My brother in law has come across an older model 16" wheel Walker-Turner bandsaw. Other than freeing up the guides, needing a new blade and new tires, it seems to be in great shape. The first two issues I can handle, but need advice on the tires.
The originals are hard rubber that seem to have been glued on. They are cracked and even cupped in the middle; the blade seems to have been run with the tips of the teeth in the middle of the blade and have actually worn a trough in the old tires. Having little experience with old iron, am I correct in assuming the tires would have been glued on? The small areas where I can lift up the rubber (at the cracks) show little or no ridges on the edge of the wheel to hold a tire in place. There ARE grooves in the wheel itself where the tire rests.
I have found 16" rubber tires for this saw on Ebay. I have also found 16" urethane tires there. Would it be acceptable for this saw to use the crowned urethane tires? Should the rubber tires be crowned? Would it be necessary to glue in the tires, or should the tight fit be acceptable?
Any tips to help with these questions, or with any other aspect of old iron that I am not familiar with? Thanks for your input!
I owned two W-T 16s, one for wood and one for metal. I replaced the tires on the wood-cutting saw with crowned rubber tires that I contact cemented on. There's probably a better glue to use, but I wouldn't rely on elasticity to keep the tires on.
It may depend on the RPM's, but when I replaced them on my old 36" and turned it on, the centrifugal force was enough to stretch them out about another 6". I don't recommend that you do this.
The glue I got was 3M product in a tube with a long spout, which allowed me to insert into the space behind a pipe with a T for a handle, that I could rotate, making it roll it's way around the wheel.
As for stretching the tires on, I fought with all my strength but failed by just clamping at the top, then trying to work my way around. Then I searched and found that you 1. clamp at the top. 2. pull down and clamp the bottom. 3. Then like drawing a archery bow to both sides.
My tires are flat, never get eased off, and track just fine for more than 20 years and still no grooving on top.
