Bandsaw blades

[Honest John]

Just waiting on a couple of blades from Ian at Tuffsaws. Should be here tomorrow I hope. I was about to throw out two or three blades out of the cupboard that arn't cutting well and are being replaced when the thought occurred to me, I wonder if I can sharpen these? A quick look on YouTube shows me that people do sharpen them, three times before replacing them seems common, but I wonder if this is realistic, or is it rather miserly? New blades from Tuffsaws do not come into the "expensive tool " category, and do cut and track reliably. Do any of you guys resharpen your bandsaw blades, and if so what process do you use ?

 

[scholar]

Do any of you guys resharpen your bandsaw blades?

Nope, but I don't throw them away either!

...I know!

Cheers

 

[Walney Col]

I sharpened one for a very small 3 wheel saw once with a dremel just to see if I could, and it cut through 125mm oak like butter, but I'd say that other than in knowing you can it's seriously not worth it for any blade that costs less than and arm and a leg.

 

[Lons]

Do any of you guys resharpen your bandsaw blades?

Nope, but I don't throw them away either!

...I know!

Cheers

I'm not alone after all then! :lol:

 

[disco_monkey79]

...so if you're not sharpening the old blades, or chucking them away, then what are you doing with them?

I've heard of people using bits of wide bandsaw blades to make marking knives and similar.

 

[Wizard9999]

There were some posts a little while ago where people had made jigs to hold a Dremel in order to sharpen bandsaw blades.

Terry.

 

[Beau]

Picked up a little diamond file set in Lidl a few weeks ago and had a blunt bandsaw blade. Decided to have a go at sharpening it and worked really well but took some time on a 160" blade.

 

[Honest John]

The bandsaw blades I ordered from Ian didn't arrive when I expected them although Tuffsaws had dispatched them the same day I ordered them. This gave me some time to consider my options and here are the results. As my blade was off the saw at the time I decided to have a go at sharpening it off the saw. I have seen two methods on YouTube using a Dremel. One method uses a grinding disk used to just touch the top of the tooth to bring it to a point. Very very little material removed. This method looked to me to be likely to be easier to do consistently, if the blade was fitted. I therefore tried the second method I had seen used by using a tubular grinder bit sold by dremel for sharpening chainsaws. This is touched into the gullet for a split second, and this brings the tooth behind this gullet to a point from the underside so to speak. Sliding the grinder forward and offt He tooth in front, lifting clear before touching back into the next gullet and continuing round the blade.
Well my blade felt sharp and looked in good order, so I refitted it and tensioned it. The results were that it cut wood like butter ! I found however that I couldn't track the blade to cut accurately to my fence. Freehand cutting, curves or bowl blanks will be fine. I can only imagine that I have screwed up the set on the teeth. Might be worth trying the disk method next time.
Just as I finished this, a knock at the door heralded the arrival of a post person with my two new blades. I fitted a half inch 3-4 varitooth blade and tracked it up. My bandsaw has now got its mojo back and is resawing boards to a consistent thickness verified by my dial calliper. I will try sharpening again when it's required, but it strikes me that it's not a substitute for a new tuffsaw blade.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Interesting. I've not long hit a screw with a near new Tuffsaws M42. Not any old screw, of course, a poxy plasterboard screw. It'll still cut, but the edge is gone. The dremel bit is interesting - is it diamond? The fence tracking wouldn't matter to me as I don't use a fence.

 

[Honest John]

They arn't diamond but they are very hard. I think they are probably al ox or similar. Branded dremel and about £4 for a packet of three from eBay. I was very surprised how easily the teeth were modified. I expected them to be harder. This particular blade was never the same since it touched a nail, and it's possible that any set on the teeth was modified at that event. Next time I try to sharpen a blade I will do it on the saw and use a cutting disk in a dremel. I recon it may be possible to get a more consistent sharpen to each tooth. I like to track my blade following Steve Maskerys instruction in his DVDs on the subject, as I find it makes my saw more versatile and I can easily cut veneers for my segmented turnings. A bandsaw is often considered by many to be an inaccurate or crude tool, but it doesn't have to be, and is capable of accurate work.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

£4 for a packet of three? Three and six in my day. :lol:

 

[NazNomad]

There were some posts a little while ago where people had made jigs to hold a Dremel in order to sharpen bandsaw blades.

bandsaw-sharpening-dremel-jig-t98402.html

 

[cansdale]

IF you clean the saw well, i.e. no dust. It is possible to get a dull blade to cut by holding an old sharpening stone lightly against the running blade. It won't cut like a replacement of course but it will get you out of trouble. But be sure to get rid of all dust first, and I'm not responsible for any fires if you follow this procedure. But I have used it myself, for what its worth the cheap man made stones seem to work best.

 

[pops92]

Interesting thread this what is the most tpi that anyone has done with a dremel and produced a good cut?

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I've just ordered a pack of the dremel bits - 4mm - which might be a bit big for the size of the tooth (it's a 3TPI), I might have to go in on a bit of an angle to keep the same shape or accept that I'll change the shape of the teeth slightly. If it goes slightly out of balance it doesn't matter too much - I can't remember the last time I used a fence. At £25 a pop for the blades, it's got to be worth a go.

 

[Honest John]

The two blades I have sharpened were a3 and a4 tpi. The 4mm dremel bit seemed to fit into the gullet well on both. I just went down the back of the tooth to the base of the gullet and back out along the base and off the top of the next tooth forward, in one smooth and very quick movement. Any delay or dwelling in a spot will remove material at an alarming rate. I expect practice would make perfect, but you may run out of blade before becoming proficient. Good luck.

 

[CHJ]

This is how I re-sharpen mine.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UygEQ-079Ws

I find it's worth it even if it's just to keep the blade for emergency use if I wreck one for some reason.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Thank you. I hadn't even thought about that side of the teeth. I've a Creusen with a white wheel that is a little too fine for my normal usage ...
As I said before I very rarely use a fence, so I've nothing to lose and everything to gain.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Yup. It works fine. Sorry if I'm stating the obvious, but sometimes the obvious is so obvious it needs stating - in case anyone else tries this, don't forget you can turn the saw blade inside out so you can get on the side of the grinder of your choice.

 

[CHJ]

Thank you. I hadn't even thought about that side of the teeth. I've a Creusen with a white wheel that is a little too fine for my normal usage ... ..

Yes I've got an Ultra fine stone* on a cheap bench grinder, it keeps a nice sharp corner edge for relieving the webs of twist drills as well.

EX surface grinder spare, dual grit sandwich.