A new trick

A new trick, at least to me. Was truing up a piece of wood for an end grain hollow form that was about 14" tall. My bandsaw is 5hp so it's up to the task and I have a brand new blade. It seemed like I was having to push the wood thru a lot harder than I should have. I grabbed a piece of waxed paper and put under the log. It was unbeleivable how it eliminated all the drag. It was like moving the wood on rollers, no effort at all. I'm sure someone has thought of this trick before but it will be in my arsenal from now on.

I don't have a bandsaw that large, but with the direction of the blade ( going down ) it would seem to be pushing downward and making the log hard to turn. Reducing the friction is like putting rollers under the log.

Jay

" A bird can fly, but a fly cant bird".

Used to use wax paper under my butt when going down the old steel sliding boards. Made them pretty slick. There is a product called Glide Coat (used to be some thing like Top Coat) which removes most of the friction on any metal surface which works pretty well. Some woods, especially if they are green will drag more.

robo hippy

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Originally Posted by Don Frank

A new trick, at least to me. Was truing up a piece of wood for an end grain hollow form that was about 14" tall. My bandsaw is 5hp so it's up to the task and I have a brand new blade. It seemed like I was having to push the wood thru a lot harder than I should have. I grabbed a piece of waxed paper and put under the log. It was unbeleivable how it eliminated all the drag. It was like moving the wood on rollers, no effort at all. I'm sure someone has thought of this trick before but it will be in my arsenal from now on.

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Good trick, Don. Thanks for sharing. I cut big chunks all the time and know what you mean.
Cheers
Lee

T'umbs up for the tip. If the blade is cutting the wax paper at the same time as the wood is being feed then the blade is getting a little lubrication too that may be helping the cut.

I wood think, you don't want wax on your bandsaw wheels, or the blade could come off, or move.

I use Renaissance Wax on the cast iron table when wood quits sliding easily.

JKJ

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Originally Posted by William Bachtel

I wood think, you don't want wax on your bandsaw wheels, or the blade could come off, or move.

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Metal cutting bandsaws cut with lubricant or a wax/grease stick applied to the blade all the time and the blades stay on so a trace of wax from the paper wouldn't make any difference. You could also use parchment paper but it is made with silicone so that could be more of an issue with finishing if anything.

I regularly use paste wax on my table saw and band saw table tops, my jointer top and fence and the ways of my lathe. As you point out, it makes a huge difference...just have to remember to do it.

Thanks for the trick. So simple and obvious, and I'd never have thought of it. Thanks.

Good tip! Also keeps the damp/dirty wood off the BS top too.