Bandsaw blade tension

I would try francist's recommendation, but I think I already know what the results would be.. By the time I came back to use the saw I wouldn't remember why I'd put the dumb flag in such a stupid location. I would have started the saw and guess what, not only would my memory refreshed, but I would also need to change a freshly broken blade.

In reality my oldest bandsaw is 46 years old while my "new" one is only 32 years old. I have never relieved the blade tension on either of them. They both still work fine.
 
I can't say that I've ever had a blade stretch that affected it's functionality nor have I ever had one snap because of it. I wonder if this applies mainly to wood bandsaws with thinner & narrower blades?

I do however release the tension on my hacksaws most of the time but not always.
 
I've been forgetting to un-tension my band saws for decades. Doesn't seem to harm anything.
 
I've always faithfully reduced blade tension on my band saws (which I don't use very often) but I'm sure going to quit doing it after reading this thread!
 
I think some bandsaw manufacturers have a tension release lever on their saws strictly for the benefit of the rubber tires. Since half of the tire is compressed by the blade, and the other half is not when the saw is not used, it is theoretically possible for the tires to take a set. Then when the saw is started there could be a bump or vibration in the blade due to the tires. Everyone wants a smooth running blade. So these saw manufacturers tell their potential customers about this wonderful advantage their saw has. Is this a real or a perceived advantage? Probably depends on what kind of rubber tires the saw uses. On my first homemade bandsaw I used bicycle inner tubes for the rubber. Now I use the best urethane tires sold and when I forget to release the tension I cannot tell if there is any difference in smoothness or vibration.
 
Thats the First I have heard about releiving the tension on band saw blades.
And just like that there is another thing I do wrong.
The oops list is getting longer.
 
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I purchased that same model Grizzly GO640x saw a few years back which I am quite happy with. My smaller Delta horizontal saw has never had the tension released. The grizzly asks for quite the procedure to tighten the blade and I have gotten into a habit of always letting off the tension when I shut down the inverter. I figured with the urethane tires, it had to be an okay idea. The lever and tension adjuster are seperate and when released it is posible to start the saw and the blade won't really run, it sorta skates (yep, I test this "feature" occasionally). This is the first saw I had with elastomer tires and there is a lot of tension it haven't really been an inconvenience so I'll keep it up. When I forget, I'll not worry over it after reading here.
 
I've been doing it wrong too... for 30 plus years I guess... That said the purists say yes- release tension. Iturra Design make / makes a clever quick release gizmo, but it's only for the Delta 14" models. I've got one of his blade tension gauges, but by the time I reach the recommended tension on my Italian (MiniMax) 18" I've bottomed out the spring and the frame of the saw is flexing. That's with 3/4" resawing blades which is what I primarily use that saw for.
All of that said I have broken blades, but not after getting a whole lot of use out of them, some even having been sharpened once or twice. So, no, I don't bother...

BTW, if you can get one of the Iturra catalogs there's a wealth of information in it about bandsaws.
 
Below is a link to a band saw blade tension device that is quick and easy to use.



Roger L
 
Timberwolf that specializes in wood cutting and resawing blades recommends releasing the tension when not in use.
 
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