Resaw for dummies/bandsaw choices

[jar944]

Yes, the lenox is a thincker blade more for a sawmill cutting down wood for millwork, siding, and flooring.

Lenox woodmaster CT

It has a backing .035" thick compared to the resaw kings .024". Also the kerf for the varible 2/3 tpi tooth is .065" on the lenox vs .041" thick on the resaw king. The varible tooth is important if you are doing veneers as rougher cuts mean a planer trip or you sand to much and get uneven thickness, either way waste wood.

The resaw king is wonderful for verneers or recutting. It has better quality finish than a lot of cheap ripping blades on a table saw. It has a finish that only needs sanding which is important in veneers, and with the reduced kerf means you can get an extra slice out of a two inch board if cutting 1/8" veneers compared to the lenox, two if cutting thinner. Like sticking a twenty in your pocket if cutting birdseye or flame maple or other expensive exotics.

I run a 1.3t 1" woodmaster CT. It's fantastic as a resaw blade. I have thinner kerf blades, none cut as well as the woodmaster.

 

[PoorUB]

With all the discussion of motor horsepower requirements, surprised no one has mentioned swapping the motor on a small bandsaw for one with more horsepower is an easy upgrade.

Increasing the strength of the frame to tension wider blades is pretty much impossible.

And yes, agree, finding the right skip-tooth blade will make the most of the limited resawing capabilities of the Delta/W-T/Powermatic bandsaws.

jack vines

I had to resaw some 6" oak. The only bandsaw I own is a cheapie 12" Craftsman. I bought a 1/2" blade of it but the OEM 1/3 HP wouldn't pull it. I dug through my pile of motors and found a 3/4 HP and bolted it up. Surprised the **** out of me! For a hobbyist band saw it works well with the larger motor and the frame seems stiff enough.
For me, right now it does what I need. Perhaps one day I will step up to something larger.

 

[Firebrick43]

I run a 1.3t 1" woodmaster CT. It's fantastic as a resaw blade. I have thinner kerf blades, none cut as well as the woodmaster.

It looks nice, no doubt about that.

But you were arguing that you can't do that kind of work on a smaller than 20" bandsaw. (by default that lennox doesn't recommend it)

There are videos, articles, and images galore with 14" Italian style bandsaws (models listed above) that show they can do comparable work.

Resaw at 4.00

Have you tried a resaw king? I really wouldn't expect so because who can afford to by half a dozen different brands of 150 dollar blades, especially when you have one that works well.

 

[jar944]

It looks nice, no doubt about that.

But you were arguing that you can't do that kind of work on a smaller than 20" bandsaw. (by default that lennox doesn't recommend it)

There are videos, articles, and images galore with 14" Italian style bandsaws (models listed above) that show they can do comparable work.

Resaw at 4.00

Have you tried a resaw king? I really wouldn't expect so because who can afford to by half a dozen different brands of 150 dollar blades, especially when you have one that works well.

No I never bothered with the RK. It's up there in price like the tri-master and on a cost basis didn't make any sense to deviate from the woodmasterCT.

You can use a carbide blade on a 14" saw, just don't expect the longevity due metal fatigue. You don't need near the tension on spring steel or bimetal blades as carbide. The smaller saws just can't hit 25,000-30,000 psi (and most 16" saws can't either) the manufacturers recommend for carbide.

 

[McFarmer]

I always do the first three inches on each side with the table saw, then to the band saw. Much easier to keep a straight line.

 

[Git]

I thought the Laguna Resaw King is about as good as you can get? I have a Laguna 18" (3000 series) and purchased the 1.25" RK blade with the saw in 2014. (that blade was $250!) With that being said, I have never used the RK blade! Why - I started out with the 3/4" Wood Slicer from Highland woodworking and have been very pleased with the results, never felt the need to upgrade to the RK so I guess I am 'saving it' for now .

I set up my blades using the Alex Snodgrass method (deepest part of the gullet over center of the wheel) and although I use the Wood Slicer as my every day blade on the bandsaw, the only resawing I usually do is when making drawers out of rough cut lumber. (Easier/cheaper to buy thicker lumber and then resaw it in half.)

When it comes to blade tensioning, the gauge on most of these saws are woefully inaccurate. I was fortunate enough to find a Lenox Blade Tensioning Gauge on eBay at a decent price and that is what I use to set my tension. 15k to 25k is recommended for the Wood Slicer and the band is .022" Also, this saw has a blade tension release lever that I think helps contribute to longer blade life.

My saw with the Wood slicer blade cuts perfectly straight. I even use it to make very fine adjustments on some cuts, I am talking tenths of an inch type tweaks.

Highland Woodworking Tools

Wood Slicer Resaw Bandsaw Blade is Highland Woodworking's legendary blade for resawing - selected as Best All-Round Performing Resaw Bandsaw Blade in Fine Woodworking's bandsaw blade review.

www.highlandwoodworking.com

Laguna chart: Wood Slicer .022" Resaw King .024"