New to the site and hopefully I am posting this in the right forum.

I have a 12" craftsman band saw, 1/2 hp.  I don't do a lot of serious band saw work but do build self bows.  I find that this saw is a little lacking when I try to cut red oak that's 1" thick and 36" long, very slow and getting a lot of burnt wood.  Question:  Can I up the HP or do I need a new blade (got the blades with the saw 6 months ago) or both?

 

2nd issue.  Have 2 B&D 1/4" routers that I use once or twice a year for small jobs.  My issue, I only have 1 and half of the collets that hold tension on the cutter shaft.  Have searched the internet till I am blue and cannot find one.  Are there substitutes available?  See pictures

Note:  I am 75 and can't see myself spending a lot of money for a new router for as little use as it gets.  just need a collet

Thanks in advance for any help with either of the 2 issues.

Welcome to the site, glad to have you here!!

 

About the bandsaw, a little more about the blades you currently have would be helpful. Width of the blade and number of teeth per inch can make a lot of difference when cutting.

 

 

https://www.ereplacementparts.com/collet-p-94661.html

 

This Dewalt part number is identical-

https://www.powertoolreplacementparts.com/dewalt-90593213-collet/

 

Both Black and Decker and Dewalt were owned by Stanley so maybe that's the reason for the same number

Lew;

Band saw blades are 1/4" wide, one has approx 7 teeth per inch and other approx 20 teeth per inch.

Thank you for the web site for the collet.

 

 

 

6 hours ago, Lost Oki said:

Lew;

Band saw blades are 1/4" wide, one has approx 7 teeth per inch and other approx 20 teeth per inch.

Thank you for the web site for the collet.

 

 

 

No problem. I would look for bandsaw blades with 3 to 4 teeth per inch. 

Welcome aboard Oki, glad to have you here.  I think Lew has got you fixed up with both your questions, but I need/want to ask - what is a self bow?  We like pics BTW

Cal, Self Bow is usually a long bow or recurve made from one piece of wood.  So far I have built two out of Red Oak boards.  They can also be made out of a section of a tree split with the grain.  There are several U Tube videos on how to.  Grain flow has a lot to do with success of the build.  Many are made out of Hickory, Hard Maple, Bois d Arc (Horse apple / hedge apple) Black Locust, Oak and other woods (there is a list breaking each wood down by various factors needed for a good bow.  besides my two success I have also built two that broke during build, but I am a beginner and have actually had some luck, because I am still shooting my first bow.  Like all wood working projects, patience is required.

 

Edited February 18, 20242 yr by Lost Oki

Lew, is there a preferred place to buy blades?

30 minutes ago, Lost Oki said:

Lew, is there a preferred place to buy blades?

For general use, I usually go with Timberwolf-

https://www.timberwolfblades.com/index.php

 

Not sure what length blade your saw takes. My old Taiwanese is hard to fit and I usually need to get a custom length (92.5").

 

Another place that has blades especially good for resawing is-

https://www.highlandwoodworking.com/woodturners-bandsawblade.aspx?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA8sauBhB3EiwAruTRJhugME9VCl-2I_H3yOD_kAKAVcirIZIl8SN4MI-zC-FkO4f4W4eE2xoCwCEQAvD_BwE

Thanks Lew

 

Lew to the rescue all the answers I would have given

14 hours ago, Lost Oki said:

Self Bow is usually a long bow or recurve made from one piece of wood. 

 

Thanks for the response and YT link.  Never heard them called self bows.

I still have my old Ben Pearson Puma recurve that I got as a teen awhile back... make that quite awhile back

Looking forward to seeing some of your work, successes and failures!

Edited February 19, 20242 yr by Cal

Late to this party Don so guessing there are no donuts left.

 

Donuts aside, Lew has given you sound recommendations. I also have an old Craftsman 12" BS. Generally the 1/2 hp motor is adequate even for resawing since maximum resaw depth is ~6". For resawing at that thickness a wider blade, 3 to 4 this blade is best. IIRC, maximum width blade is 1/2" although a 3/8" will give pretty good results. Upgrading your tires from the old rubber to urethane improves performance too.

 

I would recommend using a 3/8" blade for your rip cuts on the 1" red oak. Of course if you're doing BS boxes, it will require changing back to a narrower blade for tighter, cleaner cuts, which is a pain. Additionally, taking time to properly adjust the blade track, blade guides etc. will greatly improve your cuts and exxperience.

 

A good rule of thumb, the harder the wood, more tpi and narrow the blade, your feed rate needs to be reduced.

 

James Hamilton aka Stumpy Nubs recently put out a general recommendations video (below) for bandsaw useage. Also, for properly setting and adjusting a BS, you won't find better instructions IMO than Alex Snodgrass (video below). I've seen him do this in person at his clinics several times. He does make it look so easy. His technique works.

 

As for blades, big box brands are Ok for some things, but I've had excellent results from Lew's second source recommendation, Highland Woodworking.

Their blades seem to stay sharper much longer. My 12" Craftsman uses 80" length; assume yours is the same unless it's the tilting head model.

 

Anyways, my $0.02 worth which includes all state and local taxes.

 

 

 

 

GPDave52

Thanks for the reply, I have watched the Snodgrass video and yes, very informative.  Will have to watch the other.  

I have downloaded the manual for the BS I purchased late last year but there is no mention of blade length.  Mine does have a tilt table but info I have found calls for an 80 inch blade.  Note, BS came with support table and wheels that lock up for use, down for moving. 

 

Donuts, still have a few left, although they may be stale but if ya nuke em, with a cup of coffee, you should be good to go if ya keep the sawdust off em.

Do you have the craftsman model number of the bandsaw?

Lew, yes  Model 113.243311  Serial # ends with P0020

That's an 80" blade. The 1/4" wide sears part number is 60272. But, any brand 80" blade will work 

From the manual, it appears that the maximum blade width is 1/2"

Same as mine Don. Yes, the blade length is 80".  Mine also came with the extension table, locking moveable castors and even the original Craftsman rip fence assembly and circle cutter attachment. Bought it a few years back at a garage sale for $40. For another $10 I bought several NIB Craftsman blades, 1/8" and 1/4". One of the better buys I've made. It does have the aluminum table versus the cast iron but still is a pretty decent saw.

 

 

https://www.ereplacementparts.com/craftsman-113243311-12inch-band-sawsander-parts-c-158286_159107_172812.html

8 minutes ago, lew said:

From the manual, it appears that the maximum blade width is 1/2"

That is correct Lew. I've never tried a 1/2" on mine. Widest I've used it 3/8" which I have been able to tension properly. Wasn't sure with the OEM spring if I could get 1/2" width to tension. Several aftermarket options to update blade guides to "cool block" as well as urethane tires. I need to replace tires on mine. My little Craftsman 10" table top model I have upgraded tires to urethane which was a good improvement.