If the blade is thicker at the weld than at the rest of the blade, using the blade may damage the guides.
20.When grinding, do not hit the teeth, or grind deeper than the thickness of the blade; or burn or overheat the weld area. Be sure to remove flash from the back edge of the blade. Any flash or “stub” teeth which project beyond the normal set or height of the other teeth must be ground off.
Clean Up
It is very important that the clamp jaws be kept clean at all times. The jaws or inserts must be wiped or scraped clean after every weld. Doing this will ensure better welds by holding proper alignment, preventing flash from becoming embedded in the blade, and preventing shorts or poor electrical contact.
Blade Selection
Using the proper blade for the job will increase the operating efficiency of your band saw, help reduce necessary saw maintenance, and improve your productivity. Thus, it is important to follow certain guidelines when selecting a saw blade. Blade breakage, teeth stripping, crooked cuts, and other common complaints are, in most instances, caused by using the wrong blade.
Consider these factors when selecting a blade:
•The type of material you will be cutting.
•The thickness of the workpiece.
•The features of the workpiece, such as bends or curves with small radii.
These factors are important because they involve basic concepts of saw blade design. There are six blade features that are normally changed to meet certain sawing requirements:
1.width
2.gage
3.pitch (number of teeth per inch)
4.tooth form (or shape)
5.the “set” of the teeth
6.the blade material itself
Width
Band saw width is measured from the back of the blade to the tip of the tooth. Always use the widest blade possible that still performs the needed job. Generally, wider blades are used for straight cutting. Narrower blades are used when the part being cut has curves with small radii. Refer to the chart in Figure 22 to select a width for radius cutting.
The radii in this chart are all based on cutting
Figure 22
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