How to Select the Best Band Saw Blade
Band saw blades require a delicate balance of productivity and longevity. A sharp cutting edge is essential, but too much strain can damage the teeth and skew the cut.
Ideally, the metal used for band saw blades should have flexibility and wear resistance. This is especially important for interrupted cutting tasks such as structural fabrication.
High-Speed Steel
Band saw cutting can generate significant stresses that put the blade under pressure. The right fixturing and bundling strategies can minimize these stress levels. But even so, a bandsaw operator needs to know how to select the best blade for the job. It’s a complex puzzle that includes selecting the right tooth type, size, pitch, set and rake for the material you’re cutting.
High-speed steels are an excellent choice for bandsaw blades because they deliver both the flexibility needed for interrupted cutting and the wear resistance required in structural cutting. They are made up of a series of alloying elements including carbon, tungsten, molybdenum, vanadium and chromium, often with an effective eutectoid content of less than 1.5 wt. %.
The important feature of a high-speed steel is its ability to harden to a very high room temperature hardness and maintain this hardness in elevated temperatures – i.e., red hardness – while retaining good wear properties. This is accomplished by a combination of alloying and heat treatment. Chromium, for example, is added to most high speed steels to promote depth hardening of austenite and improve oxidation resistance. These additions also make the steel easier to machine. Ultimately, high-speed steels can provide the flexibility and wear resistance required for many different types of metal fabrication applications. They’re a good choice for structural and tubing cuts because they reduce slag and produce a smooth finish on the workpiece.
High-Carbon Steel
High-carbon steel has a higher carbon content than other grades, giving it greater strength and hardness. This also makes it less ductile, so it’s better suited to applications that require Band saw blade steel bar a sharper cutting edge. It can also be treated to improve its wear resistance even further.
This type of steel can withstand a lot of stress, making it ideal for metal band saw blades. When it’s used with the right tooth geometry, the blade can handle cuts on a wide range of materials, including nonferrous metals and carbon steels.
While you can’t use a wood-cutting bandsaw blade to cut metal, you can use a bi-metal blade that has both a flexible spring steel backer and high speed steel teeth. The blades are typically electron-beam welded together, and the teeth pockets are milled into the flexible steel backing. Then, a carbide tip is brazed into these pockets and finish ground for optimal performance and longevity.
Choosing the proper blade thickness for your cutting application is crucial to achieving the best results. A blade that’s too thin will quickly wear out, while one that’s too thick will struggle to handle the cutting pressures. When it comes to metal sawing, LENOX offers a variety of blade sizes and thicknesses that will ensure you’re getting the most out of your bandsaw machine and the quality of your cutting results.
Tungsten Carbide
Tungsten carbide is a highly durable material that can withstand high temperatures and pressures. This makes it suitable for cutting other hard materials, such as steel. It is also more resistant to wear than other metals, and it can be molded into various shapes for precision cutting applications. This versatility makes it a popular choice for band saw blades, as well as industrial tools like drill bits and milling inserts.
While most bandsaw blades are made with a bi-metal construction, carbide-tipped blades offer superior durability and cut faster than their counterparts. This is because they use tungsten carbide instead of high speed steel, which gives them more resistance to heat and longer blade life than standard bi-metal blades.
When choosing a carbide-tipped blade, consider factors like blade pitch, tooth set design and blade width. Blade pitch refers to the number of teeth on the blade, and is important because it can affect both the performance and the quality of the cuts produced. For example, if the blade has too few teeth in contact with the workpiece, it may experience early tooth strippage. Alternatively, if the blade has too many teeth, it can reduce the cutting rate and increase the amount of rubbing rather than cutting.
Tungsten carbide is a powdery material that is mixed with carbon, nickel or cobalt to create an alloy that is ideal for cutting metals. The resulting product is harder than diamond, resists corrosion and Hardened & Tempered Steel Strip Supplier is strong enough to cut through most other metals. Additionally, it can be molded into a variety of shapes and is easy to sharpen, making it an ideal material for precision cutting tools.
Stainless Steel
If you’re cutting a lot of stainless steel or other high-strength materials, it makes sense to invest in a dual column band saw machine. These machines take the shortest route through the material, which cuts down on both time spent per cut and the number of cuts required to get the job done.
The thickness of a band saw blade is critical for getting the best results out of your machine. If you’re not using the correct blade thickness for your needs, you’ll likely experience problems such as excessive vibration or a poor-quality cut.
To reduce vibration and ensure a quality cut, choose a blade with a high-density core. This reduces the sensitivity of the blade to vibration and can extend its life.
You should also consider the type of metal you’re cutting when choosing a blade thickness. For example, if you’re cutting marble window sills that are only one centimeter (0,39 in) thick, precision is critical for reducing both saw teeth wear and material loss. Cold rolled steel strip from Waelzholz provides excellent flatness and resistance to warping, which enables you to achieve these demanding precision levels with ease.
It’s important to perform a proper break-in when starting with a new band saw blade. This process involves honing the tooth tips to form a micro-fine radius, which prevents microscopic damage to the blade and increases its lifespan.