Bandsaws--Will they do this?

[NaughtyOne]

I need to cut some 1/16" slices off the 2" side of a (many) 2 * 4. I'll probably use cedar. I need the 1/16" part not the rest. In fact if it were possible I'd like to slice the entire 2 * 4 into 1/16" strips. I've done this before on my table saw but it's a little brutal and there's the constant calculation of 3 1/2 minus 1/16 minus the saw kerf = fence set. Then reduced size minus 1/16 minus saw kerf = next fence set. Etc., etc.

Of course all this would be unnecessary if the lumber yards sold 1/16" stock in varying widths. 1/8" too.

It occurred to me that a band saw might be the better tool to use especially as the "re-sawing" function seems to be suited to just this. (Why is it RE-sawing and not just plain "sawing"?) Would a band saw be the tool of choice especially given the thinness? Can I use the saw in such a way that the 1/16" is between the blade and the fence so I don't have to continuously recalculate the distance? Is it feasible to do this on an "el cheapo" brand?

[Nate Perkins]

[e-mail] wrote in news:ouu211llhnm4k46s8sagdglbi9odcuaakg@

4ax.com:

Sure, that's a primary function of a bandsaw. Lots of us do exactly what you describe when we make shopmade veneers.

You can place a wooden fence beside the blade (separated from the edge of the kerf by 1/16") and just saw slice after slice. Having a good blade with proper tension and tracking helps. Depending on the use for the veneer, you can re-joint the face between sawing each slice (cuts your sanding/scraping in half).

I'm not sure what you mean by an "el cheapo" brand but I'd suggest a 14" or better bandsaw made by a reputable company (e.g., Jet, Delta, Grizzly, etc).

[J T]

Tue, Feb 15, 2005, 4:53am (EST+5) [e-mail] says: Of course all this would be unnecessary if the lumber yards sold

1/16" stock in varying widths. 1/8" too.

How thick are door skins? Seems to me they must be close to 1/16". And, I have seen 1/8" stock for sale too, somewhere. You just need to check a bit more, if you want to buy.

JOAT Intellectual brilliance is no guarantee against being dead wrong.

- David Fasold

[dzine]

The perfect machine for the job. If you use what is called a 'meat and fish' blade (M+F) which has no kerf you get near as flat as is possible with less waste. My message going back to 20002 i think tells more.

[nospam_coloradotrout]

I'm no BS expert, but yeah, they'll do exactly that. A good blade and some basic tuning, and you are all set. FWW had an article awhile back that made all of this simple, and it worked for me. The key, I believe was the blade.

Buy several and the price is pretty good. Not as great as the article suggested, but I bought 4

105" blades for 57 US.

A typical 14" saw should do that and more. I have the Jet. Delta is good, so are others.

[Jim Stuyck]

If it were me, I'd think about having the 1/16" piece next to the fence and a helper pulling that part thru the final few inches so there's no kickback. You still have more kerf than finished product, but you avoid the constant resetting of the fence.

And, for a few more passes, the thicker part is away from the blade, making use of a push stick a little easier/safer.

Slightly cheaper solution, too. ;-)

Jim Stuyck

[Doug Miller]

There was a thread here last fall about ripping thin strips on a table saw, titled "Cutting thin strips on TS". Google that up, and see if the comments there help you any.

-- Regards, Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt. And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?

[GrayBeardPhil]

The way you posed your question suggests to me you have not done this before on a bandsaw.

Before you drop the money on a good bandsaw, you should search out someone who has done what you ask and view the resultant cut wood.

A bandsaw is not like a sturdy table saw. The surfaces of the cut wood are going to be rough with tooth marks. This will require the use of a plane, sander, or some tool to flatten the surface before it can be used. Also, as you feed the stock through the blade, slight leading to one side or the other will occur as differences in the wood interact with the cutting blade. The resulting thickness changes will cause small waves in the wood. Again, you will need to employ a tool to flatten the wood.

1/16 inch slice leaves very little room for removing teeth marks and thickness waves. Others with more experience than I should be able to suggest a tool versus cost solutions for you. I would go with a thickness sander for 1/16 inch. If you wanted 1/4 inch or so, a portable surface planner might be another way. However, you could lose up to 1/8 inch of material with a thickness/surface planner if you wanted a smooth flat and ready for finish surface.

I hope this helps.

Phil

[Edwin Pawlowski]

You make a stop for the left side of the blade. I have a wood block that has a strip on the bottom that goes into the miter slot. A screw on the right edge of it allows me to adjust it as fine as needed. This keeps the wide piece safely near the fence.

[Will]

Done similar stuff.

Sand the edge of the 2 X4 to required fineness. Cut off slice with bandsaw and 3/4 inch thin kerf blade. Similar to this...

as fast as possible with the bandsaw and blade that you use - fewer ridges that way.. Also - I think only a 14" wheel or larger can handle these wide, thin-kerf blades.

We built the desktop sander from

- and I know there are similar out there. surface sander is handy because you can sand the back edge if you need a close fit. (It takes a light touch... :-) ) Or, you can glue the good side and use the sander or a planer to fix the "rough-sawn" bandsaw edge -- which is easier in my opinion -- since there is now a strong backing... It can be a little difficult to gauge the finished thickness. So a little extra thickness on the cut is in order.

You can use a hand planer or surface sander or power planer to smooth the surface ...

Have a look here -- where i have done what you describe for banding...

banding and edging on the desk and tray was made in this manner. It's a little thick though -- 1/8" .

I adjust my fence to cut the narrow edge between the blade and the fence

-- works fine so far - just make sure it has a WOOD guard bolted to the fence in case the blade wanders on a bad cut..

Is it TAS -- or just getting a bandsaw purchase past SWMBO?

Between the cost of wood and tools it is cheaper to get someone to do the job -- unless the tools will be used often or the value of the finished product is relatively high.

[e-mail] wrote:

[Mark Howell]

Like this?

[Charles Spitzer]

if you need a lot of them, look up water jet sawing in your yellow pages.

[John]

I definitely would use my bandsaw for this project. Adjust fence so it is 1/16th inch from blade, and just keep feeding the 2x4 thru till it is gone, then pick next 2x4 and repeat as necessary

John

[dzine]

Phil

Please read my earlier message.

[charlie b]

Bandsaw, 1/2", 3 TPI hook tooth blade, tensioned properly and guides set a dollar bill thickness from the blade. Fence on the "1/16th" side, minimum band exposure - 2 1/4", push "paddle" like the rubber on the bottom push "sticks". Feed at as constant a rate as you can and as fast as is safe. Hand plane or machine join the parent part's cut face between bandsaw passes to have 1 smooth flat face on the parts you're making.

If you've got a planer, a bench top will work fine, and can make a jig for holding thin stock for planing this'll work

Or a drum sander will get you there too.

charlie b

[bridger]

there is a good jig for doing this involving a flip up stop on the non-fence side of the blade.

don't hold your breath.

it was already sawed when it was made from a log into a 2x4.

yes.

yes.

inch and a half isn't too much for a taiwanese 3/4 HP 14" saw like the harbor freight:

but it's probably a bit much for the desktop 3 wheel models like:

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Hobby shop. Balsa wood, up to 4" wide.

[Steve]

I did something similar with my 9" Ryobi bandsaw - the one you can get from Home Depot for about $100, cutting 1/16" thick slices from a piece of Sitka spruce to make side-wall braces for an acoustic guitar. Worked just fine.

What do y'all plan to use the 1/16" cedar for?

--Steve

Nate Perk> [e-mail] wrote in news:ouu211llhnm4k46s8sagdglbi9odcuaakg@

[Nate Perkins]

Steve wrote in news: [e-mail]:

I don't know what the OP plans to use his thin cedar for. I use my thin resaws for veneer and marquetry.

[NaughtyOne]

See:

Rolled furring strips is what I really want to buy. I've already spent about 24 hours (over a two week period) phoning around, checking websites, visiting lumber yards, and calling fortifiber. When I tell the very sexy voice on the "ring us to locate your nearest distributor" line that I'm in NYC there's a big sigh and a "We don't have anyone who sells in NYC". This is not the first time this sort of thing has happened. It's because there's very little new non-skyscraper construction in NYC and the place is a very hard market to be in, anyway. Those of you who live in Boise ID or just the far-flung 'burbs don't know how lucky you are when it comes to these sort of things. OTOH if you want some boutique raw milk cheese, "gold" sashimi grade toro, or a $5,000 bottle of wine, NYC is a great place to shop.

I want the strips to furr out places on a wall where the plaster has been stripped from a lath and plaster base so that I can apply sheetrock and have it flush with the still existing plaster. The plaster may vary from 1/2 to 1-1/4 thick but mostly it's 1/2 to 3/4 but variable. Unfortunately I only have two bedrooms and a parlor to go so 100' would last me a lifetime (i.e., it's not worth some company going out of their way to help).

So to those who said the bandsaw result might be a little rough, hey, close enough is good enough and there's always the belt sander.

I do have another application though. A few months ago I repaired some pocket doors where the previous owners had fitted vertical dead bolt locks (the house was originally an "SRO" or rooming house) by covering the damaged panels with 1/4 strips of oak and cherry I acquired from Rockler. Cost me an arm and a leg. If I had have had a bandsaw maybe I could have created my own 1/4 strips from larger stock. I have a couple more doors to fix....

And I need some cove molding 1/2 * 1/2 with a 5/16 radius. Lots of luck trying to find that stock. I've already solved this one though using sanded-4-sides 1/2 * 1 5/8 molding and a router bit from Grizzly. Route the cove and then rip the molding off. It would have been nice to do it in oak though which I could have done if I could have reduced 1 * stock to 1/2 (i'm not buying a planer AND a bandsaw though).

And there's always the justification to slip a new toy past SWMBO .

Thanks to all of you for your suggestions.