I am thinking about buying a band saw. I’ve noticed they come in a range of horsepower, and I don’t know how much power I need, or what difference it makes.
I am retired, and woodworking is a hobby. I’m not in a hurry. I mostly make arts & crafts furniture, mostly in white oak.
So, do I need 1hp? More? Less? Why?
Replies
I'm no expert, so I'll just tell you my experience. I've got a 14" Powermatic with a 1.5 HP motor that will cut 6" thick red oak without breaking a sweat. Prior to 3-4 years ago the typical 14" BS was 1 HP. At that time the mfgrs switched to 1.5 HP. I'm guessing if you want to do resawing get the 1.5, otherwise you might find 1 HP adequate.
Dave
Brome,
In a recent article in FWW, the author upset a few bandsaw-setup myths by pointing out that making the blade run true, using the right blade for the job, properly guiding the blade and feeding the work at the right rate means that you don't need loads of power. He stated that 1 HP was more than enough, including for resawing hardwood, for which a 3 tpi skip tooth blade would be the factor that actually makes the difference rather than more HP.
I set up my old bandsaw (a 1hp Elekta Bekum) as he directed and it did indeed make a difference. No blade drift and a clean, straight resaw cut in 6 inch cherry or maple was fine, if slow.
SInce then I retired and spoiled myself with, amongst other new toys, a 12 inch bandsaw of 3 HP (A Sheppach Basato). This too has been set up properly and cuts like a dream. It also cuts somewhat faster, even with 10 inch planks of hardwood.
Since I've begun a bit of green woodwork lately, I tried bandsawing large logs as an alternative to cleaving them with axe or froe. I bought a large skip tooth blade with a big hook angle, made specially for the Sheppach used as a wet wood saw, of 1 1/2 skip tpi. It' an inch deep and has a 2mm kerf. This monster blade + 3HP eats green logs almost like they weren't there.
So, a 1HP bandsaw is possibly enough; but more HP tends to come with bigger bandsaws and that power does not go amiss. Nor does the increased capacity. At the very least, you can speed up the cutting.
It becomes, then, a question of space and money - an inexpensive small HP saw that will do the job; or great expensive beast of a BS that will do the job and then some.
Lataxe
HP ratings are notoriously inaccurate. I suggest that you buy a good-quality saw and make your selection based on what features you want to use. A good thin-kerf band will take very little horsepower.
Pete
My experience: Bought Delta 14-inch a year ago at Lowe's for under $400. Added height attachment for resawing. Installed the longer blade. Did not have to make any adjustments for it to run true & smoothly. Put on a Highland Hardware Woodslicer blade which did well, but my choice of wood probably dulled it prematurely. Replace 3/4-hp motor with 1-1/2-hp. Still got premature blade wear. Now, I'm fairly certain that my wood is the problem. Highland Hardware assures me, too, that 3/4-hp is all I need.
The point of this tale is that you can have it both ways, economical & powerful, with machines like the 14-inch Delta and several other brands. You may wish to start with another model than I did if you like enclosed stands or if you think that two or more speeds will be useful (I don't). Various retailers offer many such models starting at around $400. Most offer height extension kits, rip fences, etc. I have paid $15 to $50 for good used motors.
Good shopping.
Cadiddlehopper
"Woodslicer blade which did well, but my choice of wood probably dulled it " I dunno, I've heard other reports of quick wear on the Woodslicer...that they work great out of the box but don't last that long. Maybe some other Woodslicer users will report.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
What was the wood species that you were cutting?
I'd like to hear from other users of the Woodslicer as well. It was on my short list when I bought a Timberwolf 3/4" AS-S to use on a 3/4 hp powered 14" BS.
Thanks.
Narra, aka New Guinea Rosewood, pterocarpus indicus, I believe. The data I have doesn't indicate that it contains free silica. My Woodslicer is 1/2-inch. The wider blade was not made when I bought mine. I got a 2" board sliced then tried to slice poplar. It wouldn't cut the poplar true. I bought a wide kerf 3-hook tooth blade, 3/4 wide, too, and did the same. It did not cut as well as Woodslicer from the start. Both blades appear dulled on the sides of the teeth. There is also a thick coating of gunk (probably oil & sawdust) stuck to the blades. My stock was just over 6 inches wide. I cut veneer with the Woodslicer before, but not much. It did well before. I used it several times to cut some 5/4 & 6/4 domestic hardwoods down to 1/2" & 3/8" thicknesses trouble free. I really believe that Narra is not very suitable for resawing. It has huge pores of which I am not fond either. From what others say, the Timberwolf is probably a very good blade.One thing about sawing your own veneer is that bookmatches aren't very good. If you start with quartersawn wood, bookmatches will probably look better. Even with a thin kerf, a lot of mirrored pattern is lost.Cadiddlehopper
In searching around for info on Pterocarpus indicus, I found this source:
http://delta-intkey.com/wood/english/www/papptind.htm
The data from the above source also said no silica was present but that there are crystal inclusions. I don't know what these might be. Other sources of data on Pterocarpus indicate that other species are harvested from SE Asia as commercial timbers. Some apparently dull woodworking tools more than others.
I'm not new to botany or wood, but I am new to bandsawing. My limited experience with the Timberwolf 3/4", 3 tpi, AS-S band on my 3/4 hp, 14" saw goes like this - after resawing 40" x 5 1/2" KD red oak, 30 ft x 5" walnut (air dried logs):
The outside (set side) of the teeth are shiny.
The quality of the last cut is as superb as the first (3-6 passes with a sharp Stanley #3 smooths the resawn boards right down).
The rate of feed (by hand) has diminished (expected from use) and when I try to feed faster/harder, I notice the motor slowing down, so I have backed off on the feed rate.
There never was any drift from the beginning and still isn't.
I always de-tension after I'm done.
I haven't tried cutting anything else of wide dimension; some 2" pine, but not much.
I have wiped on a 50/50 mixture of chainsaw bar oil/kerosene (recommended by Suffolk Machinery) as a lubricant (saw off, unplugged, spin the tensioned blade backward).
Suffolk Machinery (makers of the Timberwolf) say that the particular blade I am using has a unique set, is designed for straight-line veneer cutting, with overall set of 0.048", and if ". . . you want as thin a kerf as possible, a super finish, and you are not concerned with speed, this is the band for you." (page 17 of their catalog). I don't know yet what the acceptable/usable life expectancy is. I might call the company and ask, since a human being actually answers the phone.
I have found this forum extremely helpful and hope my 2 cents helps in some small way.
A good posting! Thanxx!!I detension also since I have a lever for it. My wear pattern is the same as yours, but my blades drifted and made wavy cuts, as if their speed was reduced within the board.I sliced my 2" x 6" wood into 1/8" strips, so I made about a dozen cuts or about 50 lineal feet overall. I presume that you cut about 34 feet overall.Cadiddlehopper
Thanks for the kind words. I forgot to say that cutting the KD oak took more effort in pushing the wood through than the walnut.
I remember when working at a paper cutting warehouse in the early 70's that the paper cutters would use newly sharpened blades at the begiining of the week on high grade paper (glossy stuff has more additives as I recall); at the end of the week the machines were used for cutting the low end paper (newsprint quality). Blades sharpened over the weekend, then the cycle started over again. Possibly a parallel here?
Tires on my saw are apparently polyurethane. Maybe oils won't have much effect on them. I would worry about rubber tires though.The gunk on my blade will not simply wipe off. It may be the worst part of my problem, too. The friction from the buildup on the sides of the blade may be resisting blade motion. Maybe I will have to clean it off after each cut is made if I use any more narra. At this point I will have to scrape the gunk off or find a suitable solvent.My wood data indicates that narra has strength properties similar to black walnut and that machining it causes little wear with good results. It turns beautifully, as well as any wood I ever tried.Thanxx!! for all the good commentary.Cadiddlehopper
I'm not sure the chainsaw oil/kerosene mixture is a good idea for a vertical bandsaw. I'd think it might soften up the rubber tires over time and stink up your shop. Are you sure that's not a recommendation just for band mills?Pete
I prefer P.A.M. non-stick cooking spray :-)forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I tried the PAM and didn't seem to work too well, so I tried the 50/50 mix. I wiped it on in the manner described for the PAM and thought it worked better. Yes, Pete, the 50/50 mix was recommended for band mills. I happened to have some bar oil and kerosene, so thought I'd give it a shot. Doesn't seem to stink up my very small shop space. I forgot to mentione that I wipe the blade down after use as well. As for softening the tires, aren't we trying to prevent drying out and hardening of tires? My whole bandsawing setup is 4 months old and I'm new to bandsawing, so I'm open to any advice, tips and tricks from the sages.
Thanks!
Edited 4/1/2006 11:31 pm ET by RoyH
> aren't we trying to prevent drying out and hardening of tires?
It would be nice to prevent it, but I doubt that's the effect that you'd get. Oil on some kinds of rubber softens and swells the material. For a bandsaw tire, you want a material that is firm and returns to original shape when unloaded.
Tires last a long time and are cheap, so i don't think there's much value to trying to extend their life.
I've used hard wax on bands with some success.
Pete
Thanks alot, Pete! I appreciate the input.
>I've used hard wax on bands with some success.
Could you elaborate on the "hard wax" thing?
-Roy
I carefully hold a block of wax to the blade while it's running.
Pete
I have an old chunk of wax; beeswax, I think. What about an old candle?
I just cleaned the blade with mineral spirits and jigged a half log (13"x5 1/4") in my re-saw sled. I'll try the wax thing and see how it goes.
Thanks again.
Roy
I dunno if lube really helps on the blade. I used it mostly to avoid rusting during some very humid weather.PEte
Well, after cleaning the blade with mineral spirits, and then rubbing a block of wax on the running blade, I resawed some walnut (from a half log, as I mentioned before. The blade runs really cool, so I couldn't tell if any appreciable amount of wax was getting on the blade.
After about 10 passes through on resaw with the setup I mentioned earlier in this thread, see the attached image for results. The board laying down 90 to the blade is a bookmatch for the one behind the blade. I think the lube actually does work --- it cuts down on the whine ( I recall the meat department at the grocery store where I remember seeing the butcher running chunks of meat, bone and all, through bandsaw; heck of a screaming whine), so I think there is a less friction principle working here. I don't use my bandsaw 24/7, so I think a little PAM or 50/50 in moderation is ok.
Thanks again, Pete. --Roy
Edited 4/2/2006 9:00 pm ET by RoyH
Nice work!
Pete
Thaks, Pete. Talk to you soon, --Roy
I've got an old Delta 14" and did a lot of resawing of poplar with the 1/2 hp motor that came with it. Decided to upgrade and got a 3/4 hp Baldor. While pricey, it is an excellent motor, nothing slows it down. It routinely slices through 6" hard maple. Also have a Laguna 16HD with a European-made 3 hp motor that I can bog down without a lot of trouble.
I think the brand and quality of the motor is more important than the nameplate horsepower.
My 2 cents.
Gerry
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