raker tooth

[ely]

i was doing some sharpening this weekend and while i was setting the teeth, i got to wondering if anyone has ever played around with the band. in the sense of setting the raker tooth each way so you had no rakers anymore.
if so what did you discover. what type wood did you saw?
was it a bad idea all around?

[Radar67]

Got to have the raker to get the sawdust out of the cut.

[Tom]

There is a style of band where the teeth are all set one way or the other.  I don't know what it used for .  To reset a raker band that way would mean that you would have to reset other teeth too or you would end up with the same set teeth following each other.  That might cause a problem.

If you look at the reason for a Raker tooth, it makes more sense.  The raker cleans the cut. It fills the gap that is left by the set teeth and, not only carries sawdust, but actually does some cutting by taking out the fibers left in the middle of the kerf.



You may find this old thread interesting:Bandmill Blades

[ely]

good thread tom, i almost pm ed you with my thoughts but then thought everyone would be better off learning in an open forum. that old thread proved me right.
i like sharpening bands almost as much as sawing lumber.
i like being independent of others too.

to me sharpening any cutting tool requires close attention. bands are no exception.

[Banjo picker]

I too enjoyed the old thread Tom, Some of us would benefit from them being periodically brought back to the top.  I do read a lot of the older stuff through the search engine though. THANKS  Tim

[ely]

next question, to any of you guys that have an automatic setter. when i am using my cooks setter i notice that if you don't start at the weld each time you have to watch very carefully when you come to the weld or you will be off a tooth or sometimes 2 depending on how it was put together.

? is with the auto setter do you have to be aware and start at the weld each time in order to keep it running properly.
and if so, what happens when/if you get ahold of a band with 2 or god forbid more welds in the loop.

seems like it could cause a head ache in a hurry.

[Tom]

My solution to more than one weld in the blade was to contact the retailer and tell him that I didn't want more than one weld to a blade in any of my orders.   One retailer was especially bad about providing multiply welds.  It saves them money because they can use scraps from the bulk reels to make another blade.  The problem is that the teeth don't match and cause you a lot of problems when you do your own blade maintenance.  Now that provider keeps a record of my wants.

You're paying top dollar for the band, why should you be provided with something make-shift?

[ely]

i aggree tom whole heartetly, but i was only mentioning this for the sake of discussion. i also was wondering if i was the only person to experience muliple welds, :D.

the what that got me to wondering about the auto setters was the fact that i got a few bands this weekend that you could not see the weld on them until you found the change up with the setter. those guys seem to not take much care of their bands anyway.

it was along time ago,3 years or so since i have seen the bad blades with multiple welds. your responses to them may have stratened them all up. i do not even know who sent those bands out to me.

[pineywoods]

I have run across 1 or 2 blades with multiple welds, but they belonged to a neighbor so I have no way of knowing where they came from.. I once just for the heck of it, flattened all the teeth on a blade and then reset it with no rakers, just alternating cutters. It cut like gangbusters, but left so much sawdust in the kerf the blade heated up from the friction and the cut looked like ocean swells.

[backwoods sawyer]

I once just for the heck of it, flattened all the teeth on a blade and then reset it with no rakers, just alternating cutters. It cut like gangbusters, but left so much sawdust in the kerf the blade heated up from the friction and the cut looked like ocean swells.

Kinda seems like you were trying to reinvent the wheel and came away with the understanding of why it has spokes. Some things are more complex and we have to experiment with them to understand the theories behind them.