbide teeth.

Sure sounds like it's dull, Peter.  Get a magnifying glass and look at the teeth.  If the lead edge is anything other than crisp, it's not sharp.  

John
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#13
(02-22-2018, 01:19 PM)Peter Tremblay Wrote: Hello all,

How can I tell when my resaw king bandsaw blade is getting dull?

I've had it for a few years and never had it sharpened.  

The blade wants to wander left then right in the cut in such a was a setting up for any drift is not possible because it wanders.
It especially wanders in slow cuts which I make.  If I push the wood through quickly  then it seems to settle down and "pick a direction"

The surface of the cut is a bit rougher than I remember but the tips of the teeth still feel to have some type of an edge.

Finally I'm not sure if this is blade dullness or if the spring needs replacing or both.

I'm planning on replacing the spring but I'm wondering when I can tell that it's time to get it sharpened.

With regular steel blades its easy to tell but I'm not sure about carbide teeth.
................
Peter, a really "sharp" blade will "catch" your skin when you drag a finger across the teeth...Another way is to look at the points of the teeth with a low power magnifying glass...if you can "see" a shiny spot where the point should be, it's pretty dull.....But the good part is, if you have a Dremel and a diamond burr {like for chainsaw sharpening} you can most likely make it sharper than new by yourself and do it right on the saw. I posted the method here more than ten years ago and now there are Youtube videos that show you how.

One thing you have to consider.,..if the blade has lost it's "set" it can do as you described, and there's no practical way of correcting it that I know of.
Often Tested.    Always Faithful.      Brothers Forever

Jack Edgar, Sgt. U.S. Marines, Korea, America's Forgotten War
Get off my lawn !
Upset





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#14
Peter
Jack is right,I use his method all the time and it is sharper than new.As soon as my blade starts to wander,I take 20 mins or so and sharpen it.

Mel
ABC(Anything But Crapsman)club member
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#15
Thanks Jack and Mel.

I don't have a dremel but I've been wanting one.

Might be cheaper than sending it back to be sharpened by Laguna
Peter

My "day job"
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#16
(02-22-2018, 10:25 PM)Peter Tremblay Wrote: Thanks Jack and Mel.

I don't have a dremel but I've been wanting one.

Might be cheaper than sending it back to be sharpened by Laguna
...........
You can save enough money to pay for the Dremel, Peter, and you can sharpen your blade several times. Just buy a Diamond burr that will fit inside the gullet of the teeth...I sharpen them down to a nub before having replace them..and that's usually because the set has worn away. The basic Dremel is all you need..nothing fancy.
Often Tested.    Always Faithful.      Brothers Forever

Jack Edgar, Sgt. U.S. Marines, Korea, America's Forgotten War
Get off my lawn !
Upset





Reply
#17
(02-22-2018, 10:45 PM)Timberwolf Wrote: ...........
You can save enough money to pay for the Dremel, Peter, and you can sharpen your blade several times. Just buy a Diamond burr that will fit inside the gullet of the teeth...I sharpen them down to a nub before having replace them..and that's usually because the set has worn away. The basic Dremel is all you need..nothing fancy.

$38 for the most basic Dremel

About $10 for the diamond burrs 

Compared to $45 to have Laguna sharpen my blade.
(The Resaw King blade does not have any set)

Wow... that's a fairly easy choice 
Winkgrin
Peter

My "day job"
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#18
Peter
You can sharpen your blade more than once,I have done mine as much as 4 times.Mark where you start on the blade with a piece of chaulk.

Mel
ABC(Anything But Crapsman)club member
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#19
The dremel sharpening I have seen (and done since seeing Timberwolf's post a decade ago -- thanks!) was on steel blades, preferably bimetal, and was strictly FTG.

Peter is referring to a carbide blade, which a diamond burr should cut, but that might be trickier to control. Does anyone have experience with sharpening of carbide bandsaw blades?

A method that controls the angles a bit better might be warranted. Something like that shown here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SoaOkqi-xxs

By the way, rather than chalk or tape, I find it handy to blacken the tips of all the teeth before sharpening by moving the blade backwards past a sharpie marker. That makes it easy to see which teeth have been sharpened so I don't miss or redo any. Even though most of the sharpening is focussed on the gullet, it's harder to mark there, so I don't. The quick sweep down the back of the tooth takes off the marker.
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#20
(02-23-2018, 02:28 PM)Alan S Wrote: The dremel sharpening I have seen (and done since seeing Timberwolf's post a decade ago -- thanks!) was on steel blades, preferably bimetal.  

Peter is referring to a carbide blade, which a diamond burr should cut, but that might be trickier to control.  Does anyone have experience with sharpening of carbide bandsaw blades?

Thanks for that clarification, Alan.



Anyone?
Peter

My "day job"
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