Air-tensioned band saw

[Rod Sheridan]

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.

Hi Fred, I've heard that before, yet have never seen a saw in industry de-tensioned after use.

Have you seen any info on that from blade manufacturers?

Regards, Rod.

[Tai Fu]

Now that I think about it, I never seen anyone detension bandsaw blades in any workshop I know of... but then I don't know how often they change blades.

[Bruce Page]

Hi Fred, I've heard that before, yet have never seen a saw in industry de-tensioned after use.

Have you seen any info on that from blade manufacturers?

Regards, Rod.

I have worked in at least a dozen different machine shops from small to hundred man shops and never saw anyone, including myself, de-tension a blade. That said, I didn't have to buy the bearings or blades for the machines either. My MM is easy enough to de-tension that I just do it.

[Frederick Skelly]

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.

I do it every night (at home) on both my bandsaws. Its easy on the Rikon - theres a tension relief lever. On the jet, I have to turn the knob (and retension before next use.) Ive seen this in various books and articles.

[Edward Oleen]

Hey, my Powermatic PWBS-14CS came with he Carter guides and the Carter tension release from the factory. I bought an Iturra Design band-saw tensiometer and use it once for each new blade. I note the reading on the saw's tension adjustment and make note of it where I keep the blade. I have added a much finer scale on the tensioning system, and my tests show that my repeatability is quite good.

Problem solved.

His is a neat idea, though - I could see using it for blade adjustments on my table-saw for lift and bevel, and on the joiner and planer, and the drill press and the router lift and the....

I note he didn't mention the cost of the hardware...

[Larry Edgerton]

It does give me an idea for an air powered drill press......

Larry

[Ole Anderson]

I note he didn't mention the cost of the hardware...

I picked up the magazine article, he lists all of the parts, all new, most sourced from McMaster-Carr, for about $275. I'm sure you can do better by working off Ebay.

[Brian W Smith]

"IF" I was doing it,which ain't too likely..........would probably head twds a lever arm system.The air cyl would be out,away from the slider part.The arm's ratio could then be tailored to increase or decrease the amt of force applied by the cyl.Just sayin,don't think we'd be attaching the cyl in a direct line with the adj slider.Interesting idea......but theres other,way more pressing things in the shop that need attention,haha.

[Frank Drew]

Great idea. It is reccomended that blades be untensioned each night to preserve the blades.

Oliver recommended it but for preserving the tires, so that you didn't eventually get ruts. Even with a conventional tensioner, it only takes half a minute or so to either tension or release the tension, so I made it just a habit at the beginning and end of my workdays, like turning on and off the heat, or the lights.