Band saw blade, what's a good starting point?

[Stan Pressner]

For green wood, what others have said - 3 or 4 TPI around 3/8.I do like Highland's "woodturners blade" but I've got some Lenox bimetal blades for fine work (14/18 TPI) that I really like, so I might try one of theirs for the next green blade.

I'd suggest getting 2 blades. Green wood can be tough on blades (dirt in the bark etc) and I don't want to have to wait for the UPS guy in the middle of something if I break or dull a blade.
Also having a "clean" blade on hand for special circumstances is handy.

Make yourself some circle disk templates - can be thin plywood, paneling, or even cardboard - whatever you got. With a log on the saw, you want the flat side down which means bark side up. Sorta hard to draw your circle on that. So use a nail/screw/awl to stick the disk to the log as a template.

And remember that unsupported cuts are bad - and this applies to bandsaws just like table saws and skews and gouges etc. The wood needs to sit flat on the table or else the blade will slam it down on the table violently. That usually requires a new blade and clean pants (and hopefully you don't get a lot of blood on your new saw or worse - on the wood). A bandsaw is the tool your butcher uses to cut up a cow - your fingers are no challenge.

I also use only the Lenox bimetal blades for bowl blanks and love them. 3tpi, 1/2 or 3/8.

 

[Bernie Kopfer]

Thanks, Steve-I might try these before I shell out for the carbides. Reading your recs above, how about this one:

Lenox DieMaster 2 Bi-Metal Bandsaw Blade

Would it work for tough green wood? Bernie in the post above yours also says it works great for green wood, and Reed/RoboHippy always recommends them. At about $50, it's probably cheaper than the TimberWolf at Woodcraft prices anyway. And if it lasts much longer, well then...

I have a 1" Lenox Trimaster for resawing and it works great also for "straight" cuts in green wood/logs. But the 1/2'Diemaster handles all my green wood circular cutting w/o a problem.

 

[Aaron Harris]

I have a 1" Lenox Trimaster for resawing and it works great also for "straight" cuts in green wood/logs. But the 1/2'Diemaster handles all my green wood circular cutting w/o a problem.

Thanks for all the input all. I just ordered 2 of the DieMaster 1/2-inchx.035" in 3tpi, plus the lube stick to bump my order over $100 to get free shipping. I assume that will help with the gummy green wood too. I'm fortunate enough that my neighbor and friend the tree-man will actually text me pics of nice logs with a "Do you want this?" I come home and it's in my car-port, so I get a lot of fresh, wet wood.

I supposed I'll give these a good go before considering carbide again.

 

[Dave Hulett]

I've had great service from the woodturner's blades from Highland Woodworking - 3/8" - 3tpi blades last a long time generally and stay sharp. Nice wide alternate set makes a generous kerf that seldom pinches.
Been using them for about 12 or 15 years. Great value, too.

swear by them. using hem for 10 years

 

[odie]

Note: Many of my bowl blanks were cut rough from the sawyer, and are a long ways from being perfectly flat on any of the existing surfaces.

As long as the wood sits perfectly flat on the bandsaw table, a 3tpi blade will have the advantage of having a faster cut......However, since many of my blanks do not sit perfectly flat, I've found that 6-10tpi will have a much lower chance of having a catch. The only way to overcome this potential problem is to reduce the sized of the blank, and therefore eliminating the "possibles" the bowl blank presents. Once you get it on the lathe, then the only thing to consider then.......is bringing it to round.

-o-

 

[Patton Buchan]

Keep your bandsaw and blade clean to increase blade life. To help maximize blade life when using on green wood, be sure to keep the wheel tires and drive belts clean of caked-on sawdust and sap. The same crud will stick to the blades, slow the cutting process and make the blade want to wander. I use Murphys Oil Soap diluted in hot water. I first remove the blades and do them in a tub using a stiff brush, then use the same residual solution to clean the tires, drive belt, saw top and internal surfaces. A clean saw with a clean blade and tires improves cutting performance and is a pleasure to use. It's best to do it shortly after a major green wood sawing session, as the damp sawdust is much easier to remove. Have fun.