Resaw bands in Canada...

[Ned Milburn]

Hello Friends,

Can anyone suggest a Canadian supplier of high quality bandsaw blades good for re-sawing??

I presently purchase from the USA, but with the dollar being as it is...

My local supplier does a great job of welding, but the best resaw blade they have doesn't have a large enough gullet or wide enough tooth set, so when, for example, resawing a wood like Indian rosewood, the blade heats up too much and resin builds on the blade rendering it useless in only 3 to 4 minutes (or less).

I have been using Timber Wolf blades with good results, but of a few I ordered so far, had one with a severe warp in it. They replaced free of charge, so good customer service.

[charles Tauber]

I have used Timberwolf blades with a 14" bandsaw for many years. I've never had a "bad" blade from them and found they are adequate for general re-sawing.

If you are going to do a lot of - or are serious about - re-sawing guitar-back sized rosewood, you might want to consider carbide tooth blades. They will run you about $150 each, but will last longer, cut faster and give a better surface finish, in my experience. There are a variety of carbide-tooth blade suppliers in Canada.

About 2 years ago, I upgraded from my 30 year old 14" Rockwell bandsaw to a Laguna 14-12 saw with a carbide-tooth blade. The difference is night and day.

[PhilQ]

Charles,

So you are happy with the Laguna? I've been contemplating that model myself.

Ned, Elite Tools.ca has an inventory of band saw blades for resawing. Might be worth looking at their website.

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by PhilQ

Charles,

So you are happy with the Laguna? I've been contemplating that model myself.

I'm delighted with it, and their customer service.

I'm used to a traditional Rockwell/Delta sort of blade support and find the Laguna ceramic blade guides a little cumbersome to adjust, and difficult to initially understand, but they work well.

The 4" dust collection port provides pretty effective dust control.

I purchased the add-on light. I don't particularly recommend it. Expensive, hot halogen ($150) and I keep hitting my head on it. Much less expensive third-party options would work as well, if not better.

I also purchased the mobile base. It works well, but if pushed sideways when the wheels are engaged can be a bit tippy.

Be aware, however, of the odd-length blades. If you buy the saw, you'll either be committed to blades from Laguna or have them special-made to the required length.

I purchased their $150 carbide Resaw King blade. Works very well, cuts fast with a remarkable finish, though mine broke - not at the weld - with less than 10 hours on it. I had it professionally re-welded for a few dollars. I mentioned it to the Laguna dealer from whom I purchased it and they said that I could have returned it for a replacement, having had it fail that quickly. I have also used their steel blades and found them adequate - not really all that much different from other blades of the same type and price range.

[difalkner]

I really like the carbide blade from Laguna. I've had my Laguna 14 SUV with 1" Resaw King carbide tipped blade for about 15 months. I've been woodworking about 40 years, professionally about 5-6 in the 80's, and I have to say this bandsaw is probably the best woodworking tool I've ever owned. I basically only use it for resawing since I have an old King-Seeley 12" that I use for everything else bandsaw related.

Y'all may have seen the video I posted on cutting a 14" wide piece of Sinker Mahogany, but it shows the capabilities of the Laguna. Here's the video if you haven't seen it -

[Ned Milburn]

Phil,

Thanks for your suggestion. I'll check out their website.

---

Charles,

I presently have 2 saws. My 15" wheel Craftex 2 piece cast iron saw with riser. It is a fine saw, except for its alignment that I had to fiddle around with a WHOLE lot to get set well. I still have a few minor touch-ups to do. It has a 10" resaw capacity now.

My second saw is a General International:

http://www.general.ca/products/1_gen...aw/90-170.html

A very nice machine.

The carbide tipped blades I have seen (and I in fact had a very informative conversation with a gentleman from Timber Wolf - Steve...?? (was 3 years ago) who designed some of their resaw blades) said the carbide tipped blades are not recommended for wheels less than 18" due to their stiffness.

What carbide blades are you using?? It seems as though your machine also has 14" wheels...

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by Ned Milburn

What carbide blades are you using?? It seems as though your machine also has 14" wheels...

Interesting. These are the blades listed for the 14-12, including the carbide "Pro King":

http://www.lagunatools.com/14-Twelve-Blade-Info

The Salesperson sold me a Resaw King: http://www.lagunatools.com/accessori...able-TPI-X-115

They appear to the of the same back thickness, .024". And, there is no specific listing for a "Pro King" on their website under their bandsaw blades.

I guess I'll e-mail their support.

[Ned Milburn]

Originally Posted by charles Tauber

Interesting. These are the blades listed for the 14-12, including the carbide "Pro King":

http://www.lagunatools.com/14-Twelve-Blade-Info

The Salesperson sold me a Resaw King: http://www.lagunatools.com/accessori...able-TPI-X-115

They appear to the of the same back thickness, .024". And, there is no specific listing for a "Pro King" on their website under their bandsaw blades.

I guess I'll e-mail their support.

I just perused Laguna's blades. Sadly, the website is less detailed than TimberWolf's website.

Since their carbide tip blade has a .024" band, it will allow more flexibility than TW's carbide tipped blade with a .035" band.

Their Shear Force blade is not clearly labelled as carbide tipped or not. Guessing it is not, however.

The gullets look pretty small, however. With my experience with another good quality steel but small gullet blade, it makes me nervous. I'd not drop 150 USD for it just to try it.

What woods have you cut and how tall with your Resaw King blade??

[Quickstep192]

I had a carbide blade on my Delta 14" and loved it. It sawed stuff like butter and with really smooth cuts. But after several uses, it developed cracks on the blade back and eventually broke. I had it welded, but it broke again in a different place. I was told that the blade back had to be thicker to carry the carbide teeth, but that the thickness made it too inflexible to turn on the relatively small wheels of the Delta 14. Does anyone know if newer blades have solved that?

[Ned Milburn]

Originally Posted by Quickstep192

I had a carbide blade on my Delta 14" and loved it. It sawed stuff like butter and with really smooth cuts. But after several uses, it developed cracks on the blade back and eventually broke. I had it welded, but it broke again in a different place. I was told that the blade back had to be thicker to carry the carbide teeth, but that the thickness made it too inflexible to turn on the relatively small wheels of the Delta 14. Does anyone know if newer blades have solved that?

Yes, that's what the fellow at Timber Wolf told me. But the Laguna blades Charles linked show a thinner band, so I'm guessing they figured out how to fuse the carbide tips onto the thinner band, otherwise they'd not have released the product.

[chucksurette]

Ned, I have used R&D Bandsaws out of Brampton, ON in the past.
http://www.tufftooth.com/

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by Ned Milburn

What woods have you cut and how tall with your Resaw King blade??

Many of the common woods, including rosewoods, oak, purpleheart, ebony, etc. Probably the thickest I've cut is 6" purpleheart. It does a nice job of it.

In my limited experience with carbine-teeth blades, the carbide-teeth blades cut faster and with better results than steel, though they are four or more times the price. They can be resharpened four or so times, but I haven't yet had that done, nor do I know at what cost - I was recently stunned at the cost to resharpen by carbide jointer blades, compared to HSS. Something to consider.

My days of re-sawing my own backs, sides and tops are largely over. There are suppliers near me with bigger, better, faster equipment who will do it very well for near nothing. Buying individual pre-cut pieces also allows you to see and hear exactly what the result is, rather than the "fun" of buying large boards, re-sawing them and then finding they are fire wood rather than instrument-grade.

I've used R&D blades in the past. I didn't find much difference between those and Timber Wolf. My experience has been that steel blades aren't all that much different from one reputable brand to another. Carbide is another snack bracket.

[Ned Milburn]

Charles,

The Resaw King blade certainly looks interesting. Perhaps I'll shell out for it sometime.

Chuck,

Thanks for the suggestion. I looked at the site and it might be interesting to try their "little ripper" blade.

Busy Bee's band saw blades are from R&D. Like Charles, I feel the steel quality is similar to Timberwolf, but TW's tooth designs for their resaw blades are IMO superior.

BTW, here is a nice write up about bandsaw blade types I found:

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...hlight=bandsaw

Thanks for everyone's thoughts and input.

[chucksurette]

I may give the $36 little ripper a shot. I have been trying to get better results from my cast Delta saw, but the learning curve is pretty steep.

Thanks for the Sawmill Creek link, it was very informative.

[Halcyon/Tinker]

The resaw kings are 55$USD including return shipping to have them re sharpened. They were just on sale too, buy one get the second half price. They are great when sharp, I got about 65 cuts through walnut and bubinga back billets before it became sketchy to use. Now I have four of them to cycle through, so hopefully I will always have a sharp one on hand.