Bandsaw issues

[Whatnot]

Hi everyone,
Im hoping someone on here may be able to give me some advice if possible.
I have an Axminster trade series bandsaw which takes 131"blades.
I have a new project which involves cutting curved lines ( practically circles) into 4" thick pine.
I've been making as many relief cuts as I can with a 1/2" blade and then swapping to a 1/4 " blade of either 6 or 10 tpi to cut the shape out. I have all the wheels set as close as possible to the blade and the head down as close as possible to the wood , also feeding very slowly.
My issue is that today alone I've broken 3 blades!!!!!! All teeth are still razor sharp and it appears that the blades are breaking at the join where they are made, I'm using Axcalibur blades.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated, today has been an expensive cutting day!

 

[worn thumbs]

A 10 tpi blade in 4" timber is likely to get clogged and do no cutting.What radius do you estimate the curves to be?Does the saw have any kind of tension gauge to help with ensuring the correct tension is applied?

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Your blades have far too many teeth, they will be clogging, jamming and then breaking as you are finding. Ring "Tuffsaws" who will advise you what blade to use - it will be better and cheaper than Axminster anyway. Someone will post the link (beyond me) but it's easy to find.

 

[marcros]

http://www.tuffsaws.co.uk

 

[Whatnot]

Hi
The curves are approx 90mm diameter and the bandsaw does have a tension lever however there are no specific settings on it, it's just guesswork really!

 

[Whatnot]

Forgot to mention........I also snapped a 1/4" 6 tpi!

 

[Whatnot]

Thank you, I never heard of Tuffsaws. I will give them a call tomorrow

 

[Knot Competent]

http://www.tuffsaws.co.uk/

Talk to Ian, he's a great bloke.

 

[CHJ]

A sharp 1/4" blade with low tooth count and adequate set should be able to cut down to some 20mm diameter.

See this link and the few posts after it:-
post723350.html#p723350

How accurate is your cutting arc/radius positioned on the front edge of the teeth, any error in controlling this position will result in the blade trying to spiral inwards or outwards and at the depth and weight of timber you are cutting may well jamb the blade rather than track where it wants to go.

If the pivot centre is in front of the blade leading edge the blade will try to spiral inwards, likewise if behind the leading edge it will spiral outwards.

 

[Whatnot]

Hi
Thanks for your reply, I have to be honest and say that it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to my tiny brain!
I draw the template onto the wood and follow as best as I can,at times I have to back up ever so slightly in order to continue on my line . I'm trying my best to keep the blade straight at all times , I'm not sure what is meant by pivot centre. I'm sorry, I've never been this in depth about it but I'm very very keen to learn.
I've tried to attach a file of the item I made with no success, just get an error code

I've picked up my woodworking techniques over the past three years just by trial and error or reading posts online so I'm kind of new to all this and just wing it I suppose.
When fitting a blade I try to get it centred on the large wheels, I bring the guides in as close as I can without touching the blade and just have to guess the tension as I only have a scale of 1-10. I just read yesterday about the flutter technique so will give that a try next time..........
Your advice is truly helpful and very much appreciated everyone, thanks for taking the time to answer

 

[Whatnot]

Hopefully image attached here

 

[Steve Maskery]

All good advice above. If you are "backing up" as you put it, that may well cause you problems, as uo are pulling the blade out of the guides and off the wheels.

Get the right blade for the job (even 6TPI is too fine for 100mm thick) and set up your machine properly and you will be fine.

Remember, it's the gullets that carry away the sawdust, and thick timber means lots of sawdust which means you need big gullets, hence few teeth.

 

[Whatnot]

Good morning
That makes sense.......doing my best to learn all the terminology. As I'm self taught I just tend to call parts this bit and that thing. You've all been a massive help, wish I had found this site sooner as I'm so keen to learn

 

[AJB Temple]

Just a thought. I don't know how far you are from an Axminster shop but it may be worth going in there and asking for advice re their saws. In the one near me (Sittingbourne store) they will happily show customers bandsaws in use cutting complex shapes, including multiple facet low radius curves. They will also show you exactly how to set your Axminster machine up properly. You well find that this will greatly improve your safety, efficacy and blade costs! Make an appointment before you go in.

 

[CHJ]

Not so easy to control in your project as cutting a plain circle but you must endeavour to keep the blade leading edge in line with the pivot point of the circle you are cutting.

For a more accurate circle each time you need an overhead guide pin attached to the bandsaw upper arm and keep your marked out circles on your work piece centred on the pin guide.
This could be compromised though as soon as your work piece becomes longer than the throat depth of your bandsaw.

 

[Steve Maskery]

For cutting circles, one of the problems is getting to the circumference from the edge of the board. I have (well, had, I need to make another one) a jig which pivots the work in before pivoting it around the centre. I'm off out for the day but I'll see if I can find an old photograph when I get home.
If you've got my bandsaw collection it is on Workshop Essentials 5.

 

[Alexam]

Your problem may also be the tension on the blade. Have a look at these videos, which may help

THE BEST FROM A BANDSAW 'Alex Snodgrass of Carter Industries has an excellent video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGbZqWac0jU on a tune up method that works well, but if you want to get the best use of your bandsaw on an ongoing basis, then the Steve Maskery DVD's will show you far more and they are a real investment. http://www.workshopessentials.com/shop/ '.

A Flutter test Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8zZuDosSy0

Alex