A quick method of making a crosscutting sled for the bandsaw in addition to opinions on blade drift, power tool selection and the flexibility of the band saw.
I really like your presentation. Well thought out, carefully explained, and seemingly sincere and heartfelt. You are a natural teacher. Thank you for putting this up for us.
Thank you for the easy to follow and understand how to vid. I am new to the world of wood. I have been building with carbon fiber and fiberglass. I just bought my first two power saws including a bandsaw. This was a huge help.
Thanks for taking the time to create this video! In spite of several negative comments, I thought your suggestions were spot on and will help me make my own cross cut band saw sled... I'm presently using the mitre guage set and a scrap piece of wood but will use your video as a guide to make a better cross cut sled! Thanks and save woodworking to you!
Many thanks for the good instruction and the wonderful tips, it has been a great help, now I have much more pleasure from my band saw. Best regards from a woodworker amateur from Denmark. Dennis
I appreciate your video's everyone has there opinion on tools and what purpose they are best used for .I have been wood working for over forty years mostly case work Cabinets , built in's, done many projects for friends etc . Not a production shop just a maybe more than the casual wood worker . I have had a Delta Unisaw for the the better part of the last twenty years Started out with a Craftsman Radial Arm saw which I still have collecting dust in the corner . Delta DJ 20 jointer ,and a 15 inch planer drill press and yes a ton of hand tools planes , saws, routers,etc .Over the year's I have honed my hand skills to what I think is very good and I believe my work shows it.On February 20th I will be 70 years old My family bought me a Laguna 14 inch band saw as a gift.Never had one before Curves were cut with either a coping saw or a hand held jig saw .Yes it took a little longer but but it got to where it needed to be .I am excited to get into the band saw and see what I can produce. As I said at the beginning everyone has there opinion's on tools And I just wanted you to know that I respect yours . May not agree but do respect it Keep up the good work and information .One last thing I was told many years ago Craftmanship is in the maker's hand not the tools .
I appreciate this video for what it is, a way to do small woodworking for a hobbyist like me that has very limited room and cannot fit a table saw in my space. But, now I can make a sled for my small bench top band saw and do some blade adjustment to make it a little easier. Much better than taking wood back and forth to the cabinet shop I work at to make cut on a table saw, when I only need a close enough cut and don't want to cut by hand.
Very nice concept. Also, I realize I’m many years late watching, but personally I would have been very interested in hearing the rest of the rant about the table saw and the rave about the bandsaw. :) I think I have a similarly “negative” outlook on the table saw particularly the fact that it is considered such a must-have for anyone and everyone. I have been rolling with the track saw instead for years with excellent results but just added a bandsaw to complement some of the things that are awkward with the tracksaw (this is how I found your bandsaw videos). Thanks for the great content.
i saw a guy put put penny s in the slots to avoid the planing part all together thanks for making this video it does make a difference to us learning type
Thanks, great tips. I too, agree with the band saw blade drift like you said, I also put over my wheels a bycicle tire that fit perfectly to allow me to keep the gullet on the band saw blade in the center. I also made a table for my fence system to help with alignment on rip cuts. I just put a miter slot on the table and used my old miter guage. Works great Thanks, Steve
Placing washers (or coins as mentioned) in the slots are a simpler way to glue the runners without planing after. Bandsaws are great, but they cannot rip wide pieces, crosscut long pieces, or cut rabbets/dadoes like a tablesaw. It really is best to have both tools. It is wonderful that you FF through the rants-- about 90% of youtubers ought to do the same!
Hey wortheffort! Man thanks! I took your advise on lining up the gullets in the center of the tire.......my drifting is a thing of the past! Thanks for taking the time to make and post this vid. Gotta' go make some sawdust! Have a Blessed Week!.......... Gus
I just started a new wood working channel since I am now partly retired and can follow my love of working with wood a little more often. I too am finding that I love my band saw. I did indeed use the table saw a lot before watching someone make a band saw box on youtube. I fell in love with the concept and the possibilities. So, I ordered a band saw. I LOVE it. I will be making one of your sleds for sure. One thing though, I find that if I put the saw teeth just slightly in front of of the crown, I get the same straight cut without it wearing out the tire so quickly. Just a thought. But you are correct. If "tuned" properly, it stops the drift. I also use mine as a saw mill (using a jig I made) with a resaw blade to cut short logs of various varieties into lumber for my bandsaw boxes. My "acre" has a wooded section so there's lots to work with. Works great. Love your idea though and will indeed "steal" it lol!!
+BirdsAdventuresInWoodworking you are correct. the teeth are slightly in front of the crown with the gullet on the crown. Tomatoe, tomahtoe. Thanks for watching
I missed the gullet on the crown part, so indeed we are saying the same thing. My bad. But, the point we are making is correct. I'm betting we can both cut a straight line lol! And my band saw is my favorite saw. I will be making one of your sleds as soon as I get back to my cabin where my best shop and band saw is. It's my haven! (Heaven as well.)
Aaaw man! The blade drift advice really did work for ME, on MY band saw! I have a Grizzly 14". Thanks for taking the time to make and post this and other vids! C'mon Let's go make some sawdust!!!
Your complaint is about 15 seconds of a 16 minute video and I turned it into a joke. I'm allowed to express 15 seconds of personal opinion. Comments like that are just rude and serve no purpose whatsoever other than put down people who work to educate you.
Got to agree the bandsaw is a much more versatile tool than the table saw, it's safer, smaller and I find it generally more convenient and useful for my small workshop. I enjoy using my band saw whereas I don't really have the space to use the table saw, it mostly gets in the way and feels pretty dangerous. This cross cut sled will be a nice addition, thanks!
I have a similar design, but with two more slots perpendicular to the fence, for another fence, like a resaw guide. Pretty simple add on, using tee nuts and thumb screws to tighten where you need it. Excellent video, especially your method of starting the guides slightly proud for gluing. That will save a lot of time :)
your awesome sir... I'm building a sled for my 10-325 today... it is rare for me to use my table saw.. just not a tablesaw guy! my band saw and small routertable setup suits most of my needs all day for turnin' and boxbuildin'. Tootloo Folks!
thanks for voicing over rant, everybody else has a different opinion. i know i won't ever do any finish work with a band saw. that being said, nice sled
Very cool....this video actually gives me the information I was looking for to build a couple of different jigs: the one in the video and another variation that is 90 degrees off from that for slicing small pieces more safely. Nicely done, sir! :-)
This is indeed fantastic! I definitely agree with the concept of stationary power tools and my "new/used" bandsaw is my only power tool in the shop! I am wondering a) How to install the guides with just one rail on my bed (the sticking higher wouldn't work immediately in this scenarion), and b) I could make two additional sleds for 45, or just pony up and buy a miter gauge sled ...
For those that think bandsaw drift is normal, it is not!!. This link is to show the full setup of a bandsaw by a Carter Tool Rep.at a tool show, it is a little long but worth the effort to understand how and why. I am not trying to spam this video but to all the comments on how this Band Saw Sled was not able to account for drift by some others here. Watch this and learn: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-wGbZqWac0jU.html Worththeffort is correct on how to track the blade on the crown of the wheel, and Thank You for your information and time, well done.
I couldn't say that one tool is more useful than another, as it depends on what you plan to make. As someone who used to build boats, these would be my set up, 1, bandsaw, 2, table saw (able to cut at least 2' for 8'x4' sheets), 3, planer/thicknesser, 4, radial arm saw (with adjustable height and mitre), and 4, a combined floor standing disc and belt sander, in no particular order. I think that any tool should be treated with respect, if it scares you, then don't use it, get training from someone with credible experience. There are many other tools of course, but these would be my must have large toys whatever I planned to make. I use a table saw much more than a bandsaw, it's more accurate but that is also model dependant, hobby tools are just that, and I favour old cast iron machines over any other regardless of make or model.
Okay, I came lured by the title, "A Cross Cut Sled for the Bandsaw", and enjoyed, drummed my fingers, enjoyed, drummed... the rant and the observations/explanations, waiting for sleds to appear. However, four and a half minutes into the vid, (4:38 - "I think that's total BS") you intrigued and alarmed me. I've come to understand the "magic" of crowned wheels to keep belts/blades from sliding off drive/driven wheels. Your suggestion -- putting the (toothed) edge of the blade on the crown begs (in my mind) for the blade to slip just a fraction of an inch and "squirt" right off the wheel. Obviously you didn't just profess this; you have been doing this (and others have successfully followed your suggestion) and enjoying great benefit(s). Although I don't have a problem with blade drift, I would still like to adopt your methodology -- if I could get my mind around how it could be secure.
Unfortunately the cheaper smaller bandsaws only have 1 crosscut rail, which basically rules out an accurate cross cut sled. You never get super accuracy with one rail as that one rail usually has probably a millimetre of play in it. Metal runners are definately better than wood, harder to affix than wood but worth it. Also as some else mentioned it's better to have the board of the sled above the table and let the rail take the weight for friction purposes.
Are you trolling me with this? Ah, no... Wood vs metal runners is only variable is how accurate they are made. There's an argument that the wood will "fit" itself perfectly, fit it tight and let it compress. Over 12" any wiggle will negate more than accurate for woodworking. You can make an accurate sled with only one rail. Hell, you can make an accurate sled with no rail and reference one side of the table as I've shown using a speed square many times. Having runners support weight (on a 2 runner sled) so table is suspended will cause flex problems in table especially at cut point as it induces vibration with it's associated dangers and binding will occur from sawdust in rails. This was trolling right....
@@wortheffort OK, you have far more experience in cross cut sleds than I have, so I take your points, especially about the raising the sled above the table. I only made my first sled a couple of weeks ago and found I could not get the super straight edges in the wood needed for for the rails. I had a couple of 12 x 12mm steel square tube so butted them against the far side of the table saw slots. This also meant the sled floor would be above the table. It works OK and has a tight slide. If you say you can make a good sled with one rail then that is good news as a want to get a small band saw and they only have one rail. The supplied mitre fences are usually poor for good cross cuts.
I enjoyed this earlier video. I am glad you said something about drift. I couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong because I never had drift on my bandsaw. I always set the blade kerf halfway on the crown of the wheel. Wheres the hair? haha
I use my band saw on thicker pieces and scroll work. I use the even more under rated tool, the radial arm saw, for most of my cross cutting. The RAS is far more versatile than the band saw and the table saw put together!
Hey Shawn, just a little question, isn't it easier to leave the rails proud and wax the rails instead of the whole bed to reduce friction? Or does the bed bend over time if you take that approach? Anyways love your videos, they are a great resource for woodworkers.
This is a fantastic video. I love the sled for the band-saw. I do love my table saw though. I can do so very much on my table saw. Still good video.I had to fast forward to get to the sled construction though. Do you think this sled would work with a band saw that only has one miter slot on it's table?
Would you happen to have a video on how to set the saw blade to reduce drift? I don't know a lot about band saws and had little idea what you were talking about.
Richard Murray He did explain it in the video and show you. The bandsaw blade rides on 2 large pulley wheels. One provides the driving force (through friction) and the other provides guidance for the blade (through tension). He explained that where you set the blade on those 2 wheels is what directs the blade and prevents the drifting. If you set the blade up on the wheels so that the teeth of the blade are riding on the crown of the pulley wheels, then the blade side is what receives the appropriate blade tension and allows you to cut without blade drift. If you set the blade up any other way, you will end up with blade drift. The part where he was holding the board up on top of the round can was where he was explaining this.
+Richard Murray Just be sure the sharp part of the teeth are ever so slightly in front of the crown of the tire, that way you don't prematurely wear out the tire. Once you solve blade drift, it will likely become you favorite saw.
Great explanation re blade rift. Alex Snodgrass Bandsaw guru pretty much said the same thing an also said if set up right there shouldn't be blade drift. Its funny how when methodology changes some people adapt and some stick in the trenches. Guess there are many way to skin a cat. Please note I am in no way advocating the removal of skin from our feline friends :-P. I liked the style of your video it was both educational and entertaining. Cheers.
Set up properly with a new blade even my cheap dewalt band saw does not drift. It does however when the blade is shot. I always think people try to get too much use out of a blade. I use my saw nearly everyday.☺👍
Hey, there. Your front fence seems to be about 3" tall. Why so tall? Is there a specific application where that helps? Most of the other bandsaw sleds I see on the net seem to have a front fence between 0.75" and 1.5". It seems like 1.5" is tall enough for 99% of what you'd do on a bandsaw sled, and that would allow you to adjust your blade guard/guides that much lower on thinner stock.
How do you keep the blade from centering itself on the crowned wheels? As far as I know the crown is to center the blade on the wheel automatically when the saw is running. In my saw, that is exactly what the crown does. Everytime I try to set up the blade like you suggest with the teeth running in the middle of the wheel the blade immediately shifts onto the crown again after a couple of turns of the wheel.
Just a thought here, have you recrowned your tires lately? they may not have enough radius. I recrown at least once a year or clean them with a blade change.
+Christian Pangerl Don't know about yours, but my band saw has an adjustment knob on the back that allows you to adjust the top wheels angle ever so slightly which will make the blade move in or out over the crown. I adjust mine by simply hand turning the wheel (power off of course) until the blade runs with the sharp part of the teeth ever so slightly ahead of the crown so as not to eat up the rubber. It definitely makes a difference when adjusted properly. Also, use the correct blade for the job. Don't try to resaw with a narrow blade, and don't try to turn sharp curves with a resaw blade. All of that matters.
BirdsAdventuresInWoodworking Thanks for the tip! I never even thought about changing the blade tracking with that knob as the manuals of almost every bandsaw as well as most tutorial videos tell you to set up your wheels perfectly coplanar using this knob, whereas your method sets them up slightly out of plane. I use the biggest and coarsest blade available for my saw for resawing (1.5" wide and 1.1tpi).
You'll love your saw once you get it set just right. I resaw on mine as well, but I also have a 3/16 blade that I cut band saw boxes with.. Even made an adjustable resaw Jig that I use to cut logs into lumber up to about 30", but could be made longer if I find longer logs that I can handle. I took footage of it so I'll have a video before long, but I'm just getting started and I'm trying to release my videos in sequence so it's "in the can" and down the road a bit, but works great. Hope you like your "new" saw!
I liked the video and like the idea about a bandsaw sled...however, you keep saying perfect 90 degree cut but at around 14:54 you state "accurate enough...off a degree...". Therefore, it is not a "perfect" 90. Really you're cutting 89 or 91 degrees and then squaring it up with a hand plane...
You can make a sled as perfect as you want but for me a bandsaw is a rough tool, as I stated many times. It's never going to be perfect right from the machine. In fact I don't know many machines were the work isn't refined before assembly. But we're woodworkers so it doesnt' have to be perfect. As for squaring it up with a plane afterwards, yes I do. But it's rarely more than a few swipes to remove blade marks.
Band saw is great for a hack, table saw for a cabinet maker, I do agree that most homeowners hurt themselves with tools, ignorance with a 3500 spinning sharp edge either on a band saw or table saw is bad news for the ignorant. Choose to learn or choose to lose fingers.
What in the world are you talking about? There is nothing unsafe in this video. The blade tracking advice he gives is identical to that given by Alex Snodgrass from Carter Products, when he gives seminars on band saw setup at the Woodworking Shows. The crosscut table is a good design, the construction of it is correct, and the advice on waxing is spot on. What is your problem?
what ever......you can have an hour of personal opinion if that's what you want its your video; just don't ask me to watch it. I was only looking for information as this is what I use youtube for and if I am looking for information I had a need and am not looking to waste a bunch of time. If I offended you I am sorry I was just giving a little constructive critique to make your video more user friendly, as for your 15 seconds look again, you are still rambling at 2:07 on the video timer.
Sorry I didn't watch your video I have a table saw and 1 band saws. What I wanted was a way to make a sled for one of my band saws not a lecture on you opinion of table saws. Maybe if you skipped to the point of your video I would watch it in its entirety
