DIY Bandsaw Build / Wheel Question

Hi All,

I'm in the planning stage of a DIY Band Saw build and wanted to ask a question as to the efficacy of using a rubber wheel (think wheelbarrow wheel)?

Originally, I planned to make the two discs of the band saw out of some type of engineered wood (melamine, osb, plywood) and just insert my own bearing and run some rubber on the edges.

However, I was browsing my local hardware store's website and found these rubber wheels which are the exact radius (albeit twice the width).
Attachment 21862

There are many benefits to going this route (the bearing is already inserted) and you don't have to cut and round a wheel.

However, I'm wondering if anyone used such a wheel before? Does it have a lot of "give" to it? Will it still be able to run the blade straight? Or will it buckle easily under load?

I've not yet had the chance to drop by the store and press the wheel to see if it is soft or not.

Thanks

A lot is going to depend on how heavy duty your requirements are going to be. Since you are thinking rubber tire or a hard wood wheel with rubber bonded to it I am going to make the assumption this will be a wood cutting band saw I have several band saws both for cutting metal and for cutting wood I've never seen a metal cutting saw with rubber of any sort on the wheels except for the little hand held port a band variety . while 1 of my wood cutting band saw does have bonded rubber on the steel wheel the other does not, but all of them have a flange on the wheels wheels that the back of the blade runs against. I have been around a couple of huge band saw mills that used pneumatic tires as the wheels but they had a set of bearings mounted on them to serve as a guide keeping the blade running true on the saw so this would be an option for you. If you were to do something like that I can no reason not to use the wheels you described if you can figure out a way to mount a pulley drive one of them
Hope this helps

I would certainly try those wheels as they will be hard rubber and probably slightly domed, the only problem I can see is that if it has a single bearing it may be insufficient. At work we had a large metal cutting bandsaw which had rubber faced wheels and were never a problem, indeed it will preserve the set on the blade. You will need tracking adjustment and most importantly proper sealed ball bearing blade guides at the cutting point. If it doesn't work out you are only back to making wheels anyway.
Good luck with it.

made2hack - nice YT channel. Feel free to link up your "Made 2 Hack YouTube Channel" signature text so that people can easily click through to see your work.

Hi, thanks franks and olderdan. It will be used as a metal cutting saw, replicating as you mentioned a portaband. Originally, I planned to make the wheels same size as the blade width, in my case 1/2" (12.7mm). This of course meant only one bearing, with a max width of around 9mm (A 6000 or 6200). 10mm ID rod.

However, this rubber wheel is 35mm wide (approx 1 3/8"). And I believe the ID of the bearing is 15mm. So now the question is whether to go to a larger blade (27mm 1") industrial size.

I don't want the saw to be large, around 460mm (18") between centers of the wheels. A max cutting distance of 300mm (12") and if I factor in all the blade guides and holders, a real figure of cutting area should be maybe 150mm (6"). Which is plenty. I plan on cutting mild structural steel for the most part and the occasional alloy and stainless.

But I think I will stick to the smaller blade width, for the beginning. Unless there is benefit to going with a larger blade.

Thanks again,

Quote:

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Originally Posted by made2hack

Hi All,

I'm in the planning stage of a DIY Band Saw build and wanted to ask a question as to the efficacy of using a rubber wheel (think wheelbarrow wheel)?

Originally, I planned to make the two discs of the band saw out of some type of engineered wood (melamine, osb, plywood) and just insert my own bearing and run some rubber on the edges.

However, I was browsing my local hardware store's website and found these rubber wheels which are the exact radius (albeit twice the width).
Attachment 21862

There are many benefits to going this route (the bearing is already inserted) and you don't have to cut and round a wheel.

However, I'm wondering if anyone used such a wheel before? Does it have a lot of "give" to it? Will it still be able to run the blade straight? Or will it buckle easily under load?

I've not yet had the chance to drop by the store and press the wheel to see if it is soft or not.

Thanks

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Interesting concept made2hack. It's like something I would try. I don't have any experience with making a band saw but the first thing I thought of is, it would seem to be suitable for the idler but how would you drive the drive wheel (the one that actually would benefit by a rubber surface)?

1 of my band saws is aq 6" by 6" cut cap another is a 10" wide with 8" depth both use a 1/2" blade another is a 3 hp 3 ph saw 12" by 10" that uses a 3/4" blade My home made saw is 10x10 with a 1" blade

You could use the puncture proof tires, you could flatten the crown on a lathe.

Wish I had room I'd like to make a bandsaw.

Ralph

Quote:

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Originally Posted by nhengineer

Interesting concept made2hack. It's like something I would try. I don't have any experience with making a band saw but the first thing I thought of is, it would seem to be suitable for the idler but how would you drive the drive wheel (the one that actually would benefit by a rubber surface)?

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Well, the drive wheel would have to be connected to the motor somehow, either by pulley & belt combination or gear, maybe direct drive. I was planning on having the shafts static and the wheel spin on the bearings.

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Ralphxyz
You could use the puncture proof tires, you could flatten the crown on a lathe.
Wish I had room I'd like to make a bandsaw.
Ralph

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Here's a picture Ralph of the approximate size so far.

Attachment 21880

I ended up buying two of the wheels in the picture. I went to my hardware store, and held them. The rubber is dead stiff. Also, they were 5 Euros each, which is like the price of 2 bearings.

And each one has two bearings, Korean KBC, 6302Z. So, I now need a 15mm diameter shaft.

You will also have to construct a way to drive 1 of the wheels making a bolt on hub or adapter for a pulley to be mounted on would be my suggestion but in order to prevent the stresses from breaking the center out of the wheel I would recommend the hub have at least 1 bearing in it.
Another option may be to fill the cavities between the spokes with an epoxy then mount the pulley directly to that with as large of a bolt circle as needed

Quote:

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Originally Posted by made2hack

Well, the drive wheel would have to be connected to the motor somehow, either by pulley & belt combination or gear, maybe direct drive. I was planning on having the shafts static and the wheel spin on the bearings.

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Better give it a bit more thought, Mr. Made2Hack, before you go too far with this. It is good to have a rubber faced drive wheel if you can swing it. Maybe knock out the bearing and press in a solid disc, bore a hole and broach a key seat.

Hello,
Thanks for the suggestions. I will have to strengthen the wheel before adding power to it.

I was wondering if anyone knows what kind of speed to run for metal? It has to be slower than wood for sure, but I'm not sure by how much. I have a motor that runs at 1500RPM and I guess the wheel will spin slower. Should I calculate meters or feet per minute and figure out how slow to run the wheel?

Thanks,
BTW it's Eddie if anyone cares!

Here is an exert from Marks standard handbook for mechanical engineers 11th eddition

""Band saws, vertical, horizontal, and universal, are used for cutting off.
The kerf or width of cut is small with a consequently small loss in
expensive material. The teeth of band saws, like those of hacksaws, are
set with the regular alternate type, one bent to the right and the next to
the left; or with the alternate and center set, in which one tooth is bent to
the right, the second to the left, and the third straight in the center. With
high-speed steel saw blades, band speeds range from about 30 ft/min
(10 m/min) for high-temperature alloys to about 400 (120) for carbon
steels. For aluminum and magnesium alloys the speed ranges up to
about 1,300 ft/min (400 m/min) with high-carbon blades. The band
speed should be decreased as the workpiece thickness increases""

I just leave mine at around 135 FT/min it is a little slow for mild steels but as currently I do not have coolant on it the slower speed helps for blade life I also normally use a 4/6 TPI but sometimes for thinner stuff I change out for a 5/8 TPI
what that means is the tooth count is a multiple pitch having 4 and 6 teeth pitches per inch roughly you wind up with 5.3 teeth per inch there are some brands with a 4/7 TPI and a 5/9 TPI and bands specifically designed for thin cylinder tubing having 14 to 18 TPI and even up to 32 teeth per inch on smaller blades.
A good rule of thumb is to have a minimum of 3 teeth in contact and a maximum of 30 which is not always possible on real thin or real thick materials
Having a rotary brush in light contact with the side of the teeth helps to reduce build in the gap between the teeth up especially when cutting softer materials

Hi Frank,
Thanks for the info. My local supplier has bandsaw blades that they cut and weld to size from the American company M.K Morse and from their "what to use" documentation, I figured I needed an 8/12 variable tooth blade with 0 degree rake.
Now, the question is whether to stay with the thinner 12.7 mm blade (1/2") or go with the larger 27mm (1") blade. If I go to the 27mm, I have a choice of getting a better blade, ie the "Achiever" label as opposed to the regular M42. But then again, I think a basic M42 will mostly take care of almost everything I will be cutting.

Tough call, A lot depends on your intended production rate but since you are going with a complete home built machine using either the rubber or wooden wheels it is safe to assume you are not going to set up an industrial saw shop with the need for high speed cutting action. plus I believe you mention planning on around 460 mm centers that would be pretty tight for any blade larger than 12.7 mm 460 mm is not much more than the port a band saws have so the blade twist if you are making a horizontal saw is going to also be a determining factor. since the wheels axis will be set at up to a 45° angle to the cut. If making a vertical cut saw then there would be no twisting of the blade, so a 27 mm would work great on that one, and would even be a better choice as long as the wheels are at least 300 mm in diameter 260 mm would be a tight bend radius for blade life for the 27 mm, My little 6" saw I forget the brand, has 9" wheels on 600 mm centers it uses the 1/2" blade my 10" saw has 40" centers about 1 meter it uses the 1/2" blade. My industrial 12" that has a 3/4" (19mm) blade has 60" (1.5 meter) centers on 16" (406 mm) wheels
the homemade saw is 48" 1200 mm) centers on14" (355 mm) wheels all are horizontal @ 45° wheel axis.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by made2hack

Hello,
Thanks for the suggestions. I will have to strengthen the wheel before adding power to it. I was wondering if anyone knows what kind of speed to run for metal? It has to be slower than wood for sure, but I'm not sure by how much. I have a motor that runs at 1500RPM and I guess the wheel will spin slower. Should I calculate meters or feet per minute and figure out how slow to run the wheel?

Thanks,
BTW it's Eddie if anyone cares!

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This ( https://www.sawblade.com/band-saw-bl...feed-chart.cfm ) may be of some value.