Accura has always been among our top choices because they have been making these guides for a long time and in that time, they have mastered the craft of making guides. This model sports a premium build and has three bandsaw guide bearings. The main job of the guide is to ‘guide’ the blade so that it stays perpendicular.
Good, aftermarket bearings, such as the ones from Carter are very nice, as are a good brand of guide blocks, such as Cool Blocks or ceramic blocks. The blocks more so than bearings, but the blocks are cheaper than a good set of bearings. On the larger blades, the blocks tend to wear faster, and it is typically not an issue keeping the bearings away from the teeth.
If you have an unusual, custom, unique or vintage band saw you can choose from 2 new sizes:CB51010BL 1″ x 1″ x 1″ Cool Blocks or The SLAB CB-SLAB 6″ x 1-3/4″ x 1/2″ Customizable to fit various saws. To modify for your specific band saw: After carefully measuring the size of your saw’s guide blocks, saw each Cool Block to that exact size using a very sharp, thin kerf blade. CB-SLAB Contains 1 slab 6″ x 1-3/4″ x 1/2″ To modify for your specific band saw: After carefully measuring the size of your saw’s guide blocks, saw each Cool Block to that exact size using a very sharp, thin kerf blade.
Although Iturra does not recommend using its Band Rollers with blades less than 1⁄8 “, I tested mine with 1⁄8 “, 1⁄4 “, and 1⁄2 ” blades, cutting thick stock and making tight-radius cuts to force the blade against the bearings. These bearing guides showed no signs of wear, a big upgrade from my square-block graphite guides. When cutting arcs and circular shapes-and especially in resawing-the bearings proved much better than my old graphite guides at holding the blade perpendicular to the workpiece with no twisting or deflection.
02-11-2013, 8:46 AM #1 Best bandsaw guides I am going to change the guides on mu Grizzly G555LX band saw. Without being able to look, I don’t know if your lower guide and thrust bearing is the same design as a Jet, or a Delta 14″.The Delta guides are closer to the underside of the table than a Jet and are oriented differently. I changed my Grizzly G0555P bandsaw guides to cool blocks.
best bandsaw guide blocks Related Question:
What are bandsaw guide blocks made of?
What is the Difference? Cool Blocks are made out of graphite impregnated phenolic resin laminate. Ceramic Guide Blocks are made of aluminum oxide powder that has been compressed into shape under tremendous pressure, then heated at over 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
How much space should there be between a band saw blade and the upper guide blocks?
The guide blocks should have an air gap on both sides of the blade the thickness of a piece of paper. The upper guide assembly should be anywhere from 1/4″ to 1/2″ above the work piece being cut. If too much blade shows, it becomes dangerous.
Which way should the teeth face on a bandsaw?
On a typical wood or metal cutting blade the hook or of point of the blade should be pointing down for a vertical blade bandsaw, or for a horizontal blade saw the hook of the teeth should be pointed such that they enter the workpiece first as the blade moves.
How many teeth does a bandsaw blade have?
The general rule of thumb is: For wood and soft materials aim for 3 – 6 teeth in the workpiece. For metals and harder materials aim for 6 – 24 teeth in the workpiece.
What is a blade guide?
6Oct by Lori Balkus. Bandsaw blade guides keep the bandsaw blade on track while cutting through materials. Blade guides should be set above and below the saw table to help reduce vibration by holding the bandsaw blade in place while cutting. This assures a precise and quality cut.
How tight should my bandsaw blade be?
The blade should deflect no more than 1/4 in. A good place to begin is to tension the blade until the meter reads proper tension for the next wider blade. For example, if you’re tensioning a 3/8-in.
What causes bandsaw blade drift?
Drift is cause because the blade buckles under the load. You can see that by stretching a ribbon between 2 points and applying a pressure to one of the edges, it will turn sideway easily. A sharp blade and high blade speed will help a lot with that.
Can a bandsaw blade be turned inside out?
Re: Turning a band blade inside out hi ,just get heavy gloves,an uncoiled blade ,step on the bottom and turn the blade inside out,and it will go right on a turner mill and just reverse the blade to sharpen. Thanks.
Do bandsaw blades have set?
Re: set in bandsaw blade Set is important to keep the sides of the band from rubbing in the kerf and also to help guide the band so that it doesn’t follow the grain so bad. How much set depends on the type of wood, but it also depends on the thickness of the blade.
What is the kerf of a bandsaw blade?
Kerf: Amount of material removed by the cut of the blade. 5. Tooth Pitch:The distance from the tip of one tooth to the tip of the next tooth.
What is tooth set on a bandsaw blade?
The pattern of tooth setting is “left/right/straight,” where the left and right teeth are for opening or cutting the material, and the straight one – the so-called raker tooth – is for removing sawdust from the timber. The recommended tooth-set values are different for each blade type and profile.