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Thread: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

  1. #1

    Default Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    I just inherited an extremely nice, practically like-new bandsaw and it's a massive upgrade from what I had before.

    One major benefit now is the resaw capability. I'm excited about the potential to resaw wood for prepping all parts of my mandolins--tops, sides, necks, etc. But that's not what this post is about...

    In studying resaw technique I see what appear to be conflicting approaches regarding which side of the blade the original stock is on on which side the cut stock is on. My initial assumption was that you dial in the bandsaw fence to the width of stock you want, run the wood through so that the original stock is on the outside of the blade and the cut piece (to the width you determined with the fence) is still against the fence. However, I am also seeing the opposite approach: original stock against the fence with the cut piece falling off to the outside of the blade.

    Is there a "right" way to do this? Or is it really just preference?

    Thanks,
    Mark

  2. #2
    Registered User John Bertotti's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    I cut with without and both sides all depending on how much room I need and the orientation of the wood. So I vote for not right way because that suits me.
    My avatar is of my OldWave Oval A

    Creativity is just doing something wierd and finding out others like it.

  3. #3
    harvester of clams Bill McCall's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    Just like a table saw, the waste is outboard from the fence.

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    Registered User John Bertotti's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    Quote Originally Posted by Bill McCall View Post
    Just like a table saw, the waste is outboard from the fence.
    Provided one side is waste a lot of what I cut neither side is waste.
    My avatar is of my OldWave Oval A

    Creativity is just doing something wierd and finding out others like it.

  5. #5
    harvester of clams Bill McCall's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    Ok, the piece that needs a fence to regulate a degree of freedom is fence side. Typically the fence is inboard. If you aren’t regulating either side except by eye, suit yourself. There are many reasons why saws come in different sizes.

    But mind the fingers.

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  7. #6
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    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    You can try my method. I use a sled for cutting tops and backs.


    Otherwise, cutting sides, I use a fence and keep the planed face to the fence with the blade at the rough side thickness from the fence.
    Austin Clark
    http://www.clarkmandolins.com

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  9. #7
    Registered User John Bertotti's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    I had a less than elegant rig to maneuver my wedges through. I need a more elegant way now that I see Austin Clarks's sled!
    My avatar is of my OldWave Oval A

    Creativity is just doing something wierd and finding out others like it.

  10. #8

    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    I have a resaw with a 3" wide bandsaw blade. A fence is useful on that saw. On a normal Delta style 14" bandsaw, I cannot recommend using a fence. The problem is that your drift angle is dependent on your blade sharpness, tension, and feed rate. Two of those variables are changing as you cut! I got some really nice Alaskan yellow cedar because a friend tried to resaw his own. It was a straight cut as far as he could see, but the bottom of the cut was a sinusoidal wave with a variance of about 1" on either side of his intended cut!

    Resawing is not hard, but don't try to automate it or you'll be chasing perfect conditions for resawing. A bandsaw isn't a table saw. Instead, just mark a line and follow it. Problem solved. Look at vintage pictures of bandsaws. Nobody used a fence, generally. It's a freehand tool, and a very precise one, you just have to drive.
    Last edited by Marty Jacobson; Aug-09-2019 at 7:25pm.

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  12. #9
    Registered User j. condino's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    Much like building mandolins, the way to get good at resawing....is to do a lot of resawing. Practice, practice, practice.

    Be very, very careful with your bandsaw lust....
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    Moderator MikeEdgerton's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    That's a serious blade
    "It's comparable to playing a cheese slicer."
    --M. Stillion

    "Bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
    --J. Garber

  15. #11
    Registered User John Bertotti's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    Quote Originally Posted by Marty Jacobson View Post
    I have a resaw with a 3" wide bandsaw blade. A fence is useful on that saw. On a normal Delta style 14" bandsaw, I cannot recommend using a fence. The problem is that your drift angle is dependent on your blade sharpness, tension, and feed rate. Two of those variables are changing as you cut! I got some really nice Alaskan yellow cedar because a friend tried to resaw his own. It was a straight cut as far as he could see, but the bottom of the cut was a sinusoidal wave with a variance of about 1" on either side of his intended cut!

    Resawing is not hard, but don't try to automate it or you'll be chasing perfect conditions for resawing. A bandsaw isn't a table saw. Instead, just mark a line and follow it. Problem solved. Look at vintage pictures of bandsaws. Nobody used a fence, generally. It's a freehand tool, and a very precise one, you just have to drive.
    Where do you get a 3" blade and what machine is it in? WOW! I was called crazy for having a 3/4" blade. My 14 inch jet with 6" risers can do a decent resaw but you have to go slow and have a good and sharp blade. I almost ruined the first pieces because besides blade drift I have some runout and bow as well! A learning curve to say the least. But doggone, Tim the tool man disease is striking, a 3" blade and a machine to drive it, that is incredible!
    My avatar is of my OldWave Oval A

    Creativity is just doing something wierd and finding out others like it.

  16. #12

    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    It's a Ryobi BS-360 dedicated resaw. The blades are getting hard to get, but there's one supplier, Skarpaz, who makes them, for the time being. The problem is, the blades last so long, it's not a big seller for them (plus it's a pretty unusual saw).
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  18. #13

    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    I was going mention the fence problem but it didn't seem to be what the question was about. But in full agreement with Marty. If you try to follow a fence it is probably going to either wander and pull the wood away from the fence or force it into the fence and lock up.
    I always used a one point fence that maintained the depth of cut but also followed a line and it's pretty amazing how far out of square with the table it would pass through sometimes.

  19. #14

    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    And speaking to stupid questions, I can give a very good example. In 1973 I asked the first guy I knew who had made an F5 "Is an F harder to build than an A"? Here's your sign.

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  21. #15

    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    I'll continue talking amongst myself.
    This is a re-saw fence made by Kreg I found at Rockler. Had to adapt it to the Delta fence. Just set up for the picture, don't have the 3/4" blade on the saw.
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  22. #16

    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    It's right side up in my photo viewer. ???

  23. #17
    Moderator MikeEdgerton's Avatar
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    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    If you took the photo with an iPhone I suspect something has changed with an update. The forum software hasn't changed but I have to put every image I take on my desktop and rotate it. I guess I should be looking at my phone settings, it has to be there.
    "It's comparable to playing a cheese slicer."
    --M. Stillion

    "Bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
    --J. Garber

  24. #18

    Default Re: Stupid(?) question re: resawing wood

    Never tried to make an instrument, but use a bandsaw for other stuff. First thing is to tune a blade with a stone to reduce bias and pulling to one side. Second, drawn from hand woodworking is to slot top and bottom of the cut with a handsaw for an inch or so, defining where you want the long cut to go. In theory, the band, which has some latitude, is going to follow the cuts more easily than wandering off. There’s a bunch of speculation about blade tension and blade width; take your pick, but that 3” blade is likely to stay in one plane! That fancy blue fence attachment really looks like repurposed industrial salvage, but the principle is that the wood side is curved, so it acts like a single-point fence. Make one yourself out of wood, thick enough to sit parallel to the saw blade by cutting it there, then round it. Generally, for reasons given by others, bandsaw fences are dinky because they don’t matter.

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