# Cutting Boards on Bandsaw



## PeteG (12 Jan 2015)

Hello gentlemen  I need to make a jig for cutting boards in half, so if I had a piece 3 foot by 10 inches wides and an 1 inch thick, I'd have two 3 foot boards 10 inches wide by 1/2 inch thick.
I lovely piece of Oak a few days back 1" 1/2" thick, now have two lovely BIG wedges


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## marcros (12 Jan 2015)

you dont need a jig, you need a well set up bandsaw, the correct blade and possibly a tall face to the fence.


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## RogerP (12 Jan 2015)

You will struggle unless you have first set up the saw to saw straight or arranged for the fence to be at an angle to compensate. Even then the saw will need to cut perfectly vertically over the 10 inch height. The blade itself is often the main culprit so get a really good one (Tuffsaws) and get a copy of Steve Maskery's Woodworking DVD 4 - Bandsaw Essentials http://www.workshopessentials.com/shop/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=53.

What you are wanting to do is actually the biggest test of a decent band saw.


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## blackrodd (12 Jan 2015)

I suggest you post details of the bandsaw you are using for deep cutting these 10"x 1" oak boards as there are members who will have a similar set up to you as regards the type of bandsaw, and the blades, etc and will be able to give more informed advice than me.
No doubt one of the first details will be the size of saw blade, number of teeth .
HTH Regards Rodders


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## PeteG (12 Jan 2015)

marcros":1buw2nv8 said:


> you dont need a jig, you need a well set up bandsaw, the correct blade and possibly a tall face to the fence.



I hope it's set better than it was Marcros! I haven't been getting on with it lately, had a nightmare of a time with it last week trying to get a new 1/8" blade to stay on.
After that I took the table off to adjust the rear wheel underneath, only way I could get to the nuts, and now I have a 3/4" fast cut on from Tuffsaws to cut the boards up.
Will just a tall face board attached to the fence be OK?


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## marcros (12 Jan 2015)

it will help with support, although setup is likely the issue.

the 3/4 fastcut blade is nice- i tend to use that as my default blade for everything, unless I need a narrow one for a task.


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## PeteG (12 Jan 2015)

Appreciate the help chaps  I should have mentioned the saw, it's a Record BS350s.


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## andersonec (13 Jan 2015)

3/4" is quite a big blade for a smallish bandsaw as it will need some serious extra tensioning, usually more than hat the handy indicator states, and to cut 10" timber I would advise 2tpi. If the blade is not sufficiently tensioned you will have a curved cut across the width of your timber and if using a fence the blade will drift. 
You will have to make sure your table is absolutely 90deg to the blade and I would draw a line down the centre of your plank and go freehand.

Andy


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## woodpig (13 Jan 2015)

PeteG":2d76np9b said:


> Now I have two lovely BIG wedges



That's what a thicknesser is for! :lol:


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## Higon (23 Jan 2015)

PeteG":1j0bl898 said:


> Hello gentlemen  I need to make a jig for cutting boards in half, so if I had a piece 3 foot by 10 inches wides and an 1 inch thick, I'd have two 3 foot boards 10 inches wide by 1/2 inch thick.
> I lovely piece of Oak a few days back 1" 1/2" thick, now have two lovely BIG wedges




As mentioned in other threads recently;

With the saw setup like this; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGbZqWac0jU

I can now managed this, hand fed, no jigs.


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## Ed Bray (23 Jan 2015)

Higon":2g8d69co said:


> PeteG":2g8d69co said:
> 
> 
> > Hello gentlemen  I need to make a jig for cutting boards in half, so if I had a piece 3 foot by 10 inches wides and an 1 inch thick, I'd have two 3 foot boards 10 inches wide by 1/2 inch thick.
> ...



I second setting the bandsaw up as the video above suggests. I had limited success with my bandsaw until I used the techniques explained in this video, now it cuts great, square and straight.


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## devonwoody (23 Jan 2015)

10" is a very deep cut.

If you are only needing an end result of 4" wide or other, I would rip first and then do the resaw , I believe the deep cut is called.


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## fascut (10 Aug 2015)

when you use a handsaw to cut timber of substantial cross section you would not consider keeping the angle of the saw the same throughout the cut, as you know from experience that you will cut the timber faster and more easily if you constantly alter the angle of the blade in relation to the work . the reason for this is that you are reducing the length of the cut and increasing the bite of the teeth,
IE; The chip thickness is increased. This reduces the scraping action caused by low chip thickness which will otherwise rapidly blunt the blade.
To replicate this on a band saw it is only necessary to lift and lower the end of the stock nearest you by a small amount as the cut proceeds. By doing this, much greater depths of cut can be achieved will less stress on the blade.
An aid to doing the above more easily is to fix a small curved section of wood to the table (a dumpling) so that the work can be rocked on it. The advice from other members with regard to a high fence is obviously still important.
I hope you find the useful. fascut


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## blackrodd (10 Aug 2015)

Welcome to the forum, You're approach to deep cutting a 10" piece of oak on the bandsaw is one that I cannot agree with. 
In this instance handsaw ripping in a vice is a different technique to ripping with a bandsaw.
Sticking a "dumpling" or wedge type piece at one end of a piece of wood makes it unsupported the length of the table,
which I cannot condone, and As the o p's 3' piece of oak is longer than the bandsaw bed, having to move the "dumpling"while in the cut and blade still rotating I find a rather a scary idea.
If this works for you then OK, 
When a band saw is set up correctly it'll cut well enough without trying to vary the blade angle in such a scary manner.
Regards Rodders


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## Steve Maskery (10 Aug 2015)

Assuming that the saw can tension the blade properly, I would use a single-point fence for such a cut.
It is a demanding task of any bandsaw.


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## PeteG (11 Aug 2015)

I gave up on the idea after my 3/4" inch Fastcut blade snapped a few months back, I could never tension it properly. All the thick stock I have I've kept to use on the lathe.
But all the advice and help is much appreciated. No doubt I'll replace the blade at some point!


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## fascut (11 Aug 2015)

Hi Blackrod, thanks for giving me some food for thought.
The dumpling ( perhaps 6mm thick) would be fixed to the table where the blade passes through the table and would not be free to move with the stock. the stock being cut would be supported at this point but would be free to rotate in a small arc. This would be exactly the same as cutting a badly bowed board with the convex side down. Dangerous?
However, please forget about dumplings, I'm sorry I mentioned them.
I would be most pleased if some of you woodworkers (who have never done so) would just try lifting and lowering the end of the board nearest you a little when proceeding with the (deep) cut. Please let me know of your findings.
NB. Please use a substantial jig if using this technique with short lengths of timber. 
Sorry to be pedantic but Band blades do not rotate(at least not between the pulleys) but move in a linear direction.

Dumpling is the correct term for a curved support, and was much used in former times with spindle moulders especially when machining shaped handrails.
I so enjoy a discussion. Fascut


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## Eric The Viking (13 Aug 2015)

I wouldn't get hung up on having to use a 3/4" blade.

As everyone else has said, it's mostly down to having the thing properly set up (I don't think Mr. Snodgrass's ideas work too well with cheaper Chinese made saws - the ones he sells have cast frames and are very rigid - this makes a huge difference). I've had great success following Steve Maskery's processes and would recommend his videos.*

Ian at Tuff Saws does 1/2" and 5/8" skip tooth blades. You can tension these on small Chinese saws (at least I can on my SIP. Deep gullets mean good chip clearance and a cooler running blade. I haven't done really deep ripping (Idon't think I can get 10" under the guides on mine!), but I've managed 7" stock relatively easily.

E.

(disclaimer: Steve is a personal friend - I've been swayed by his cooking, evidently!).


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## Eric The Viking (13 Aug 2015)

fascut":yjg2wfsq said:


> ... The dumpling ( perhaps 6mm thick) would be fixed to the table where the blade passes through the table and would not be free to move...
> 
> ... Dumpling is the correct term for a curved support, and was much used in former times with spindle moulders especially when machining shaped handrails.



It sounds sensible to me - your explanation makes a lot of sense, and I shall experiment at the next opportunity.

I have some 8mm brass rod around somewhere, which, if cut in half lengthways, might be just the job. I think I could make something rigid that will clamp in the mitre track to hold it safely in the right spot. I can see, though, that it would be hard to do with a long piece of stock, or a really short one.

E.

PS: I appreciate safety issues, and don't think this is especially unsafe - all saws are dangerous, some much more than others. Bad things occur from unpredicted or unexected danger and unprepared users, not from informed people experimenting cautiously. You could say a point fence is also risky, on the basis you could really jam the blade (and break it) if you were clumsy, but it's n obvious abuse of the idea, so people generally don't. 

If someone can explain what the risk here actually is, rather than just saying "it's bad practice" or "don't", I'm all ears...


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## blackrodd (13 Aug 2015)

The Original Poster, back in January, made a request for advice in making a jig to help deep cutting 10" oak on his (Record bs 305s) bandsaw, as he ended up with a pair of wedges!
Fast forward to August the 10th, and a new post offering the advice to use a "dumpling" between the bed and workpiece,
to vary the angle of cut, as you would do with a handsaw.
Which I fail to see how this dumpling or even a piece of brass is the latest, will help the bandsaw cut in a straight line.
And I still don't. 
On reading the link below, on the Record bs350s bandsaw, The makers sell 3/4" blades for it and claim cast iron bed and trunnion for strength.
So, on reading the BS350s link, the blade size is not the issue, nor is the blade tension capability.
So surely we arrive at setting up the bandsaw, in this instance, 3/4" Tuffsaw blade, tracking, guides and thrust bearing set up.
Enter Mr Snodgrass for most of us, He certainly knows Bandsaws.
Maybe Record will make and sell banana shaped tables and saving those dodgy dumplings!
Regards Rodders


http://www.recordpower.co.uk/product/pr ... cySQXFViko


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## Eric The Viking (13 Aug 2015)

I was referring to the fact the Snodgrass ones have cast frames - probably steel. They look to be a lot better made than the Chines one I have. The table and trunnions are irrelevant. 

Box tube frames like mine bend significantly in heavy tension and the geometry goes squiffy, even though mine is supposed to be able to cope with a 3/4" blade. I follow Steve Maskery's approach to get it to run true.

E.


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## woodfarmer (13 Aug 2015)

The Alex Snodgrass video as mentioned before is excellent. I could do very little that was useful with my Fox bandsaw until I rebuilt it and set it up as per the video.


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## Claymore (22 Aug 2015)

On Youtube there's various guys who have made their own wooden bandsaws like Mathias etc .....will they be rigid enough to tension a 3/4" blade? he seems to have no problems cutting thick stock so what's the secret? invisible cast iron core to his wooden saw?


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