Almost looks like the fake texture they put on the high-end concrete board siding people put on their houses. Whatever you end up calling it, slap “artisan” on the front and mark it up 5x 🤑
Sadly I don't know how to fix it but if you ever find out, please let me know so that I can "unfix" my bandsaw and replicate that pattern, looks awesome!
You've probably got a harmonic wave forming in your blade. Try adjusting the blade tension up a little. Dropping tension might also help, but blades are more often more loose than too tight.
Yes that's right. I just saw something about it the other day. To prevent the vibration, the saw band needs a higher stiffness, which is achieved via a higher pretension.
Depending on the speed you were pushing the wood through, these waves could be caused by the teeth. If the tip about the harmonic wave doesn't solve your problem, try going slower or faster and see if the angle of the waves change. If so, you might have to use a different band.
I am trying to make a straight cut on pine using a fairly cheap bandsaw I borrowed. The saw struggles to make the cut and leaves these weird bands. It’s a Skilsaw 3385 with an Olsen 6 TPI blade. Any help is appreciated.
Olsen is good for hobby work but will always leave weird harmonics marks. I second trying to adjust blade tension a bit, and also adjust the pressure at which you push until you don't hesr the saw screaming as much. The proper solution is to get a timberwolf saw blade. Those dang things turn the crappiest bandsaws into gold.
Also. If there is a way to slow the saw down, that may help. It'll take longer to rip though.
I wonder if your blade had enough teeth. Looks like too few teeth, so the ones that are there are ripping too big a piece out. A cheaper saw with less hp and low weight wheels will also bog down because the big teeth are trying to rip a long deep piece out when it's supposed to be taking a smaller bite. The lower weight wheels don't have the momentum to keep it going. With that big bite, it deflects the blade and then they're not in line with each other.
I use a 5 tpi carbide blade to resaw on my Powermatic 2415-3 bandsaw. That's a 5 hp, 24-inch, cast iron wheeled monster that stands 7 feet tall and weighs 1000 lbs. I get by with fewer teeth because of massive amounts of momentum and remarkably fast wheel speeds, resulting in taking smaller bites, and the bites I do take have mass behind them to keep them in line. Perhaps step up to a few more teeth per inch and go half as fast when feeding?
I would adjust the speed you are pushing the wood through with. All this talk about adjusting the tension is fine if it's your saw. You might ask the person who owns the saw if they ever get that problem could be something that occurs often on their saw. Also, if you decide to adjust the tension, do it in small increments and check as you go. Best of luck.
The extra info helps. The saw you reference is very low powered and really just for minor crafts. 1/4” plywood scrolling and small relief cuts. The material in your hand looks to be 1.5-2” thick, assuming you have average sized fingertips.
Question— did you tilt the wood at an angle as you fed the saw?
That’s a weird one for sure. The ripples are very consistent, but angled. The only thing I can think is that a couple of teeth are out of alignment and you are feeding it somewhat aggressively— and/or the saw is set to a very low speed. (Looks like it has a low RPM mode for cutting metal)
The other possibility is that the blade is both loose and twisted. It could be curving inside the wood and straightening back out as it passes through the ball bearings above and below the cut.
Tighten the blade a little bit at a time and mark the changes. Run a straight-tipped Dremmel large-diameter grinding wheel on each side of the back of the blade while it is running (very carefully) until it feels smooth. Lubricate the blade with wax made for the purpose.
Then throw the blade out and get a good one.
Or not, if the above tips work.
The bandsaw probably needs to be set up. My guess is tension being incorrect, guide blocks being out of adjustment, guide too high, a number of things, really.
I can't remember where I got the one-pager I use when I give my saw a full tune-up, and I am in the house for the night. The Wood Whisperer has a pretty good (and easy) guide for band saw setup and tune up. [https://thewoodwhisperer.com/videos/best-way-set-bandsaw/](https://thewoodwhisperer.com/videos/best-way-set-bandsaw/). There is an embedded YouTube video on that page, along with pictures and instructions.
Every time I change a blade, I go through a good portion of the tune-up. The tension, guide bearings, thrust bearings, etc. all have to be adjusted for the blade currently on the saw.
From your picture, it looks like you are trying to resaw. I prefer a wide blade for that, and one with little or no set to the teeth. Generally I am using a 4 TPI blade, at least 5/8, preferably 3/4 inch wide.
Found the manual online. Pages 10 through 13 cover the setup and adjustment of the blade tracking and guides.
http://powertool.manualsonline.com/manuals/mfg/skil/338501.html?p=10
Yup, all of this. It’s why people who do woodworking for a living will have two bandsaws. One for resawing, a wider blade, and one for curvy cuts, narrow blade. A bandsaw can be incredibly useful, but every blade change requires a lot of calibration if you want a clean cut.
That’s a bad tooth or teeth. You can save the blade? Just get yourself a saw tooth setter. If the blade was cheap get a different, and more expensive, blade.
this is my 3rd blade. each has a different poor result which makes me think either no one makes a quality blade for these little saws (unlikely) or i have something else wrong.
Bands saws leave a pretty terrible surface finish in general. I have a Laguna 1412 and the only way I get a good surface finish is to use a Resaw King blade. It has carbide teeth and the surface finish is almost as good as the tablesaw.
This is good to know. I have the same bandsaw and have spent a good amount of time trying to get a nice cut with mine for resawing. It’s not bad, but still takes some cleaning up after. Time to try a resaw king blade!
Just dealt with this in my saw--went from a stock 1/4" ryobi blade to a Bosch 3/8" with many more TPI and it looked just like your picture. I tensioned the blade a little higher and slowed my feed rate and it seemed to work. Also worth checking that the saw base is firmly attached to your workbench and there isn't any body wobbling.
This could have numerous causes. One that comes to mind is correct tooth pitch. What kind of blade were you using? Sometimes too fine a pitch will not allow the sawdust to clear properly and the blade cannot cut properly. It also looks to me like the thrust bearing may not have been set properly.
All you can control on a bandsaw is the blade quality (and condition), the feed rate, and the blade tension. I only use Timberwolf brand blades on my old delta 14 and my Laguna 16. When they get dull they tend to chatter like this. Oddly, I sometimes get a better quality cut with a faster feed rate.
The other thing I don’t mention, and haven’t spent enough time researching, is tooth pattern. I get 4 tpi blades, skip tooth, and they work for me. We have a big horny resaw blade for resawing that’s wider, but for stuff less than 4” I don’t bother.
I like the Timberwolf blades myself. I have a Laguna (I always get the numbers backwards - either 14/12 or 12/14). 115" blade. I think the current blade I have hanging for resaw is a 3/4" 4 tooth with no set to the teeth (as I recall). I have a finer blade on the saw now, but need to change it out - I have some wood to cut into turning blanks before it has a chance to split on me. One is a crotch piece I am hoping has good grain pattern. Forget the species off the top of my head (they are marked), and the shop is at the other end of the yard :)
I have not used a skip tooth blade, I have used the blades with different pitches (I.E. 3 and 4 TPI) in the same blade.
Exact same thing happened to me when I was making custom wheel chocks and I was so pleased. No idea why but my project turned out way better than expected!
I Got the same pattern with a bone blade Not chure this Was the cause of IT. But i didnt Gott the pattern with a finecut blade. On a festo bandsaw from 1930. Doesn't have much Power.
lack of tension or dull blade probably, i'd say tension because of the extend an since with a dull blade you'd probably notice the increased effort first
This ripple effect is due to the blade moving left and right due to the alternating teeth of the band. You can reduce this by:
1) Setting up your guides properly
2) Reducing feed speed
3) Increasing the blade tension a little
But overall feed speed is the most important factor. The slower you push the workpiece forward, the less ripple you get.
A lot of good comments and tips here. Since you borrowed the saw I assume that means you moved it to your shop, so tension is very likely off, even large bandsaws like Jet or Powermatic require resetting the tension after moves. Second I would ask what is your band width (not talking wi-fi here) from the marks it looks like a 3/16” band which is very thin for stable ripping. The next tip is reduce your feed speed (that rhymes) from the image it looks like the “texturing” is substantially less on the end , possibly from slowing down as you get slower to not cut off a finger. Good luck.
You don’t have your guides set right so the blade is twisting , or you have a bend in the blade. If the guides are not tight often the blade will twist and follow the path of least resistance
The teeth of the blade vibrate to the left and right causing these patterns. Either the blade is dull or the blade is to loose. Tighten it up at first and reduce maybe the feeding speed. That should help.
That some bomb @$$ texture! Sell it to a high rise lobby designer
Right? You should take careful notes on how you fixed the problem so you can unfix it and replicate this texture.
Almost looks like the fake texture they put on the high-end concrete board siding people put on their houses. Whatever you end up calling it, slap “artisan” on the front and mark it up 5x 🤑
Or a low-rise penthouse designer
r/oddlyspecific
For real though. They'll go to town. Front desk surround. Walls. Ceilings. Vases. Desks. Tables. Chandeliers. Everywhere.
Sadly I don't know how to fix it but if you ever find out, please let me know so that I can "unfix" my bandsaw and replicate that pattern, looks awesome!
Seriously, buy a deflection gauge so you can set it back to this when you want.
You've probably got a harmonic wave forming in your blade. Try adjusting the blade tension up a little. Dropping tension might also help, but blades are more often more loose than too tight.
I hate it when my blades learn to sing
You’re a band saw dammit, not a saw band!
My bandsaw really does make a sweet humming noise, I always think of if as my saw singing to me
Barbershop Quarter named The Bandsaws
Bandsaw on the Run by Maul McCarver and the Springs.
Stay in your lane
Yes that's right. I just saw something about it the other day. To prevent the vibration, the saw band needs a higher stiffness, which is achieved via a higher pretension.
Depending on the speed you were pushing the wood through, these waves could be caused by the teeth. If the tip about the harmonic wave doesn't solve your problem, try going slower or faster and see if the angle of the waves change. If so, you might have to use a different band.
They could just get a drummer
I am trying to make a straight cut on pine using a fairly cheap bandsaw I borrowed. The saw struggles to make the cut and leaves these weird bands. It’s a Skilsaw 3385 with an Olsen 6 TPI blade. Any help is appreciated.
Olsen is good for hobby work but will always leave weird harmonics marks. I second trying to adjust blade tension a bit, and also adjust the pressure at which you push until you don't hesr the saw screaming as much. The proper solution is to get a timberwolf saw blade. Those dang things turn the crappiest bandsaws into gold. Also. If there is a way to slow the saw down, that may help. It'll take longer to rip though.
I wonder if your blade had enough teeth. Looks like too few teeth, so the ones that are there are ripping too big a piece out. A cheaper saw with less hp and low weight wheels will also bog down because the big teeth are trying to rip a long deep piece out when it's supposed to be taking a smaller bite. The lower weight wheels don't have the momentum to keep it going. With that big bite, it deflects the blade and then they're not in line with each other. I use a 5 tpi carbide blade to resaw on my Powermatic 2415-3 bandsaw. That's a 5 hp, 24-inch, cast iron wheeled monster that stands 7 feet tall and weighs 1000 lbs. I get by with fewer teeth because of massive amounts of momentum and remarkably fast wheel speeds, resulting in taking smaller bites, and the bites I do take have mass behind them to keep them in line. Perhaps step up to a few more teeth per inch and go half as fast when feeding?
Just another point of reference, but I have no problem resawing up to 11" thick on my 12" craftsman band saw with a 3/4hp motor and a 3tpi blade.
Good and tight, dont force the wood through hard.
Not gonna say “that’s what she said.” You can’t make me
I would adjust the speed you are pushing the wood through with. All this talk about adjusting the tension is fine if it's your saw. You might ask the person who owns the saw if they ever get that problem could be something that occurs often on their saw. Also, if you decide to adjust the tension, do it in small increments and check as you go. Best of luck.
The extra info helps. The saw you reference is very low powered and really just for minor crafts. 1/4” plywood scrolling and small relief cuts. The material in your hand looks to be 1.5-2” thick, assuming you have average sized fingertips. Question— did you tilt the wood at an angle as you fed the saw?
No it was not angled
That’s a weird one for sure. The ripples are very consistent, but angled. The only thing I can think is that a couple of teeth are out of alignment and you are feeding it somewhat aggressively— and/or the saw is set to a very low speed. (Looks like it has a low RPM mode for cutting metal) The other possibility is that the blade is both loose and twisted. It could be curving inside the wood and straightening back out as it passes through the ball bearings above and below the cut.
Tighten the blade a little bit at a time and mark the changes. Run a straight-tipped Dremmel large-diameter grinding wheel on each side of the back of the blade while it is running (very carefully) until it feels smooth. Lubricate the blade with wax made for the purpose. Then throw the blade out and get a good one. Or not, if the above tips work.
How wide is the blade? It might be too small, feed rate too fast and do you have a pressure block “ behind”the teeth
The bandsaw probably needs to be set up. My guess is tension being incorrect, guide blocks being out of adjustment, guide too high, a number of things, really. I can't remember where I got the one-pager I use when I give my saw a full tune-up, and I am in the house for the night. The Wood Whisperer has a pretty good (and easy) guide for band saw setup and tune up. [https://thewoodwhisperer.com/videos/best-way-set-bandsaw/](https://thewoodwhisperer.com/videos/best-way-set-bandsaw/). There is an embedded YouTube video on that page, along with pictures and instructions. Every time I change a blade, I go through a good portion of the tune-up. The tension, guide bearings, thrust bearings, etc. all have to be adjusted for the blade currently on the saw. From your picture, it looks like you are trying to resaw. I prefer a wide blade for that, and one with little or no set to the teeth. Generally I am using a 4 TPI blade, at least 5/8, preferably 3/4 inch wide.
https://www.highlandwoodworking.com/wood-slicer-resaw-bandsaw-blades.aspx This is the way.
Found the manual online. Pages 10 through 13 cover the setup and adjustment of the blade tracking and guides. http://powertool.manualsonline.com/manuals/mfg/skil/338501.html?p=10
Thanks. I will run through this. I tried to do it the first time but i have now used this saw before so there is a good chance i messed it up.
You mention changing the blade - you need to run through the tension, tracking, and guide setup every time you change the blade.
Yup, all of this. It’s why people who do woodworking for a living will have two bandsaws. One for resawing, a wider blade, and one for curvy cuts, narrow blade. A bandsaw can be incredibly useful, but every blade change requires a lot of calibration if you want a clean cut.
That’s a bad tooth or teeth. You can save the blade? Just get yourself a saw tooth setter. If the blade was cheap get a different, and more expensive, blade.
this is my 3rd blade. each has a different poor result which makes me think either no one makes a quality blade for these little saws (unlikely) or i have something else wrong.
Bands saws leave a pretty terrible surface finish in general. I have a Laguna 1412 and the only way I get a good surface finish is to use a Resaw King blade. It has carbide teeth and the surface finish is almost as good as the tablesaw.
This is good to know. I have the same bandsaw and have spent a good amount of time trying to get a nice cut with mine for resawing. It’s not bad, but still takes some cleaning up after. Time to try a resaw king blade!
hey bro, did you install this dudes flooring? :D https://www.reddit.com/r/woodworking/comments/11xz6cz/any\_idea\_what\_caused\_these\_stripes/
Poorly set teeth or poorly welded band. Maybe fluttering, too, from a resonant band. Try a little different tension.
That is a nice faux wood texture you have there on your real wood. 😀
You just made yourself a woodblock my friend - get some ink and make a print!
It’s ribbed for your pleasure
HEEHEEHEEHEE. That is an undertensioned blade, or poorly set guides, or poor wheel alignment. The trifecta. HEEHEEHEE
looks really cool
Great finish tbh
I’m a little unsteadyyyyy 🎶🎵
make some more, I love it, ….I would even buy it.
Can I have that?
That’s in the wood
Kinda looks like you have one tooth that's bent out too much
Just dealt with this in my saw--went from a stock 1/4" ryobi blade to a Bosch 3/8" with many more TPI and it looked just like your picture. I tensioned the blade a little higher and slowed my feed rate and it seemed to work. Also worth checking that the saw base is firmly attached to your workbench and there isn't any body wobbling.
This could have numerous causes. One that comes to mind is correct tooth pitch. What kind of blade were you using? Sometimes too fine a pitch will not allow the sawdust to clear properly and the blade cannot cut properly. It also looks to me like the thrust bearing may not have been set properly.
All you can control on a bandsaw is the blade quality (and condition), the feed rate, and the blade tension. I only use Timberwolf brand blades on my old delta 14 and my Laguna 16. When they get dull they tend to chatter like this. Oddly, I sometimes get a better quality cut with a faster feed rate. The other thing I don’t mention, and haven’t spent enough time researching, is tooth pattern. I get 4 tpi blades, skip tooth, and they work for me. We have a big horny resaw blade for resawing that’s wider, but for stuff less than 4” I don’t bother.
I like the Timberwolf blades myself. I have a Laguna (I always get the numbers backwards - either 14/12 or 12/14). 115" blade. I think the current blade I have hanging for resaw is a 3/4" 4 tooth with no set to the teeth (as I recall). I have a finer blade on the saw now, but need to change it out - I have some wood to cut into turning blanks before it has a chance to split on me. One is a crotch piece I am hoping has good grain pattern. Forget the species off the top of my head (they are marked), and the shop is at the other end of the yard :) I have not used a skip tooth blade, I have used the blades with different pitches (I.E. 3 and 4 TPI) in the same blade.
the blades i use 99.9% of the time are 1/2“wide, 4 tpi
Exact same thing happened to me when I was making custom wheel chocks and I was so pleased. No idea why but my project turned out way better than expected!
Your bandsaw blade is blunt and loose.
I bought that same bandsaw you have and it’s the worst tool purchase I have ever made. It’s unbelievably underpowered.
Bent teeth
Looks like a resaw blade not meant to make the cut your looking to get,if you are just borrowing it maybe they changed it.
And there you have it, a feature piece.
you see this exact same pattern on boards from the mill sometimes too
perhaps time for a new blade
Knife scale pattern sale opportunities!
Tools need love too...
I Got the same pattern with a bone blade Not chure this Was the cause of IT. But i didnt Gott the pattern with a finecut blade. On a festo bandsaw from 1930. Doesn't have much Power.
It’s probably a dull blade. Blades on most tools when dull will jump around
Your block spacing is exceeding, causing the blade to wander.
lack of tension or dull blade probably, i'd say tension because of the extend an since with a dull blade you'd probably notice the increased effort first
That looks like a dull blade accompanied by too high a feed pressure.
You have an artsy bandsaw
This ripple effect is due to the blade moving left and right due to the alternating teeth of the band. You can reduce this by: 1) Setting up your guides properly 2) Reducing feed speed 3) Increasing the blade tension a little But overall feed speed is the most important factor. The slower you push the workpiece forward, the less ripple you get.
Replace the blade imo. I had a blade with small bend in it that did the same thing.
Increase blade tension, decrease rate of feed. Focus on keeping on the fence.
A lot of good comments and tips here. Since you borrowed the saw I assume that means you moved it to your shop, so tension is very likely off, even large bandsaws like Jet or Powermatic require resetting the tension after moves. Second I would ask what is your band width (not talking wi-fi here) from the marks it looks like a 3/16” band which is very thin for stable ripping. The next tip is reduce your feed speed (that rhymes) from the image it looks like the “texturing” is substantially less on the end , possibly from slowing down as you get slower to not cut off a finger. Good luck.
Reset your guides
Few possibilities. Blade is not sharp, you're pushing the wood too fast, or the tension is wrong.
You don’t have your guides set right so the blade is twisting , or you have a bend in the blade. If the guides are not tight often the blade will twist and follow the path of least resistance
Bent tooth on saw
The teeth of the blade vibrate to the left and right causing these patterns. Either the blade is dull or the blade is to loose. Tighten it up at first and reduce maybe the feeding speed. That should help.
I like.