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A Challenge for Alex Snodgrass

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bandsaw
1K views 7 replies 6 participants last post by  Andybb 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Please don't think for a minute that I am challenging Alex's expertise in any way shape or form. He has forgotten more about BSs than I will ever know. I would just like to see him do a real world tune-up vid. BS adjustment questions are probably one of the most frequently posted topics here.

Snodgrass is a pro but….His famous reference video that everyone always points to (you know, the one where he says there is no such thing as drift) is based on him being a manufacturers rep for brand new quality built saws with top notch blades, tires, wheels, guides etc. It all sounds good on paper but it just didn't apply to my old riser blocked Harbor Freight Central Machinery saw where the pot metal actually flexes when it gets adjusted.

I would love to see Alex try and dial that beast in or some other 2nd tier machine and show us what to expect, what is acceptable and how to overcome problems. I genuinely would. If he could it would be a great video for everybody who doesn't have a brand new name brand saw in their shop. Probably would need to be lengthy or multi-parted covering a multitude of topics and common issues. I think people (newbies) refer to and watch his vid with the impression that if they still have issues that they must be doing something wrong when they aren't. (Go ahead, ask me how I know) :)

When I got my Laguna 14 six months ago I assembled it right out of the box and made ZERO, nada, zilch adjustments to it or the fence and it is still dead nuts perfect today. 3 blades. 3/4, 1/2 & 1/4. Swap blade, adjust tension and tracking, cut wood, just like Alex does.

Was this kind of a rant? If so, sorry.
 
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#2 ·
Mr. Snodgrass is great, but he's not an alchemist. There's a reason people pay good money for good tools - they do things that lower tier equipment just can't. For example, my contractor saw trunions twist when I tilt the blade - ain't no adjustment going to fix that. The only fix is to upgrade to a machine designed to be better at what it does.
 
#3 · (Edited by Moderator)
Mr. Snodgrass is great, but he s not an alchemist. There s a reason people pay good money for good tools - they do things that lower tier equipment just can t. For example, my contractor saw trunions twist when I tilt the blade - ain t no adjustment going to fix that. The only fix is to upgrade to a machine designed to be better at what it does.

- jamsomito
Agreed. But in between a junker like I had and a brand new saw like I got there are the rest of them that could use some TLC too. A lower tier saw can be made to function to an acceptable level.
 
#4 · (Edited by Moderator)
I got two things out of that video that weren't intuitive to me. One was where on the tire to track the blade. I'd been putting it too far out front. The other was managing feed rate to avoid sawdust build up around the blade. I had occasionally had issues with the blade bowing and making a barrel shaped cut. I assumed it was tension related, but when I slowed down on my feed rate, it completely went away.

Regarding the challenge, I doubt if he, or anyone else, could (porcine metaphor alert!) make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. It's probably why you never saw Yugo enter Formula One racing.

On a side note, I recently used a 20% off anything coupon on eBay to buy a Laguna Resaw King blade for my 1952 Atlas Press Company 12" band saw. I work about 90% in mesquite and it chews through blades like crazy. I'd put a Wood Slicer on there and it cut like a dream, but after a few dozen linear feet of cutting, it was struggling. At $30 a pop, that sucked.

I was concerned that I was (another porcine metaphor alert!!!) putting lipstick on a pig, but the fact is that that saw is rock solid and I've maintained it through the decades. It harkens back to the days of American manufacturing greatness and was made in Kalamazoo, MI. The Laguna blade cuts like a wet dream and is showing no signs of slowing down. Drift is essentially zero as well. Its 1.1mm kerf to 0.6mm backer width keeps it cool. I'll probably get another one the next time I can get a good deal so I'll be able to send one off for sharpening when needed.

Sorry if my post was pig headed.

I'll leave you with a quote from George Bernard Shaw. "Never wrestle with pigs. You both get dirty and the pig likes it."
 
#6 · (Edited by Moderator)
A Snodgrass video with a HF bandsaw would last four seconds. "My advice in this case? Buy a better bandsaw. Thank you for watching."

I shop at HF a lot, usually just get small-ish things. The most advanced piece of equipment I've bought there was a belt sander and that literally fell apart after a couple years. Never tried a bandsaw of theirs but I can't imagine the stress on that machine trying to resaw mesquite, which, like Rich, I use a lot. I'd be comfortable making one of those Snodgrass Christmas deer from basswood. But that's about it.
 
#8 ·
I think I agree with everyone. It's definitely not possible to make a silk purse out of a porcine flesh flap. I'm using my 2 bsaws as extremes. My old saw was actually a Central Machinery that pred-dated HF and I sold it for the same as I bought it for. It didn't owe me a dime. It actually did everything I needed it to do except resaw. It's just that resawing is the one thing that requires everything to work right. My original point was that there seem to be very few troubleshooting vids vs "setup" vids. Seems to be a drawback of being an internet trained woodworker. If I knew people like Rich and actually had physical contact he would have told me that no amount of lipstick will improve that pig. I would have saved a lot of time and money trying to get baby back ribs from snouts.
 
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