Re: Bandsaw blade -- not for resawing
Falberg saw Co
>"I can see what you mean by calculating the set angle and how that affects a cut. So for my purpose, is there a set angle I should be trying to get to? How about for resawing -- should one go for a low or high set angle?"
For 3/4" plywood cut depths you only need enough set angle to prevent spontaneous combustion from heat build-up. Two tenths of one degree would accopmplish that. If, on the other hand, you want to rip flatness through 18" of gnarly, twisted, knotty, cross-grained Ironwood you'll need at least five degrees. Between these extremes there are an infinite number of choices; and just as many variables in species, cut depth, moisture content, and operator proficiency. I found that set angles of 8 degrees work best for deep, tight, contour cuts. The trade-off is that as you get into higher set angles you get rougher finishes. I found it virtually impossible to get a baby smooth finish on an 18" deep cut but got pretty close if I went really,really slow: slower than my patience would allow and I over-fed toward the end.
Over-feeding is another subject, but let's go there, too. Take a straight stick and push it up against your blade with the saw OFF. Do it like you were feeding a workpiece into it. It's a big beam and probably wet from lying out in the snow so you'll probably jerk it pretty hard overcoming inertia. Simulate that kind of bladal assault with your stick and watch what happens to the blade (any brand). It's got to turn sideways, right? It has no other way to bend, it's flat and thin. What you'll see is exactly what happens inside your kerf when you feed stock into your saw faster than the blade can cut.. It will curve to just about the same degree as the bow you get when you're over-feeding a timber. Funny how that works, huh?
Back to the original question: how much set angle for flat rips? If you want absolutely, positively, no exceptions or excuses flat, fast, and grain-be-damned rip cuts in whatever you find lying around no matter how thick it is to cut up; go with at least 6 degrees of set angle. It'll look like a chain saw went through there but you can sand it out and you won't have to plane out 1/4" of terrain park scenery. If you can do the same thing with 3 degrees, you'll get a smoother finish (smooth-er is another relative term)
Tooth geometry?: I've had customers say the hook tooth was *pulling* the saw. Believe it or not; I've not seen it myself. (Sloping the table to let gravity feed the workpiece works great, though!) You tell me on that one. I'm still learning too.
