[sreilly]

So I've decided I need to make some boxes and I have a Laguna 14-Twelve bandsaw and a number of blades. The blade of choice that I have is a TimberWolf 3/4" 3TPI. I went by the wood yard the other day hoping to find a few thick shorts to practice with and was given two chunks of processed poplar. One piece is 12/4 x 6" and 21" long, the other being 12/4 x 8" and 42". I checked my bandsaw for the blade being square to the table and the fence being square to the table as well. I adjusted the ceramic guides and in the process found that the table doesn't tilt to 45 degrees as expected. It took some adjustments and several times removal of the table. The lower ceramic guide does not have easy access hence tilting the table. After adjusting everything I tried making a finer thin cut. I've seen resawing being done with the thinner section being on the right side (further from the fence) as well as against the fence. Which is the proper way? My first attempt was with the thinner side on the fence and it seemed to go fairly well however the thickness tapers from the 1/2" I set it for to 7/16" at the other end. The cut surface was a bit wavy but I guess that's expected from the bandsaw blade cut. So now I have to wonder what thickness I should set the cut for to get the finished dimension I want. Add 1/16"-1/4" or more? I do have a SuperMax Drum sander that, after I get it adjusted, should be able to sand it to finished dimension. Another machine that needs setup adjustments. But then I could plane it as well. The poplar was flattened and squared on the jointer prior to resawing.

Any guidance and suggestions would be great. I intend to use both dovetail and miter joints on these boxes.

 

[Stick486]

the poplar was flattened and squared on the jointer prior to resawing.

double check that and how tall is your fence???
check your board for uniform thickness and flatness..

lay the board on a flat surface..
use a straight edge on the board width, length wise as well as diagonal...
look for air gaps under the straight edge and/or straight edge rock...

lay the straight edge cross and long grain wise...
measure the gaps between the straight edge and flat surface..
move the straight edge around to different locations to measure...
they the same everywhere???
a way longer straight edge than the board is wider/longer is what you want here...
if everything is copacetic it's back to the BS for more tune up...

.

 

[sreilly]

The factory fence goes to 6". If I follow that same procedure, milled side to fence then each time I cut a slice I'll need to flatten again. If I keep the flat side to the fence and the offcut on the outside then I'll need to flatten both sides.

 

[Semipro]

Alex Snodgrass with Carter products has a video that explains resawing and saw setup.

 

[DesertRatTom]

Check the tracking on the blade and also the tension. I think you have a little drift going on. One other thing to consider is using a straight edge to draw a cut line so you can see if it is drifting. Your blade is a good one. I'd also check on line for videos of resawing with that saw. I try to center the blade so the back of the gullet runs on the center of the tire. A 3/4 blade is pretty exacting on tracking, but if it isn't tracking right, it's going to drift. Also, feed slowly. Let the blade do the cutting, not you pushing the piece through the blade. I have done some resawing with my 14/12 with a Laguna half inch, 3tpi blade centered as I described and with the line drawn on the workpiece (about 18 inches long, and it came out less than a 16th off. I also made sure the blade was 90 to the table and that the guides were about a quarter inch above the workpiece.

I have a Resaw King blade for it, but the half inch really did a nice job, so I'll save the king for some harder wood. Watching the blade track the line was very helpful.

I also have a small, 12 inch bandsaw, and although it is not particularly powerful, it will resaw with a half inch blade. And using the same approach to tracking, it doesn't drift either, well, as long as I don't rush it.

I recall finding a video on YouTube about setting up the saw, which also suggested a method to deal with drift. There are 14 videos in this series and I think this is the one that talks about tension and drift. Very helpful.

You can view all the rest at the same site. For someone just buying the 14/12, the videos make setting the saw up easy, from uncrating to assembling the various parts, including the mobile stand.

I really like the beefy bearings on this saw, and the cool blocks are much easier to deal with than Carter style guides.

 

[sunnybob]

You have two separate problems from your description.

1/ the "taper cut". Theres a lot of videos about blade drift. Mostly, you need to make the fence 90 degrees to the cut, and the "drift" videos wiill explain how to adjust the fence in relation to the blade.

2/ forward speed is critical with a bandsaw. Push too slow and the wood burns (and also can cause a small ripple effect). Push too fast and the blade will wander under pressure, following the line of least resistance. it will move with the grain, or it will go slower on one side if the blade is worn or has been used for a lot of one direction curves.

There is a third possibility that could cause both problems. When setting the guides, the rear guide is often set wrong. The SOLE purpose of the rear guide is to stop the blade teeth being squashed by the side guides. If the blade goes back too far and the teeth slide between those side bearings even for a couple of seconds, youve put the blade through a rolling mill and the teeth are flat. New blade required.

Set the side guides first. Then (with the power off at the wall) use as much force as you can with your fingers to push the blade back into the guides. The rear guide should then be adjusted so the blade is stopped before the hardened teeth area reach the side guides.

Once top and bottom guides are adjusted properly, its just a matter of learning how fast to push the wood through. You can practice by watching the top of the blade, if your guides rotate, you can see when the blade deforms and turns.
Every type of wood cuts at a different speed, so youre on your own there.

 

[difalkner]

Lots of suggestions and tips here, Steve, but for your question of which side to cut on I can tell you that I almost always put the thinner side to the fence. I regularly cut thin pieces of 0.100" to 0.125" thick and to me it is far easier to set the fence to my desired thickness and keep repeating the cut. I have a Laguna 14SUV with 1" Resaw King blade and that's the only blade I've ever used on that machine. I have a 12" King-Seeley for more intricate cuts.

After the cuts I use my SuperMax 19-38 to smooth out the pieces. Because I don't have any perceivable drift and the Resaw King blade cuts so smoothly there's no need to add much to the thickness of each cut but if I had to put a number on it my guess is I add about 0.020" to each piece.

This is my normal setup for resawing -


David

 

[mgmine]

Another problem besides what has already been pointed out is the Timber wolf blade. From my experience Timber Wolf is crap and 3/4" is too wide for a decent cut unless you have a really powerful saw. I don't like Timber Wolf and did a review on YouTube comparing it to a Wood Slicer blade. The Timber Wolf is a low tension blade and if it isn't tensioned just right it will drift all over the place. Not to mention that straight out of the package it needs to be sharpened. There is a Video on You tube proving this. As far as which side to put against the fence, I like the thick side because it seems to give more support.

 

[sreilly]

Another problem besides what has already been pointed out is the Timber wolf blade. From my experience Timber Wolf is crap and 3/4" is too wide for a decent cut unless you have a really powerful saw. I don't like Timber Wolf and did a review on YouTube comparing it to a Wood Slicer blade. The Timber Wolf is a low tension blade and if it isn't tensioned just right it will drift all over the place. Not to mention that straight out of the package it needs to be sharpened. There is a Video on You tube proving this. As far as which side to put against the fence, I like the thick side because it seems to give more support.

Not to be argumentative but I've not had any bad blades from TimberWolf at all. And they have all been sharp right out of the packaging and cut well. The Laguna 14-Twelve has a 1-3/4 hp saw and has no power issues that I've seen. Putting an amp meter on the motor lead while running keeps it well under spec. Resawing a piece of white oak went fast and smoothly if not as even as I would have hoped. I think the issue is setup and not blade.

 

[sreilly]

Thanks for the reply guys. I'll look at these more closely after lunch and see what I can find. Stick, as usual, I've printed out your material for reference and will file that when finished for future use.

 

[twmv86]

double check that and how tall is your fence???
check your board for uniform thickness and flatness..

lay the board on a flat surface..
use a straight edge on the board width, length wise as well as diagonal...
look for air gaps under the straight edge and/or straight edge rock...

lay the straight edge cross and long grain wise...
measure the gaps between the straight edge and flat surface..
move the straight edge around to different locations to measure...
they the same everywhere???
a way longer straight edge than the board is wider/longer is what you want here...
if everything is copacetic it's back to the BS for more tune up...

.

ty mr stick this is very timely. im resurrecting my old delta next week with some carter guides. I hope I get lucky and don't need to shim or anything more drastic but that's a ton of bandsaw knowledge right there.

 

[woodworker47]

I have a Jet 14" band saw that I use to re-saw my Walnut. Pieces are anywhere from 2" - 6". The band saw has been equipped with carter guides and tension device. I use the Timber Wolf 3/4" 3 TPI blade. I have had really good results when making cuts. When the cut goes bad, it is usually the tension is too low or I am using a dull blade. I also added height to my fence to help keep the material square to the blade. I very seldom get drift. If I am making a 3/4" board, I usually cut to 1". Depending on what has occurred from the cut, I may need to dress on side on the jointer before planing. My final step is to get to final dimensions on the drum sander which is usually the last sanding I will to other than that done when applying finish.

Frank

 

[DesertRatTom]

ty mr stick this is very timely. im resurrecting my old delta next week with some carter guides. I hope I get lucky and don't need to shim or anything more drastic but that's a ton of bandsaw knowledge right there.

I had that setup on my now sold Delta BS. Very nice performance if you set it up with appropriate gaps between bearing and blade. It was pretty easy to adjust the bottom bearings with a long allen wrench. I sold it for more than I paid for it brand new on sale for $300 at Lowes, just after Delta sold out. Last one in an unopened box. Enjoyed that thing for a number of years, but finally decided to go Laguna. Read the instructions on the Carter set carefully.