Resawing: Is it Important to Determine Grain Orientation?

[Mike Shields]

New to this game, so please excuse the possible ignorance of this question:

I have a 6" by 6" piece of 3/4" walnut that I want to resaw. Does it matter which way I resaw it?

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or

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I looked in my bandsaw book, and did not see it this addressed.

Thanks,

Mike

[Michael Mahan]

what Band Saw book are referring to ? I'm looking getting some reference material for my new band saw .
I also await a rely to your question about the grain issue .

[Mike Shields]

what Band Saw book...

The New Complete Guide to the Band Saw - M. Duginske

[Michael Dunn]

I do not claim to be an expert, but I do not think it matters. I've done it both ways. Feed rate and pressure against the fence are much more crucial.

[Loren Woirhaye]

It doesn't matter except for which way the saw marks will go. I suspect they'll be a little easier to remove if you saw the parallel to the grain (the way that's usually unavailable due to board length). I've sawn that way. Whichever way the guides can be set the lowest is the way I go.

[John TenEyck]

I think you will get a straighter cut if you saw perpendicular to the grain, in the normal manner. Localized density variations are more likely to exist parallel with the grain and could cause the blade to wander more if you cut in that direction. Cutting perpendicular to the grain minimizes those density variations.

John

[Chris Fournier]

I think you will get a straighter cut if you saw perpendicular to the grain, in the normal manner. Localized density variations are more likely to exist parallel with the grain and could cause the blade to wander more if you cut in that direction. Cutting perpendicular to the grain minimizes those density variations.

John

This is it! Think about how all lumber is ripped, the blade moves perpendicular to the grain. Also, leave you rpiece as long as possible for stability through the cut, tha tpiece that you show there is getting dicey. An aggressive resaw blade will take command and drag that piece in a very scary manner. Jig up and use push sticks and you'll be okay.

[Karl Stowe]

It doesn't matter. I have re sawed lots of walnut like that and pieces with more figure. Sanding off the bandsaw marks is the hardest part. Sharp blade, push stick, and a steady hand will get it done. Most of my walnut I re saw because the planer tears out real bad, even with new blades.

Karl

[Jim Rimmer]

The New Complete Guide to the Band Saw - M. Duginske

Best book you can get for the band saw.

[Prashun Patel]

This'd probably only matter if the piece was exactly square. Else, I'd normally cut with the short side up. I do notice a difference in feel when cutting into the edge vs end grain vs across the face (especially in green wood) but the difference in feel has never trumped my prejudice that shorter cutting is better than taller because there's fewer chips to eject to keep a straight/non-bowed cut.

[Michael Mahan]

Mike Shields
The New Complete Guide to the Band Saw - M. Duginske

Best book you can get for the band saw.

Yeah ThanX Guys I got these on order

The New Complete Guide to the Bandsaw: Everything You Need to Know About the Most Important Saw in the Shop (Paperback) By (author) Mark Duginske 1 $8.97 $8.97

The Bandsaw Book (Paperback) By (author) Lonnie Bird 1 $11.73 $11.73

best price I could find

[Peter Quinn]

Doesn't make any difference. You usually rip long lumber perpendicular to the grain because you can't rip long stock standing up! You would need a 12' resaw in some cases, thats a 3 story bandsaw or one big circular blade. A decent blade won't care which way you shove that in. I usually go with grain perpendicular but its more about convention than logic.

[Jim Matthews]

It's not mentioned here, but this has been my downfall in resawing -

The faces that register to the cast iron and fence must be square and flat.
Not close to square or mostly flat - square and flat.

It's a struggle to keep the kerf straight if the workpiece isn't tracking straight.
If it was me, I would resaw through the "shortest" section for the straightest path.

[glenn bradley]

It's not mentioned here, but this has been my downfall in resawing -

The faces that register to the cast iron and fence must be square and flat.
Not close to square or mostly flat - square and flat.

It's a struggle to keep the kerf straight if the workpiece isn't tracking straight.
If it was me, I would resaw through the "shortest" section for the straightest path.

I don't take grain direction into account. I do joint perpendicular surfaces to reference against the fence and table if I want a good cut ;-)

[Mike Shields]

I had spent considerable time "troubleshooting" why my vertical resaw cuts were not the same thickness at the top of the board, as the bottom (this is at the very beginning of the cut, only 1/16" deep, so it cant be grain). I was going bonkers making adjustments, and getting no where.

It was the way I was holding the lumber against the fence.

I wasted alot of wood and time by having poor feed technique. Oh well, live and learn.

Thanks,

Mike