Bandsaw Blades

I've read a lot about bandsaw blades and don't remember most of it, I am lucky to have a local industral supply place that will make me anything I need. They ask me what type of cutting I plan to do, and make the right blades.Perhaps there is a business locally that can do that for you. Ask around. robo hippy

I agree. Their "AS" series is really good for sawing up green wood. As a matter of fact I just received an order of (2) 3/8"x3 tooth AS blades, which serves as my main blade, plus a 1/4" x 6 tooth for some bone I'm looking to cut. They are (or at least were last week) running a promo that if you buy 3 blades you get another free. Had them send a third

3/8" AS - but in hindsight should have probably had them send something pretty fine toothed just to have on hand for the bone incase the 6 tooth is too coarse. I've also used their 3/4" x 3 (or 4) tooth for resawing dry stock and it has been quite satisfactory. They ship within a day or two of your order, sent priority mail and you get it 2 or 3 days after that.

Hi Owen, My interest in your use of bone comes disguised as 100% curiosity. :) I think there may be others like me, who know very little about bone as a turning material and would like to learn a little about it, whether or not we ever use it. (I did not say "bone up" or "bonehead". That would have stunk up the ng worse than scorched bone. Arrggh, isn't there always one like me in every ng?

Anyway, how about you starting a thread with details on the whats, hows, whys etc. you incorporate this material in your turnings. I hope that others who have used bone will enlighten us also. TIA for considering.

Turn to Safety, Arch Fortiter

Hi Arch. I'd love to start a thread on turning bone and incorporating bone into turnings... once I've turned some bone. ;)

Never tried the stuff and have only seen it done on one Bonnie Klein's videos. I'm considering not only turning some for an insert into another piece, but also attempting my hand at carving some to serve as complimentary design elements on the same turnings.

I've got to get this stuff done by the first of March for a show I hope to be admitted to for this summer. I'll repost as things progress or I learn that round is the only shape for me.

Owen When turning bone or antler, have an open window and wear a mask. A good mask and maybe one of those constant air moving air fresheners. It reminds me of a slaughterhouse or maybe burning hair (I used to fight forest fires). Bone is often easy to obtain at the pet store, already cleaned and ready to use. The dust is miserable on your lungs. The flip side is that bone can be carved to beauty, engraved and colored as in skrimshaw and that antler has gorgeous color variations. Some areas can be very spongy but harden well with CA.

Owen, Thanks for your reply to a confused query. :) I expect that you will be admitted to the show and wish you much success.

Darrell, Thanks for picking up. Could you expand a bit, with your special ability to craft and teach? What bones? beef leg? Boil? Dye? Bend ? Cut? Scrape? Pics? No antlers here, altho too many deer. I haven't hunted since I married a present day St. Francis, 55+ years ago. (:

Turn to Safety, Arch Fortiter

IIRC, antler is hair. Which is why it would smell like burning hair.

And bone, well ... 'Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones ...'.

Perhaps a job for LDD?

Arch I have used beef bone for guitar parts, especially nuts and bridges. It works well as in cutting and sanding and will dye with leather dyes. I will take engraving very well although I would recommend an engravers bench and a set of gravers for it. Skrimshaw is often done on bone with the point of a knife in the manner of old sailors who used whatever was handy to pass some long nights at sea. A lot of the time the bone in the pet store is already boiled and cleaned so as to be ready for shipping and storing as well as for a turner to use. Otherwise it can be boiled for ages and then cleaned of all tissure residue and dried for use. It cuts with standard tools and files and sandpaper work for fine tuning an inlay fit.

Antler is bone except for some varieties of antelope, I believe. On the other hand I am ready to stand corrected. Sta Francis would approve of the use of most antler because it is a renewable resource. Deer drop them every year. If you happen to be near to a dear farm it is easy to pick up a rack or two for little money. A pair of antler pens bought my last.

I will see about getting the time to do some bone. I have not done any for a while and there are a few things on the plate at the moment. A friend brought in a $3,000.00 Larrivee guitar with a cracked side and I am getting up the nerve to fix it. Maybe the one with the broken neck first? i have to make some special clamps for each job so one of these days I need the time to do them.

Well, bone in the deciduous varieties. Horns are cuticle - like your fingernails.

Are you sure you old guys are looking for antlers to turn?

Hi Darrell. Yes, I picked up my bone pieces at the pet store. Last evening I put on a 10 tooth blade on my bandsaw and cut off a few sections to experiment with. First, the 10 tooth might have been a touch too fine as the bone turns to fine dust instead of chips as wood does (I think it was filling the tooth gullets.) It smelled just like the last time I was sitting in the dentist's chair with both of his hands plus both of the assistant's hands drilling away in my mouth for a filling replacement.

I superglued a small block onto a scrap piece and started turning it just to play around and see it's characteristics. First, it is very hard stuff - much harder than any wood I've cut. And, it doesn't really "cut" as wood does - on the lathe it turns to dust too. Very fine and talc-like.

I only got as far as truing the outside to round and hollowing the inside to round. It had a very smooth surface right off the tool and even a bit of polish. Now if I can only find some 1.5"x4" piece of solid bone someplace. ;)

Owen,

You may want to try Tagua nut too. I thought it would be soft like the nuts that you eat. It is really hard and very strong. I CA glued one to a block and turned a tenon on it. Reversed it an put the tenon in my chuck. With a sharp skew, you get little fine threads of material but with gouges the material is removed as chips. But it sands and buffs to a beautiful shine. Really looks like ivory. This stuff can be carved as well as turned.

Thanks Harry for the recommendation. The unpredictable void in the center may be a problem. I'm needing to make rings that are 1.125" outside diameter and .875" inside. The bone can be examined before purchasing or turning to determine if enough material is present. I also wanted the whitish, ivory look but adhere to non-manmade material so didn't consider alternate ivory.