(11-08-2022, 10:35 AM)jteneyck Wrote: <snip>
I've never understood why people use the Trimaster for cutting wood. You are right that it was developed for cutting metal. The Woodmaster CT is much cheaper and cuts beautifully in wood, probably because it was designed for that task. Cuts great, costs less, what's not to like? And because it has fewer teeth it's possible to resharpen it yourself. Another win.
<snip>
John
One reason is that Trimaster is available in 1/2" width .025 thickness. The woodmaster appears to have a minimum width of 1". A 14" steel bandsaw will fit a 1/2" blade and being thinner than most carbide tipped blades - .025" Trimaster vs .032" (or more) should be easier to tension.
(11-09-2022, 07:09 AM)kurt18947 Wrote: One reason is that Trimaster is available in 1/2" width .025 thickness. The woodmaster appears to have a minimum width of 1". A 14" steel bandsaw will fit a 1/2" blade and being thinner than most carbide tipped blades - .025" Trimaster vs .032" (or more) should be easier to tension.
You are correct; I thought the CT was available in 3/4" but I just checked and it's not. So, yes, that leaves the TriMaster from Lennox or the Resaw King from Laguna.
I noted you said "steel bandsaw". I assume you specifically said that because they might be able to apply enough tension to the blade for it to perform well. I would never think about putting a carbide tipped blade on my 14" Delta cast iron saw. With a 1/2" blade all it can comfortably muster is 12 ksi, half of what you would ideally want. It still cuts OK, even for slicing 10" veneer, but only if everything is set up really, really well, and the feed rate is low enough not to deflect the blade. It works, but it's painful. So I stick with bimetal blades on that saw. They cut nearly as well as carbide, for a shorter period of time of course, and if I do something stupid and ruin the blade I'm not out a lot of money.
11-09-2022, 11:36 AM (This post was last modified: 11-09-2022, 11:52 AM by kurt18947.)
Yes I was referring to a steel spined saw vs. cast iron. I doubt I'd trust a 14" saw to run more than 1/2" blades, preferably thin like .025" so easier to tension adequately and less likely to break due to too small bend radius. I've seen advice about bandsaw blade widths to go one step down from the manufacturer's recommendation; if the manufacturer says a saw will run a 3/4" blade, stick with 1/2". If the manufacturer says a saw is good with a 1" blade, stick with 3/4" etc. I've stayed with that advice.
(11-09-2022, 11:36 AM)kurt18947 Wrote: Yes I was referring to a steel spined saw vs. cast iron. I doubt I'd trust a 14" saw to run more than 1/2" blades, preferably thin like .025" so easier to tension adequately and less likely to break due to too small bend radius. I've seen advice about bandsaw blade widths to go one step down from the manufacturer's recommendation; if the manufacturer says a saw will run a 3/4" blade, stick with 1/2". If the manufacturer says a saw is good with a 1" blade, stick with 3/4" etc. I've stayed with that advice.
That is a safe strategy. I have to say though that Grizzly seems to give an honest rating of blade width for their steel spined bandsaws. My G0636X is rated for a 1-3/8" wide blade and the tension I've measured on my 1" inch blade shows it could put at least 24 ksi on a 1-3/8" blade. The on-board tension indicator points very close to the 1" mark with 25 ksi on my 1" Woodmaster CT, too. I have no hands-on experience with the OP's Grizzly, but I'm curious why the tension indicator on his saw seems to be misbehaving.
11-10-2022, 02:07 PM (This post was last modified: 11-10-2022, 02:09 PM by barryvabeach.)
John, I have the GO313 x 2, and while I like it, the tension gauge has me stumped. It is a pivot assembly, pointer at one end( the yellow sheet metal to the left lower corner in the photo ) , screw in the middle for the pivot, and the other end is fixed to a plate at the bottom of the spring. To me, while in theory, it could measure tension, instead it is just showing how far the center of the wheel is in relation to the saw. I took the blade off the saw, and cranked the adjuster to raise the upper wheel, there is no tension on the spring because the blade is off, yet it shows above midway on the scale. The scale is just regular numbers, not marked as to blade width. Maybe what I am doing is total nonsense, but it seems to me that if one blade is slightly longer or shorter than another, that will impact what the reading is on the scale, even though the tension on the spring will be the same. I built the the same type of gauge you use, and used that to get a reading, then I relate that to the numbers on the scale, so I can use the numbers on the scale for that blade. For a different length blade, I would have to repeat the process. Let me know if I am totally misunderstanding how the tension gauge on the saw is supposed to work.
(11-10-2022, 02:07 PM)barryvabeach Wrote: John, I have the GO313 x 2, and while I like it, the tension gauge has me stumped. It is a pivot assembly, pointer at one end( the yellow sheet metal to the left lower corner in the photo ) , screw in the middle for the pivot, and the other end is fixed to a plate at the bottom of the spring. To me, while in theory, it could measure tension, instead it is just showing how far the center of the wheel is in relation to the saw. I took the blade off the saw, and cranked the adjuster to raise the upper wheel, there is no tension on the spring because the blade is off, yet it shows above midway on the scale. The scale is just regular numbers, not marked as to blade width. Maybe what I am doing is total nonsense, but it seems to me that if one blade is slightly longer or shorter than another, that will impact what the reading is on the scale, even though the tension on the spring will be the same. I built the the same type of gauge you use, and used that to get a reading, then I relate that to the numbers on the scale, so I can use the numbers on the scale for that blade. For a different length blade, I would have to repeat the process. Let me know if I am totally misunderstanding how the tension gauge on the saw is supposed to work.
You mean the G0513X2, right? That's a strange tension gauge to be sure. The manual makes no reference to it after initial blade tracking. Set it at 4 - 6; how can that be universally applicable to different blade widths? The one on my G0636X is different; it relates to blade width and with the 1" blade I use the indicator reading is pretty close to 1" when I put about 24 ksi on the blade. I think what you're doing makes sense; measure blade tension and relate that to what the indicator shows. Whether or not blade length influences the reading is probably irrelevant if you always buy blades of the same length. But I suspect you are right and would have to recalibrate for blades of different length and, obviously, for different widths.
The tension gage on your saw is a poster child for why one should build or buy a tension gage. It's the only way you can determine out what the actual tension is on a particular blade. And then, no matter how poor the on board indicator is, as long as it always points to the same value at the desired tension, it will still be useful.
John, sorry, you are right, the GO513 x2. As to blade length, actually the blade length is not identical for each blade, I found that out the hard way when the first one I bought was slighly over 131 1/2 and the upper wheel hit a stop before it was tensioned, so I now I order 131 1/4. My understanding of how that gauge is set up is that a few fractions longer or shorter will impact where the pointer points, and so even if I order a 131 1/4 , one may be a 1/16 or an 1/8 over, and the next one may be a 1/16 or an 1/8 longer and so will read differently even with the same tension. As to numbers, I can't recall what the manual said, though I thought it said to use higher numbers for wider blades. Again, I like the saw, it is just the gauge seems to fall pretty short of helpful.
12-08-2022, 07:08 PM (This post was last modified: 12-08-2022, 07:09 PM by David Stone.)
I’m not sure if this video is clear, but after playing with it a bit, this is the best I can do for a 3/4” resaw blade. (I don’t remember the brand.). It still has a bit of flutter. When I see band saws run in videos, the blades almost look like their not moving. Am I doing something wrong?
(Looks like the video didn’t post. Ill try to fix it)
12-09-2022, 11:59 AM (This post was last modified: 12-09-2022, 09:51 PM by iclark.)
Ok -- I can't seem to attach a video in my posts.
Here's a link to the video on Youtube.
Mod Note: The link supplied went to a collection of Youtube vids and not all of them were WN appropriate. The link has been replaced with the intended video.
Quote:I just looked at the G0513. Sure seems like it ought to be able to tension a 1" blade. The steel spine Grizzly saws are pretty robust. I have no trouble putting 25 ksi on a 1" blade on my G0636X.
john - methinks you need to revisit the Griz spec sheet because I don't see how the 513 could possibly tension a 1" band. That saw barely weighs over 250lbs, which means the steel frame is pretty lightweight - both figuratively and literally. Sure the "specs" say it'll accommodate a 1" blade but that's from the fellas over in marketing , not the engineering dept.
Your 636x on the other hand tips the scales at over 600lbs which means it does have a robust frame. It's a mistake to think all products from griz (or anyone else) are of the same build quality just because your example is. The fact the price is 3x more should be your leading indicator.
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