So frustrated with my new HF 4x6 band saw

Agree with Shooty on that, new blades can be ruined real quick be careful.
Mine cut straight out of the box even with the cheap crappy blade on it.
It was about when I started hearing the weld make a click noise over the wheels I thought okay blade is not too happy and then bang she broke, the new blade cuts even better and faster.
Tried to buy Lennox blade but couldn't find a reseller over here, went with a locally welded blade, made from German blade stock.
Bought 2 just to be sure.
 
I took mine back to HF after screwing with it for way too long. The blade would not come straight down. I think the hole for the hinge pin was drilled crooked. So cutting anything but flat bar came out looking like crap.

Take a machinist square and make sure your blade is coming straight down.
 
Buffalo21 said:
interesting, I had terrible luck with Lenox brand bandsaw blades, my Rockwell/Delta vertical bandsaw, my Wilton/Jet 7 x 12 horizontal bandsaw and my Milwaukee portabands, they cut like crap, wandered all over, could not keep an edge, I eventually ended up with Morse bandsaw blades, the best I’ve use (so far). I never really understood this because the Lenox step drill and hole saws are some of the best I’ve ever used.
Click to expand...


I was buying Lenox brand blades from Home Depot for my 4x6... they worked well for a while, then I got 3 of them in a row that broke with just a couple of uses... maybe a bad batch of blades?

Now, I'm buying my blades from McMaster... they are Morse brand, and last a lot longer.

Maybe the Home Depot/ Lenox blades are a lower quality blade? IDK...

-Bear
 
BandSawBladesDirect.com Lennox bi-metal 10-14 has been great for what I do.
I've had better results from these folks over Home Depot and such, does make you wonder if different quality of "name brand" stuff is somehow sent to box stores.
The HF saw takes some fiddling but once set with a good blade hard to beat for the cost, good luck
 
Cyclical noise can be due to the weld joint or defugalties in the blade itself usually due to several missing teeth on the blade.
A metal saw needs at least three teeth contacting the work or the forces are too great for the teeth and they break off.
Inspect the blade and you will find what it is you are hearing. Moving the bearing wheels closer together may
be a help as far as crooked cutting is concerned. Also adjusting and or shimming of the bearings will aid in getting
a straight cut. Get a good bimetallic blade too if you don't have one. Carbon steel blades don't hold up very well in my
experience.
 
A couple of. comments,
1, carbon steel blades will work quite well on mild steel and softer metals, as long as you reduce the cutting speed, also using a cutting fluid / coolant will help.

2. I have found pre-packaged brand name blades a bit of hit and miss. Recently I found a guy who makes up blades to order. He has big rolls of blade material in various sizes and tooth set, plus different materials, he will make up blades to suit any cutting I have. I have even cut untempered spring steel and axle steel with his blades. The big bonus he is way cheaper than any brand name even from big box stores, and I get the benefit of his advice so my cheap 5 x 5 does a great job.

3. Yes the blade must be tight. I run mine as tight as I can get it with that little plastic knob., and always slacken it off when I put the machine away.
 
There can be a number of reasons why a 4x6 doesn't cut straight, and in some cases you have to use an iterative approach to correct the problem(s).

For instance, perhaps you noticed that the blade guide assemblies use what appears to be a really sloppy dovetail system to install them on the sawframe. This is deliberate, and is meant to adjust the blade twist -- which affects how the blade cuts in the vertical direction. And you have to adjust both blade guides in a back & forth mode to get the blade right all the way across the cut. However, the hinge/pivot arrangement on these is rarely perfectly machined, and that also affects the cut. You can work all day on one of these issues but if the other one is contributing a lot to the problem you won't make any progress past a certain point.

The above issues relate to how the saw cuts in the vertical plane. You also can have misalignment in the horizontal direction as well. It's possible that the miter angle indicator is not placed correctly OR you have another misalignment problem, this time with the mount points between the sawframe and pivot point. Shims can be placed in that location to get the blade to agree with the angle indicator setting.

The top of the bed also can be bowed up or down, which can cause problems when installing stock to cut (especially if the bed is bowed up). Flat filing and checking with a straightedge are needed to correct that (unless you have a mill large enough to do the job!).
 
I bought one on Craigs list that came from someone who got fed-up with it not cutting and the blade coming off. I checked the pulley with an indicator and both were great. In the process I noticed that they painted the entire pulley wheels with black paint - even where the blade ran. I used a razor blade to scrape off the paint where the blade runs and it has run great ever since. (I second the suggestion to keep the blade tight)

Rick
 
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