Timber Wolf Band Saw Blade Tensioning Guide
Timber Wolf® Silicon steel blades are very stable at low tension or lower tension than what is normally recommended by most saw manufacturers and other blade manufacturers. By using less tension you will prolong blade life, consume approximately 20 percent less horsepower and increase the life of your wheel shafts and bearings. If a specific cutting application requires that more tension be applied to the blade, such as when resawing large material or cutting green logs, the recommended force for these blades can be increased by as much as 20 percent. To apply the exact same blade tension each time saws would require a very expensive hydraulic or air strain tensioning system to create a repeatable tensioning method. These systems would make saws cost prohibitive for most consumers as are the high quality tension gauges such as the Lenox® and Starrett® brands which can also give us a repeatable method for applying tension. The so called “deflection” method for tensioning, measuring the lateral defection of a blade, is more Kentucky windage than anything. In order to use deflection as a measure of applied force we would have to calibrate every steel type, blade width and blade thickness for every size saw and then create a tool to precisely measure the lateral deflection of the blade which is not practical. If you happen to own a high quality tension/strain gauge, below is a list of recommended psi for each width of Timber Wolf Silicon steel blade. If you do not own a tension gauge please see the “Flutter Test” method below this list: |
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Width Minimum/Maximum tension 1/8 inch = 7,000/10,000 psi 3/16 inch = 7,500/10,500 1/4 inch = 8,000/11,000 3/8 inch = 9,000/12,000 3/8 inch x .032 = 11,000/14,000 1/2 inch = 10,000/13,000 1/2 inch x .032 = 12,000/15,000 3/4 inch x .025 = 11,000/14,000 3/4 inch = 13,000/16,000 1 inch = 14,000/17,000 |
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THE “FLUTTER TEST” FOR PROPER SILICON STEEL BLADE TENSIONING |
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This tensioning method is a guideline and should be used whenever possible. By using less tension you will prolong blade life, consume approximately 20 percent less horsepower and increase the life of your wheel shafts and bearings. If a specific cutting application requires that more tension be applied to the blade, such as resawing large material or cutting extremely large diameter logs, the determined force can be increased by as much as 20 percen t. | ||||
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