I had planned it out so well. Got six 3-foot-long pieces of 1/4"x2" oak and laminated them together. As soon as the glue dried I knew it was going to be really strong. The idea was then to saw the laminated wood down the middle to make two necks. Here's where the trouble starts. This is the first time I've worked with oak (did maple and poplar in the past) and my brand new band saw blade did not want to cut it. If I pushed the wood into the blade much beyond a gentle nudge, the blade wanted to twist and cut at an angle. It took about 20 minutes to gently push the entire three feet of wood past the blade and the cut was anything but smooth. After sanding the rough cut, I then started to cut the head. Fail! What I learned: oak is too hard for the band saw if I want a straight cut. I'll try the laminating again, this time with maple.
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Larry, my saw is so old I have the same problem, I have a small block of metal under the tension screw which gives me a bit more, sort of like having your amp volume knob go to ten and a half.Don't over do it or the blade will break, when you think you have it right twang it like a guitar string and after a while you will know by the sound when it is dialed in.
With a 1/4" blade it is harder for the guide blocks to hold the blade. 1/2" has more for them to hold on to, I have taken the metal blocks out of the blade guides and put in maple blocks, then press them tight to the blade, this gives a tight fit and less wear/noise on the blade. They need replacing but work better. You can buy some fancy blocks but wood works just as well but not as long.The blocks do not touch the blade where the teeth are as they are bent out a bit, but with wood one you could have them on the teeth as the blade will just cut a grove in them, this works well on a small blade like a 1/4". The stop wheel behind the blade is just a hair short of touching the blade when not cutting. I take off the wheel cover and turn the wheel by hand and adjust things until it is just right. It stays fine for a while and then needs a little tweaking. Cheers Ron
Thanks, Ron. A 1/2" blade makes perfect sense. I'm also thinking that my blade might be just a tad too long as well. The tension adjustment is maxed out and there still might be a little too much flex side to side. Still, it's a vast improvement from what it used to be.
Glad to hear it worked out for you, if it is cutting well and the blade does not break you are fine.If you are not cutting sharp curves going to a 1/2" blade, when yours gets dull, might give you a nicer cut.
If you look at a guitar the center piece is not all that thick, maple oak makes a good combo:
And Mark, thanks for your input regarding the laminating. I wouldn't have thought that just 1/4" oak would be enough bulk to make a difference. I'm intrigued enough to try it.
And this is why I love this site. Ron and Juju, you're right: the tension was almost nil. I've also learned more about that saw in the last couple of hours than in the past year. Tension is fixed, blade guards are where they need to be and it cuts a straight line like butter. Thanks, guys.
And Ron, I have a Delta tabletop saw. The blade is 1/4" with 6 teeth per inch.
yes i agree Oak is like butter to cut on my bandsaw - make sure you have the blade tension set right and a suitable blade for the job in hand and the blade guids aligned correct - you should need very little if any pushing going on - i can feed Oak and most other hard woods through the saw with one finger
Mungo Park said:
Something must be amiss here. I have cut many miles of oak with my band saw and it is nothing special.
I've made several laminated necks by sandwiching a piece of 1/4" oak between two pieces of 1" maple. This results in a very strong, stable piece that's wide enough for most applications.
I then cut the essential neck shape out with my saber-saw, leaving plenty of room from the outline so that I can hand-carve (with rasps and sureform) the thing down to it's final shape.
If I need a wider peghead, I glue "ears" onto the sides of the already-cut shape. This dodge requires a lot of hand finishing, but I've built several necks this way, including my mandola. It's held up admirably to full pressure from 8 strings.
Replies
Opps double post.
Larry, my saw is so old I have the same problem, I have a small block of metal under the tension screw which gives me a bit more, sort of like having your amp volume knob go to ten and a half.Don't over do it or the blade will break, when you think you have it right twang it like a guitar string and after a while you will know by the sound when it is dialed in.
With a 1/4" blade it is harder for the guide blocks to hold the blade. 1/2" has more for them to hold on to, I have taken the metal blocks out of the blade guides and put in maple blocks, then press them tight to the blade, this gives a tight fit and less wear/noise on the blade. They need replacing but work better. You can buy some fancy blocks but wood works just as well but not as long.The blocks do not touch the blade where the teeth are as they are bent out a bit, but with wood one you could have them on the teeth as the blade will just cut a grove in them, this works well on a small blade like a 1/4". The stop wheel behind the blade is just a hair short of touching the blade when not cutting. I take off the wheel cover and turn the wheel by hand and adjust things until it is just right. It stays fine for a while and then needs a little tweaking. Cheers Ron
Mungo Park said:
If your blade wears out buy a 1/2" blade, it does a nicer straight cut, 1/4" is better for curves.
If you are carefull you can cut do a few swipes with sandpapre on a block and glue it up.
I cut a extra strip of oak and use it for the "ears" that mark mentioned.
Glad it is working out for you.
Cheers Ron.
Larry:
Glad to hear it worked out for you, if it is cutting well and the blade does not break you are fine.If you are not cutting sharp curves going to a 1/2" blade, when yours gets dull, might give you a nicer cut.
If you look at a guitar the center piece is not all that thick, maple oak makes a good combo:
Cheers Ron.
[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f333/mookie098/P1011109.jpg[/IMG]
And this is why I love this site. Ron and Juju, you're right: the tension was almost nil. I've also learned more about that saw in the last couple of hours than in the past year. Tension is fixed, blade guards are where they need to be and it cuts a straight line like butter. Thanks, guys.
And Ron, I have a Delta tabletop saw. The blade is 1/4" with 6 teeth per inch.
Mungo Park said:
Something must be amiss here. I have cut many miles of oak with my band saw and it is nothing special.
Must be set up/blade tweaking that is needed.
Do a tune up/blade search and read up a little.
What bandsaw do you have.
Cheers Ron.
I've made several laminated necks by sandwiching a piece of 1/4" oak between two pieces of 1" maple. This results in a very strong, stable piece that's wide enough for most applications.
I then cut the essential neck shape out with my saber-saw, leaving plenty of room from the outline so that I can hand-carve (with rasps and sureform) the thing down to it's final shape.
If I need a wider peghead, I glue "ears" onto the sides of the already-cut shape. This dodge requires a lot of hand finishing, but I've built several necks this way, including my mandola. It's held up admirably to full pressure from 8 strings.