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Metal cutting bandsaw

S

Stephen Newell

Well-known Member
I've got a Harbor Freight metal cutting band saw that has been working great for a couple of years now and recently the blade won't stay on it. I've tightened the guide rollers very tight against the blade and the blade still comes off. Does anyone have a idea what I need to do to correct this.
a83014.jpg
 
Increase the tension on the blade. It's like a bicycle chain, if it's loose, it will jump off the sprocket.
George
 
You might have a bad blade. I have had to take the big idler wheel off and lubricate the bushing a couple of times over the years. You don't want the four guide bearings excessively tight against the blade. Also check them for slop. I have had to replace mine once. Got them from a bearing house. I notice the last time I used mine that the blade kept wanting to come off. Haven't had time to check to see why yet. Probably getting worn out, I have used it a lot.
 
With the blade off, check the large drive and idler wheels for bearing or bushing slop. They will eventually wear enough to cause trouble.
 
Also, if that blade is bent from jumping off it may not work no matter what you do.
Best to get a new blade and start over. All the stars and moons must be aligned to keep the HF stuff working over time.
 
That is something to check. I inspected everything for something broken or excessive wear but I did not check how far the roller was back.
 
None of the bearings appear to be any different than when the saw was new. I believe the problem has to be something out of adjustment and my lack of experience with this type of machine is not letting me see it.
 
If it was a bad blade then I got two of them. They were HF blades but all the blades I've had on the saw were HF. I recently got a job replacing the posts on a steel fence. I had to cut 25 posts out of 2" steel and instead of using 16 gauge tubular steel, I used 10 gauge. The steel I got seem excessively hard and after the first blade came off the saw I put a new blade on the saw and cut other parts out of 1" 16ga tubular. Within a few cuts the new blade walked off so I quit using the saw altogether. Now I'm wanting to use the saw again so I want to get the saw fixed. Everything on the saw appears to be the same as new.
 
I believe I've been putting the blade on tight however my experience with bandsaws are with its woodworking counterpart. I realize the metal blade should be much tighter and until recently the saw has been working great. I did have two blades and when the first blade came off I attempted to hammer the kink out of the blade but when that didn't work, I put the new blade on and it did the same thing. I'm not one to bash HF but I believe in this situation something is out of adjustment and if I was more skilled with this machine I could put it back to running great again. My problem is I'm a woodworker trying to run metal working equipment.
 
I will second what the others have said about the back guide roller/block letting the blade ride too far up. Check it out.

As for your cutting tubing. I have found some batches of square tubing that are hardened at the joint seam. The rest of the tube will cut fine but the welded joint is heat hardened. It will ruin a band saw blade, even the good bi-metal ones. When I cut tubing on a band saw now I take my torch heat it red hot right at the weld seam. Just let it air cool and it seems to take the hardness out of it.. It has made my band saw blades last much longer.

I found a used Milwaukee metal saw last year. The blades are high ( $50 each) but it is the best thing for tubing and pipe I have ever used. It is fast and will last a long time if you don't let the blade bind.
 
I will give that a try. I think I've been tightening the blade enough however I've never had anyone show me the proper tension.
 
The tubular steel I was using seem to be very hard all the way through, not just the seam. I don't have a torch so I can try to heat it. All I have is a propane torch. I may have to try the Milwaukee blades. I don't mind paying more if they are more durable. I know the Milwaukee tool company has a fine reputation. The HF blades I have been using I believe run about $17.00.
 
Make sure the idler and drive wheel are aligned properly so that the blade tracks correctly. the blade should just touch the flange on the drive and idler wheels. Don"t over tension the blade.

if you have the manual, it tells you how to make this adjustment. You can look it up on the HF website.
 
Well since from the picture the blade slides in and behind the bearings your back bearing needs to be adjusted so that the blade can not do not. Most of them are mounted on a cam sort of bolt so by turning the bolt you can more that backing bearing forward or back wards. I picked up a cheap band saw at an auction about a year ago and the drive gear woodroof key was bad and fixed it and adjusted every thing and it works just fine and it cost me $20
 

there is a adjustment to tilt the top wheel to keep the blade on . there are screws on the outside to tilt the wheel shaft. not hard to do just too hard fo me to explain . you need the bottom of the wheel to come out so the blade runs close to the inne guide
 
Update. I took the upper guide assembly off and the rear wheel is not adjustable on this saw. It is just mounted with a pin. The entire assemble however can be adjusted back but I don't understand how it could have moved forward unless the lower assembly has moved back and the upper is taking all the pressure. All of the guide bearings are tight with no slop. There is however a lot of slop on the upper wheel the blade rides on but it has always had it. Tomorrow I will tear into it and see if there is any way to tighten it up.
a83116.jpg

a83117.jpg
 
I had one of these saws and it did the same thing. After studying it for a while I shimmed the rear wheel (I believe). You must get the wheel tightened up on the shaft and keep shimming until it stays on. I think I had the blade too tight and the frame warped a bit and so after that when I got through using it, I loosened the blade till the next time I used the saw...seemed to do the trick. Same way with the little portable Milwaukee band saw. Your mileage may vary. ohfred41
 
Go to a place that has a bandsaw blade welder. They will have a wide selection of superior blades to the cheap HF ones, Lenox, Wikus etc. Using a coolant will help and you need to break in new blades by feeding at half speed for a few cuts. If you don't break them in, they won't last and won't cut nearly as easy.
 
Out of curiosity, how close are you running your guides to your work piece? On my saw, I can adjust them wide for cutting the 4" pieces or narrow them up for cutting something like a 1" piece. If you have them opened all the way up and have too much down pressure, it will cause your blade to try to bend siddeways causing it to finally get in behind the rollers like your picture shows (don't ask me how I know). I thought something was worn out on mine till I adjusted them. Just my thoughts, Keith
 
If the back roller is free to move side to side. the blade can get bent.When that happens the blade is shot.The marks on the back roller say your roller is moving side to side.You can stop that with a circlip c washer.Just push the circlip over the shaft.You may find the shaft is moving in the casting.You have to eliminate all side play on the back roller.I use Olsen blades.Never cut thru a weld and always set the blade down easy when starting a cut.Test unknown metal with a file before cutting it.
 
If you do a search on "improving the 4x6 bandsaw" or something like that you'll get a lot of hits to metal working sites and a lot of good info. Might be worth a look.

FWIW- with your hardened tubing it might be worth going and spending $60.00 or so dollars for a HF abrasive cut off saw (chop saw). The 4x6 are okay, but as I found out with mine they aren't as accurate as a REAL metal cutting bandsaw. The chop saw might be worth it if you need to do a lot of metal cutting.
 
I always lower the guide rollers as close to the work as I can but the saw will only lower so much. At the time the problem developed it is lowered as much as it will.
 
I'm confused by your pictures - I would think the blade should be pinched between the twin rollers with the back of the blade running against the single wheel. In other words, whole wheel assembly should be rotated 90 degrees. AmI missing something here? I am not an expert on band saws, so I could be very wrong, and will yield to any real "expert."
 
Try running the saw without that casting off. See it the top wheel is adjusted for the blade to run without pulling back off the top wheel.
 
I have all of my band saws adjusted so the blade just touches the back wheel where it has no pressure until it gets the pressure as it starting to cut.
 
The blade is suppose to be between the wheels. It is because its sliding off to the side of the rear wheel is my problem. It not only will not run that way, I've destroyed two new blades. After the blade runs off like that it folds the blade on a 45 degree angle with a crease down the center.
 
Stephan, where do you live? I have a saw just like that one with the gearbox bad. You can have it if you want it, or I would send you any parts that you need. The blades that came with that machine and that I got at Northern, where I got the saw are JUNK!. Buy good blades and it will help. I think I have 1 or 2 new blades in the garage you can have too. I got a new Ellis saw now and it is way better, but a lot more $. E-mail is open if you are interested.
 
I had a similiar problem my saw. The top wheel was moving over enough under load so that the blade would slip off the top wheel to the side. Cured the problem by Lock Titing the upper wheel to the shaft so it could not move and adjusting the side wheels so that the rollers were snug against the side of the blade. Was using really good blades (Simmons).
Saw now works just like it did when it was new.
Thank You !
 
(quoted from post at 19:34:03 09/23/12) Stephan, where do you live? I have a saw just like that one with the gearbox bad. You can have it if you want it, or I would send you any parts that you need. The blades that came with that machine and that I got at Northern, where I got the saw are JUNK!. Buy good blades and it will help. I think I have 1 or 2 new blades in the garage you can have too. I got a new Ellis saw now and it is way better, but a lot more $. E-mail is open if you are interested.
Click to expand...

You can get new parts for that gear box from Harbor Freight.

Dusty
 
Thankyou for the offer. I live near Dallas. I realize the saw I bought was cheap and up to now have been more than pleased with the operation. I had been cutting steel with a hand held circular saw with a corborumdom blade and was blown away with the ease of using the bandsaw. I believe the saw is still in good condition and at this point doesn't need parts. I believe something is out of adjustment and I lack the skills to correct it. With the tips I have received here I will be able fix it now.
 
As far as cheaper saws go that one is as good as it gets. I've used and seen some that weren't worth bringing home. Mine worked good til I borrowed it to someone and they tore up the gearbox. Mine also has the coolant pump.
 
Thanks for the tip. I've been driving 45 miles to harbor freight for blades where I have a tractor supply in my home town.
 
A closer look says the side rollers are off to one side enough let the blade drift off center of the back roller.Your blade may have soft back that lets it bend even if the rollers are set right.
 
Harbor fright is the last place I would buy these blades from.Wholesale tool sells them for 10 bucks.I have run into some posters on here that get po when you tell them they are paying too much for stuff.Like double for gear oil.
 
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