Air-tensioned band saw

[Dan Hintz]

I don't recall seeing anyone post this, so here goes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDCTa16aHh0

[Tai Fu]

It sounds complicated, and bandsaw tension does not really require precision. I mean as long as the tension rod is acme thread it works without fail...

[Peter Quinn]

Interesting adaptation. Solves the original design problem, not sure the added cost is. Value on that level machine? Funny, my Italian saw has the tension wheel in a very convienent place, it adds tension quickly so is not burdensome to adjust, and creates a lot of tension as required. He has solved a problem I don't have. My solution was to get rid of the 14" band saw!

[nicholas mitchell]

A pretty cool solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

[Bruce Page]

I don't think I would trust it. I would like to see a tension gage mounted to the blade to quantify how much tension he really is getting.

[ken masoumi]

If the compressor is out of commision then so is the bandsaw unless the manual adjustment is still functional.
It's not a bad idea if you have a hard to reach adjustment knob or very tall bandsaw .

[Gus Dundon]

It's may be smart idea it but I'm not buying it.

[Judson Green]

Looks like the guy would need to get on a latter if he didn't automated somehow.

Thankfully I'm not vertically challenged.

[Jim Matthews]

A pretty cool solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

Beat me to it; it's a solution in search of a problem.

Bandsaws are elegant, when simple.

[Rod Sheridan]

I don't think I would trust it. I would like to see a tension gage mounted to the blade to quantify how much tension he really is getting.

I would actually like it better than a spring with unknown calibration.

Since he knows the air pressure and the piston area, the rest is easy...........Rod.

P.S. I wouldn't bother with his solution, larger bandsaws have good springs and convenient adjustment systems, he's solving a problem that better saws don't have.

[Bill Rhodus]

Worked on large band saws for years (6 ft sawmills) and they had nitrogen chambers on the tensioning jacks to dampen vibrations. Never seen where this was needed in a shop band saw that was fed at a slow speed.

[Tai Fu]

Although should the airline leak during a cut... the result can be catastrophic.

[Ole Anderson]

Naysayers! While potentially expensive, I absolutely love the idea. For me the problem does exist. There is no quick release on my BS for blade tension, so it usually gets left at full tension for long periods of time. The spring gauge is a very coarse approximation of tension. Reaching up to crank the tension knob is a pain. If the blade mfr lists the correct blade tension in psi, it is an easy calculation to set the air gage psi to achieve the exact required tension. Now off to Books A Million to pick up the April/May copy of American Woodworker. I have shop air so this is exactly the type of shop project that keeps me going. IF I can keep the cost reasonable. In any event it should be way less expensive than upgrading my $400 14" Craftsman Professional to a fancy Italian model.

[Larry Edgerton]

I like it. I change blades a lot and it would save some time. My 20" Delta is not so convenient. I'll never do it, but I like it.

Ole, I buy my air cylinders off of ebay. A lot of production companies change them out on a schedule or use new with new setups and then sell off the old. Have had no problems this way and they are a lot cheaper than at a supply house.

Larry

[fRED mCnEILL]

Great idea. It is reccomended that blades be untensioned each night to preserve the blades. This makes it easy and I supsect would be cheaper that the lever tension setups you can buy. Only difficult part would be monuting the air cylinder.