Newbie needing some advice please ???

[123westaway]

Hello everyone, Im kind of new to the world of woodworking, I started my wood workshop around 6 months ago and have recently purchased a small BK3 bandsaw, its quiet old and i haven't mastered using it yet and am having a few problems, so any advice would be fantastic , the problem is the blade keeps jamming, and also it wont cut straight i have to feed the timber through at some very awkward angles, even with a fence a blade just drifts severely. The bandsaw is a record power bk3. Thanks for taking the time to read this post, Adam Westaway

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Shall I go first? ...........Get a new blade (or 2 or 3) from Tuffsaws, and see how you go from there.

 

[Paul Chapman]

Also, buy a copy of Steve Maskery's DVD "Woodworking DVD 4 - Bandsaw Essentials". It will tell you everything you need to know http://www.workshopessentials.com/shop/ ... duct_id=53

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[Blister]

Hello and welcome to the forum

When you say it keeps jamming do you mean it stops the bade ?

You need to set up a band saw " BEFORE " use

The blade needs to track in the center of all 3 wheels and the blade guide bushes need to be set correctly also if it has rear support bearings just behind the top and bottom of the table these ned to be set as well

Blade Tension needs to be correct and as with any saw you need the correct blade for the job

Best buy a band saw setup book or DVD like this one

http://www.workshopessentials.com/shop/ ... duct_id=53

hope this helps :wink:

 

[AndyT]

You might like this thread https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/burgess-bbs-20-bandsaw-instructions-t35845.html which includes the original manual for a very similar saw. (But Steve's DVDs will tell you more; and a good blade is essential.)

 

[lanemaux]

Welcome to the forum Adam. As usual, I seem a little late at the advice window. All of the above is good advice and particularly the bits about blades and Steves video. Knowledge on setting up your saw pays massive dividends in foul language and flying parts (with poor cuts in them). And the consensus on Tuffsaw blades is near enough unanimous as to make no difference.
On an unrelated note , pop into the Hand tools section and set a spell, we would love to have you and you are sure to have a good time.

 

[123westaway]

Thanks to everyone for the advice, I think that I need to spend a bit more time on using and setting up the bandsaw, practice makes perfect they say ! Sorry for the late reply I didn't think I would get a responce I am looking forward to joing in with some discussions and showing of some of my projects and workshop ! Adam.

 

[Grahamshed]

So, did we sort out what you meant by 'jamming' ?

 

[123westaway]

I think the tension needs to be looked at, the only way I can tension the blade is my tilting the top wheel backwards, I can't get back up the workshop for a couple days but I will keep you posted,

 

[123westaway]

Hi again Bandsaw progress !! Just thought i would keep people posted i have managed to tighten the tension on the blade and the jamming issue has subsided dramacitly, but i still cant cut straight the blade just wonders ?? i have adjusted the tracking but no joy, i will keep looking at it.

 

[Eric The Viking]

Hi Adam,

If I might... stop right there!

Your bandsaw isn't new, and evidently it's not happy. I strongly suggest you take a short time to thoroughly clean it (take the blade off and hoover/brush out everything), and check that the adjustments, etc. do what they should. There must be a tension and tracking adjustment (front-to-back on the wheels), and I'd expect the blade guides to be adjustable too.

I can't recommend Steve M's DVDs highly enough - they were what started me off with well-sorted machine tools - and the bandsaw is more awkward because the effects of adjustments aren't obvious.

Make sure the table is properly at right angles to the blade vertically, when the blade is tensioned (this changes appreciably on small saws as you tighten the blade up), and then adjust for drift and/or eliminate it as much as possible by careful setup. It's all a bit harder withthree wheels, but shouldn't be impossible.

If the blade isn't sharp, or one side is blunt because it hit a nail, for example, it will never cut straight.

Unless it's been damaged by a previous owner, you should be able to get it working well.

Cheers,

e.