Metal cutting band saw usage?

[yomax4]

If you are in the $600 range look at the Baileigh BS-128M. it's an import but has good reviews and I was awarded one from Baileigh a couple years ago and it's a quality saw. It has the look up top of the cheaper Menards, HF saws but it sits up a lot higher and has the swivel adjustment like the Ellis saws have as well as a hydraulic feed adjustment with a nice on off switch system. It is Very quick to switch for cutting angles. I downsized from an Ellis 1600 that I loved for 25 years and sold it for what it cost new back then. For much smaller stuff they make a frame to hold a porta band that lets you cut like a chop saw only it's a porta band. That is a nice option for tight small piece work.

 

[dragoneggs]

If you are in the $600 range look at the Baileigh BS-128M. it's an import but has good reviews and I was awarded one from Baileigh a couple years ago and it's a quality saw. It has the look up top of the cheaper Menards, HF saws but it sits up a lot higher and has the swivel adjustment like the Ellis saws have as well as a hydraulic feed adjustment with a nice on off switch system. It is Very quick to switch for cutting angles. I downsized from an Ellis 1600 that I loved for 25 years and sold it for what it cost new back then. For much smaller stuff they make a frame to hold a porta band that lets you cut like a chop saw only it's a porta band. That is a nice option for tight small piece work.

Weird... price is all over the place. Amazon is $1560.59, Mile-X.com is $660.25!

 

[jwmorris]

I hate the dust from abrasive cuts and you can't cut aluminum, brass, etc with them safely.

Also able to gang cut, I have a couple of auto band saws I got for cheap that are great for multiple parts, they will cut them while you are doing something else.

 

[the old grind]

:thumbsup: On every comment so far. Cold saws and coolant are fine in our tool rooms and production shops, but have awkward limitations compared to a good bandsaw.

Don't overthink capacity to the point of trading quality for cost. Do use the lube stick vs coolant as suggested. Norton Bi-Metal 10-14 tpi are a good example/reference for 'versatile' blades. (I use HFT-metal for alum on the 14" 'wood' vertical, but cuts get HOT :laughing

Learn proper positioning/clamping of tubes, angles, extrusions etc. A good thing to appreciate about bandsaws is the ease of cleaning up the cuts. Torch and plasma cuts are heqq on endmills, lead to laborious grinding ... and more sparks. :scratchchin:

The biggest 'crash' you can have (that broken tooth stuck in the cut) will cost you a blade at most. t o g

 

[the old grind]

See general bandsaw setup here:

Band Saw Clinic with Alex Snodgrass - YouTube

 

[franklin2]

I agree, coolant seems to be important on the larger saws I use at work. But the little harbor freight saw I have seems to work the best with no coolant, no lube. I have tried manually squirting a light motor oil on the blade while cutting. It did seem to lighten the load on the saw motor, but other things started to happen. The cuttings started to build up on the guide wheels and were also carried around up into the blade wheel area. It also made the blade wheels oily and while the blade did not slip off, it started to get a build up of metal filings on the wheels.

When I run it dry the cuttings just fall down onto the floor. These cheap saws are just not properly setup for any type of coolant or lube like the larger saws are. Any benefit I may have received by lubing the blade was offset by the other problems. I still get very good life out of the blades I use dry. I have found the Olsen blades at tractor supply seem to last the longest.

 

[the old grind]

Our bigger saws use coolant to flush chips as much as to cool. Some also have a cupped wire wheel(s) positioned at angles to rotate against the blade and do the same. While the lube stick works best if used sparingly you can also brush on powdered graphite, but it's a bit outre to do so.

There is no 'lube' oil worth it's trouble as a lube or coolant, plain water working better for drilling or sawing and w/o gumming up a saw's 'tires'. (the tires can be replaced .. buy/attach new rubber to wheels). Because I'm an old school handwheel spinner I do most millwork and turning 'dry' on machines that sit for weeks/months under plastic covers between jobs and it's nice to have 'em sparkling when setting up the next job.

I've always liked/bought Olson blades for other saws. HFT also sells good blades (US made) for some of their line.
'Magnate' (online) has remarkable selection and we're using theirs too.