Bandsaw blade recommendation

[cpowell]

I've ordered the Rikon 18" bandsaw and expect January delivery. I noticed Suffolk Machinery has a buy 3, get 1 free sale right now on the Timberwolf blades. I'd like to take advantage but am not sure what size to get.

I know the saw will take 1/4 to 1 1/4 inch blades, 142 inch length.

What assortment would you recommend to give me the most flexibility?

[DaveO]

There was a good article that just came out in WW'ers Journal on bandsaw blades. Of course every choice depends on what you are planning to do with the saw. But in a nutshell, unless you are doing fine scroll type work (which you probably won't do on such a large saw) a 1/4" 4-tpi skip or hook tooth blade and a 1/4" 6 tpi standard tooth will cover tight curved cuts. A 1/2" 3 tpi hook will cover long gradual curves, and because you have the capability a 1" carbide or bi-metal blade with variable tooth spacing will handle your re-saw needs. I only have a 14" bandsaw so I can't give personal recomendations to the sizes for your future saw. But I use a 3/16" a lot for bandsaw boxes, a 1/4" for general purpose, and have a 3/4" for re-saw. My .02 Dave

[Ozzie-x]

Hello Cpowell,
Unless you're going to do small curves, you probably won't want anything smaller than 1/2" especially on a big saw like yours. I've always used 1/2" and that works fine for about everything, even some re-sawing. If you're going to do special operations, you'll probably want to get a blade to suit the operation, such a lot of resawing. I have a 1/2" timberwolf on my bandsaw right now and they're great. On a big saw like yours, for resawing you might want to go 3/4" or 1" especially if you're going to saw a lot. Suffolk makes a lot of different tooth designs and tooth counts that you can select from to meet your needs. I think they have a blade selector on their website that will be helpful also.
MY Best
Randy O.

[Steve D]

Another easy approach is to call them they are very helpful on the phone and can tell you exactly what you want for the work you will be doing, type of wood etc.

[sapwood]

Congrats on the Rikon cpowell.

Considering that bandsaw blades wear out quickly (at least for me when resawing), I would consider getting two blades the same size (3/4 for resaw), and maybe one 1/2 and one 1/4--or two 1/2 and a 3/4 and a 1/4.

Sapwood

[brenthenze]

I agree with Steve--they're very helpful on the phone. I took advantage of this same deal right after I bought my 17" bandsaw. I told the guy on the phone what saw I had and what types of sawing I wanted to do, and we talked about several different combinations of blades, plus the advantages and disadvantages of each. I ended up getting a fine 1/4" blade for tight-radius cuts, a 3/8" blade for general use (to replace the cheapo blade that comes with the saw), a 1" blade for resawing, and a 1-1/4" hook-toothed blade for planking green wood.

If you have any interest in planking green logs, I'd definitely recommend a 1" or 1-1/4" hook-tooth blade. My 1-1/4" blade is a monster, and I'd consider it a must-have for planking logs. I've pushed a 12" dia. log through the saw quicker than I could cut it with a chainsaw (and with much less waste). On the other hand, this is a single-purpose blade: you'd never use it for resawing, dry-lumber ripping, or any other purpose.

[cpowell]

Thanks to everyone for the information. I haven't really used a bandsaw very much before but have been aggravated with sending 4/4 stock through the 13 inch planer a gazillion times to get to drawer stock thickness. I'm looking forward to increased yield.

I have also taken notice of a few potential sources of logs around here and would like to try my hand at sawing smallish logs into planks.

I will call Suffolk Machinery tomorrow and get some blades coming!

Chuck

[DavidF]

When I spoke to the Timber Wolf guy at the show in Hickory he mentioned that their blades only have one tooth type - no need to chose hook or skip etc. I use 1/2'' for pretty much everything. On that note; latest cuts have been a frozen beef tenderloin into 8 oz steaks (1/2" 4 TPI skip) and cutting a bar of Imperial Leather soap into qtrs to hang on shrubs to chase off the deer (1/4 10 tpi) - what a versatile machine!

[Ozzie-x]

The new Woodworker's Journal showed up in the mailbox today, and has an article about choosing the right bandsaw blade. Haven't read it yet, but it's in there. I'm like David, all I use is 1/2", but I'm not a real curvey kind of guy. Haven't tried the 1/2" on meat (finger?) or soap yet, but it does okay on leather for chisel handles.
My Best
RandyO

[woodguy1975]

I only use Lenox Bimetal blades. They kick butt over timberwolf's for bigger saws. They last longer and give a better cut in my opinion. For resaw I like a 1/2" 3-4 TPI hook blade. For exotics I have a carbide tipped trimaster that rocks. Check out www.woodcraftbands.com. They have good pricing and are good folks to deal with.

John