Grizzly G0555 Owner's Manual page 36

Straight Cutting — Use the largest width
•
blade that you own. The Model G0555 will
accept blades up to
can cut tight curves (a small radius) but
are not very good at cutting straight lines
because they naturally wander (blade lead).
However, larger blades are much better at
cutting straight lines, but function poorly at
cutting small curves because of their size.
Tooth Style
When selecting blades, another option to con-
sider is the shape, gullet size, teeth set and teeth
angle — otherwise known as "Tooth Style."
Figure 36 shows the three main categories of
tooth style:
Raker Skip
Figure 36. Raker, Skip & Hook tooth styles.
• RAKER — This style is considered to be the
standard because the tooth size and shape
are the same as the tooth gullet. The teeth
on Raker blades usually are very numerous,
have no angle, and produce cuts by scrap-
ing the material; these characteristics result
in very smooth cuts, but at the same time do
not cut fast and generate more heat while
cutting.
-34-
⁄ " wide. Narrow blades
3
4
Hook
• SKIP — This style is similar to a raker blade
that is missing every other tooth. Because
of the design, skip toothed blades have a
much larger gullet than raker blades, and
therefore, cut faster and generate more heat.
However, these blades also leave a rougher
cut than raker blades.
• HOOK — The teeth on this style have a posi-
tive angle (downward) which makes them dig
into the material, and the gullets are usually
rounded for easier waste removal. These
blades are excellent for the tough demands
of resawing and ripping thick material.
Tooth Pitch
Usually measured as T.P.I. (teeth per inch), tooth
pitch determines the size of the teeth. More teeth
per inch (fine pitch) will cut slower, but smoother;
while fewer teeth per inch (coarse pitch) will cut
rougher, but faster. As a general rule, choose
blades that will have at least three teeth in the
material at all times. Use fine pitched blades
on harder woods and coarse pitched blades on
softer woods.
Blade Care
A bandsaw blade is a delicate piece of steel that
is subjected to tremendous strain. You can obtain
longer use from a bandsaw blade if you give it fair
treatment and always use the appropriate feed
rate for your operation.
Be sure to select blades with the proper width,
style, and pitch for each application. The wrong
choice of blades will often produce unnecessary
heat which will shorten the life of your blade.
A clean blade will perform much better than a dirty
blade. Dirty or gummed up blades pass through
the cutting material with much more resistance
than clean blades. This extra resistance also
causes unnecessary heat.
G0555 14" Ultimate Bandsaw