Learning About Bandsaws21

Learning About Bandsaws

Bandsaws have a long, circular, flexible band blade. The blade moves around two different pulley type wheels. The bandsaw blades are serrated and the teeth span the circumference of the band. A bandsaw can be powered by many different types of power supplies. It can be used for cutting wood, metal, or a variety of other materials. It is also good for cutting radial curves or odd shapes and designs.

Automated bandsaws are used in mass production environments. There are advantages to this automation. All feed rates, returns, falls, part clamping and part feeding is preset and automatic. In many manufacturing facilities it is neither possible nor cost effective to have an operator to run each saw. In the case of automation, one operator is capable of overseeing many saws at one time. Many automated saws use CNC or NC controls to perform precise, accurate and faster cuts.

In the logging and sawmill industry, there are several different types of bandsaws commonly used. The first cut into the log is usually made with a headsaw. The headsaw has teeth that are two inches apart along the cutting edge of the blade. On the back side of the bandsaw blades there are teeth called sliver teeth. Sliver teeth are useful for moving slivers out of the way as the blade is backed out of the log and keeps it from getting hung up. The second blade used in the sawmill is the resaw. A resaw is used for making cuts along the length of the board and is most often utilized in cutting boards for veneers. Double cut blades have teeth on both edges of the saw blade.

Bandsaws are preferred and used by logging mills for the ripping process because they have a smaller kerf than circular blades and produce much less waste. Bandsaw blades in logging mills can be as wide as sixteen inches. They are tightly stretched across two wheels which drive the blade in a circular motion. Saw filers and saw doctors are the men responsible for the blades and the saws in a sawmill. They maintain the machine itself, determine the needed depth of the teeth, and make sure that the bandsaw blades are sharp to avoid damaging the lumber.