newbie: Band saw blade for purpleheart question...

Jun 03, 2004 3 Replies
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Hello, I'm new to woodworking and am experimenting with making my own solid body electric guitar. I know purpleheart is heavy for a guitar but I'm designing a small scale version of the Les Paul design. It's a learning experience for me. I know there are a lot of lighter woods to use but this is what I have.



The purpleheart is 1 and 3/4 inch thick. The school I work at has a 14 and



10 inch Delta band saw that I can use. Any suggestions on a tougher blade I could buy before using their standard blades. I understand purpleheart is heavier and tougher on blades.

Thanks for any help, VinnyH


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Have you considered applying purpleheart veneer over a core of some lighter-weight wood that also isn't so tough on bandsaw blades?

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

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Gonna guess you're not on an unlimited budget - if you are, then advise otherwise. If you think you're going to be going through a few of them - then shoot for a quantity/quality trade off. The last (or penultimate) copy of Fine Woodworking reviewed a slew of bandsaw blades. There was one in there that scored high marks, yet was quite inexpensive. I'd order a few of those.

IIRC - there are carbide tips blades that cost 10x the nominal price of a blade - but it's what some pro's use.

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Thanks for the tips. I will use other methods later (thin topwood on a lighter body) but for now I'm being adventurous and working with a full body of purpleheart.

I'll look for Fine Woodworking magazine, it should be valuable in a lot of ways for a beginner.

Best Always, VinnyH

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