Carbide bandsaw blades

You know, I've never actually seen a power hacksaw in action, though I've thought about trying to make something of the sort from time to time, as a less expensive option than a bandsaw for pipe and angle iron cutting, and less labor-intensive option than hand sawing (my current method.) Would I be far off the mark in assuming that they operate with a reciprocal action by attaching each end of the blade to a cam wheel, with the downstroke applying the cutting force and forward momentum, and the upstroke pulling the blade up and back? Did they swivel on a single pivot, or ride on a pair of posts?

Far as the thin stuff goes, you are of course correct- the corse tooth counts are for thicker material. There was a rule of thumb for blade selection, though I am not sure that I can remember it correctly any more- IIRC, 2-3 was for thicknesses greater than 1", 3-4 was for .375"-1", and a finer tooth count was called for with anything thinner. We never cut less than .375" thicknesses, though- and most things were cut from several bars or tubes laid next to one another and tack welded at the far end, making a 2-3 blade effective for almost everything.

I've learned a lot of things the hard way, but luckily, no major foot injuries. These days, I wear steel toes at all times, even when not in the shop- though unfortunately, I've never had them save my toes. Everything that ever fell on my feet has landed right on the top, where the protection isn't!

Prometheus I'll try to give a very basic layout of a power hacksaw, you can draw it out and see how this would work, but as a car engine is a simple basic idea, building a good one is not very simple, and this applies to most machine building, the size, weight, and shape, direction of saw stroke forward and backwards etc. would make a big difference in a good working saw and a no good one.

So think of a basic hand held hacksaw frame, add a wide long tail to that(vertical wide) draw a long rather wide slot in that, in the slot sits the driving shaft(so the tail is able to go back and forth), on the front of that shaft, is a circular disk, on the disk is a stud (sits in a slot in the disk to be able to change the length of the stroke, but disregard that now for simplicities sake), there is also a stud on the hacksaw frame, a arm connects the two studs, so now as the disk turns around the arm will pull or push the frame, so thats the basics. Of course there is a frame where the hacksaws tail slides in,(with adjustable gibs for wear) and on that part is a larger hollow shaft connected with bearings for that drive shaft, than that whole assembly is able to pivot up and down so as to make the saw able to go down while sawing and lifted up for the placement of work pieces under the blade, there are stops so the whole frame does not fall down when the saw has cut al the way through the work piece, than there's a clamping setup that's able to swivel, and etc. etc.

Build one yourself is of course possible, but rather involved, I do know of a plan with drawings and dimensions, almost a "hand held" plan, it is in "The shop wisdom of Frank McLean" by Village Press Inc. Traverse City, Michigan. Lee Valley used to carry it, but not anymore I think, a good book to have with a bunch of good ideas and basic shop knowledge. You might be able to get your hands on one, and I think it would serve you well, in what you are planning to do.

Have fun and take care Leo Van Der Loo

Prometheus wrote:

Hello Darrell,

Glad to hear you're still using my bandsaw blade sharpening protocol and that it has helped you a wee bit. :-) It has saved me several thousand dollars over the years and I still use it regularly. I routinely get about

8-10 sharpenings on my steel bands with the abrasive wheels (150" bands) and about 15-20 on the carbide bands with diamond wheels.

For those who may not know about my resharpening protocol for bandsaw blades, point your browser to the following URL for the article:

If any of you have woodturning websites, you may wish to add a link to this page to help visitors to your site take advantage of this time and money saving protocol.

The protocol works equally well on steel and carbide bands and I have used it many times on both types of bands. Of course, with carbide bands, you need to use diamond disks to resharpen the carbide teeth.

If you have questions, or if I can assist you in any way, please do not hesitate to contact me. Take care and all the best to you and yours!

Thanks Steve. The protocol works a treat. My small bandsaw uses 72" blades and metal fatigue sets in after the first 3 or 4 sharpenings and the blade finally breaks, but that is still a lot more cutting per blade and the saw has no trouble with 5" of maple. ___ God bless and safe turning Darrell Feltmate Truro, NS Canada

Changed the blade on my 14 Delta yesterday, and as I went to fold and compact the old blade it snapped. For grins I bent it again elsewhere and it snapped with a quarter inch between bands.

Work-hardening, metal fatigue, corrosion can all take their toll. Be careful while you're being economical. New one's a Suffolk, as the bargain bands are now gone.

Oh, I usually do okay. I'm a big believer in building in room for adjustments. And, I generally assume some degree of failure is going to occur in a prototype so that if it does, I'm prepared, and if it doesn't, I'm extra pleased.

Gotcha. Similar to what I had in mind, with that "tail" being the bit that makes the difference.

Sounds good- thanks for the detailed description!

If that doesn't pan out, and I hit a snag or two, I believe Lindsay press has a couple of plans on offer as well. Far as it being involved goes, that doesn't bother me a bit- I have the most fun when my brain has a little strain on it.

Maybe a different tool - SawzAll bayonet saw - with "demolition" blades. Cut to close to round - on the driveway. Easy to clean up, blades a lot cheaper and a whole lot quicker to change. You don't need perfect rounds, that's what roughing gouges do.

charlie b

Ick. I did that for a while before I got my chainsaw- and while it did work, I don't think I'll be repeating that chore anytime soon. Better off sticking with the chainsaw, since you've already got it out and all.