Band saw for turning blanks

I am looking at buying a bandsaw to be used 90% of the time for cutting bowl blanks. The other 10% obviously will be for resawing/curved work. As of right now I am leaning towards the newest style Jet 18" with the 3 hp motor but several people have told me to consider the equivalent Laguna saw. Is there a huge difference cutting green wood between the standard guides and ceramic guides? The only bandsaw I've ever had was a small 10" rikon so don't have much experience. What have you all found to be important features for cutting turning blanks?

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Originally Posted by Dusty Ward

...What have you all found to be important features for cutting turning blanks?

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The height of the exposed blade when the upper guides are all the way up, the type of blade used, and a properly tuned saw.

I do more blank processing on my bandsaw than anything else, both for bowls and spindle turning, a lot of green, some smaller dry, some resawing. I worked for years with a 14" Delta with a riser block. I had terrible problems until I tuned the saw as per Duginske's book. I could then cut any 12" thick green or dry wood I tried, including resawing kiln dried 2x12 lumber. I later got an 18" Rikon with more power and now use it for cutting blanks.

I use a 1/2" 3-TPI blade for this. I've tried wider blades but this works better. Blade tension has to be right and AFAIK no bandsaw tension gauge is accurate, those I've checked are horrible. I use a Starrett tension gauge to check this but there are cheaper ways that are just as good.

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I don't have experience with either the Jet or Laguna but I'd guess either would do the job.

Hey, if you want to cut a LOT of bowl blanks find someone with a bandsaw mill - far quicker! This is mine behind the barn:

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JKJ

The ceramic laguna guides (the square ones) are far better for green wood because they can be set in contact with the sides of the blade. That scrapes the gunk off the blade which lets it cut straighter in green wood, especially after it gets dull.

I have a woodturning friend who has a 20" Jet bandsaw (current model) that he's very happy with. He actually bought it to replace a late-90s Italian-made Laguna bandsaw that he didn't like. As Bob said, ceramic (or steel) guide blocks will scrape the gunk off of the blade, while bearings will press the gunk onto the blade. Spaceage Cermics does sell kits to retrofit ceramics guide blocks to many popular bandsaws, so that might be an option to consider. http://spaceageceramics.com/

--Geoff

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Originally Posted by Dusty Ward

I am looking at buying a bandsaw to be used 90% of the time for cutting bowl blanks. The other 10% obviously will be for resawing/curved work. As of right now I am leaning towards the newest style Jet 18" with the 3 hp motor but several people have told me to consider the equivalent Laguna saw. Is there a huge difference cutting green wood between the standard guides and ceramic guides? The only bandsaw I've ever had was a small 10" rikon so don't have much experience. What have you all found to be important features for cutting turning blanks?

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For many years I used a 14" knockoff of the Delta bandsaw. That's a decent saw, but bigger is always better ... can I have a "yes"? I now own a MiniMax 16" bandsaw with 3 HP motor ... really nice. If I were currently looking for a bandsaw I would get either a Jet or Powermatic. The Laguna bandsaws are good, but years ago they had a really bad reputation in customer support. They may have gotten their act together since then, but I'll let somebody else be the guinea pig.

My preference for bandsaw guides are the Olson Cool Blocks. I also have ceramic guide blocks, but I don't use them much. I have also used wooden blocks ... cocobolo or other hard oily tropical wood and surprisingly they are about as good as anything. Any of these three choices are better than the standard guides. As JKJ mentioned, tuning a bandsaw makes all the difference in the world and agree that Mark Duginski's book is an excellent resource on tuning up your bandsaw. Tuning up the blade is also important. Use a sharpening stone against the back of the blade to remove the sharp corners and slightly round the back over. Check the weld to make sure the blade is straight and that that the joint is flush and smooth. If there is any roughness at the weld use silicon carbide paper to polish it smooth.

Also, get a can of PAM Original spray (the stuff that you use to keep your biscuits from sticking to the pan) and keep it in your shop to lubricate the blade. The saw will run quieter and the blade and tires won't gunk up with resin.

Dusty I have been using my 14" Shop fox with the riser block and the 105" blade for quite a few years now cutting all my green wood from the felled trees I get from a tree trimmer I know. I also use it for cutting all my exotic and kiln dried wood with a different blade. My neighbor bought a Jet 18" bandsaw tha has a slight bit more re-saw capacity. I think the biggest difference is in the Quality of the blades.

Thanks for all the info, guys.