# Awe Damn, I Chipped A Tooth



## darkzero (Apr 12, 2019)

On my bandsaw blade that is.   Actually it was a few teeth. 

I normally use a 5-8 tpi blade most of time and switch back & forth to a 8-12 tpi. I really should have switched to my 10-14 tpi blade but I only had to make one cut on some steel plate. I've done this before cutting thin alumn & just ease into it by hand & use a slow feed on the feed cylinder. Wasn't so lucky this time. Now my 5-8 tpi blade has a bad lump while cutting. Ruined a perfectly good blade by being lazy! I hate to throw the blade away & keep thinking of ways to save it or use it for something else. Wish I had a tig welder & knew how to weld. Yeah yeah, I knew better & I hear about this all the time... "been there done that" from others but finally it happened to me. Lesson learned. 

So just a reminder, don't be lazy!


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## rwm (Apr 12, 2019)

I am thinking I need 3 bandsaws so I never have to change a blade to match the stock I am cutting...
Robert


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## mmcmdl (Apr 12, 2019)

Ahhhhh………………...so you got yerself a West Virginia blade now ?  Disclaimer ……….No harm meant to any WVians on here , it's one of my favorite states .


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## mmcmdl (Apr 13, 2019)

We always had outside people come in the shop and use our verticle BS . We used to keep skip tooth blades on it for thicker aluminum or wood . It used to be an adventure when I went to use it on nightshift only to find out that 8" of teeth were missing , and another 8"s of teeth just went down my open shirt .


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## markba633csi (Apr 13, 2019)

I actually have 4 blades for mine and I've been tempted to be lazy too.  I finally worked out the fastest, easiest way to change the blade, and I keep at least 2 different blades close to the saw plus a pair of gloves
Mark


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## Ken from ontario (Apr 13, 2019)

I feel your pain Will, I bent a perfectly good( NOS) blade that I had just installed , it almost brought tears to my eyes, I felt so stupid for not paying attention to what I was cutting but if stuff like that happens once in a blue moon then you can always forgive yourself , I'm still working on it.


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## mike44 (May 30, 2019)

darkzero said:


> On my bandsaw blade that is.   Actually it was a few teeth.
> 
> I normally use a 5-8 tpi blade most of time and switch back & forth to a 8-12 tpi. I really should have switched to my 10-14 tpi blade but I only had to make one cut on some steel plate. I've done this before cutting thin alumn & just ease into it by hand & use a slow feed on the feed cylinder. Wasn't so lucky this time. Now my 5-8 tpi blade has a bad lump while cutting. Ruined a perfectly good blade by being lazy! I hate to throw the blade away & keep thinking of ways to save it or use it for something else. Wish I had a tig welder & knew how to weld. Yeah yeah, I knew better & I hear about this all the time... "been there done that" from others but finally it happened to me. Lesson learned.
> 
> So just a reminder, don't be lazy!



Cut the blade on either side of the damaged part. Hard solder a piece of a blade to the length needed. As long as the width is the same as the blade , any TPI can be used for the small piece of blade you need. You may be able to find a shop or even a skilled person to do this for you.
The blade and the scrap piece have to be either scarfed or half lapped. I half lap the ends because I do a better job than scarfing a blade.
I believe the kits for hard soldering ( silver solder) contain a small jar of flux and 1/4" wide x .004 thick x 3'-0" long silver solder tape. Not positive on the dimensions, I bought this kit at least 20 years ago and still have about half the tape left. 
I think Woodcraft sells these kits. The hardest part is preparing the blades by scarfing or half lapping. I do this on a mill with a cup stone grinder. 
I glued a magnet to a board that is slotted the width of the blade. The magnet holds the blade flush to the board for grinding. This is not a precise operation but works for me. Try for a slight undersize fit , about .003 or so . This assures when the blade is soldered there will not be a hump.
The soldering itself with a propane torch goes fast. Only seconds to heat the blade til the solder runs. 
Check You Tube videos for more info. WoodCraft has a tutorial . 

mike


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## johnnyc14 (May 30, 2019)

I like Tom's method


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## horty (Jun 16, 2019)

darkzero said:


> On my bandsaw blade that is.   Actually it was a few teeth.
> 
> I normally use a 5-8 tpi blade most of time and switch back & forth to a 8-12 tpi. I really should have switched to my 10-14 tpi blade but I only had to make one cut on some steel plate. I've done this before cutting thin alumn & just ease into it by hand & use a slow feed on the feed cylinder. Wasn't so lucky this time. Now my 5-8 tpi blade has a bad lump while cutting. Ruined a perfectly good blade by being lazy! I hate to throw the blade away & keep thinking of ways to save it or use it for something else. Wish I had a tig welder & knew how to weld. Yeah yeah, I knew better & I hear about this all the time... "been there done that" from others but finally it happened to me. Lesson learned.
> 
> So just a reminder, don't be lazy!


This has happened to me to, years ago, when I didnt have a dime to spend, I borrowed some money from dad to buy a new blade for my old piece of junk band saw, cant remember what really happened but in about 2 minutes something twisted or caught and broke out 5 teeth, I thought of silver soldering a good piece of blade in place but instead built up the broken teeth with silver solder and took the grinder and kinda shaped teeth the best I could, It run smooth and still cut good. Worked good for many months, when I sold the saw the blade was still on there cutting good.
Might be worth a try if you have some silver solder and flux.


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