Band saw blades take on a lot of wear and tear, and you may find yourself going through more blades then you would like.  In this blog I am going to provide you with some tips from blade expert Lenox on how to improve the life of your blade.

When you receive a new band saw blade it comes with razor sharp tooth tips that are much sharper than you need for cutting material.   Before you begin your daily sawing routines, it is important to break in the blade and hone the teeth to form a micro-fine radius.  If this is not done, damage can be done to the teeth that you may not be able to see.  Microscopic damage to the tips of the teeth can result in reduced blade life. When you begin your first cuts with a new blade it is important to start at a reduced rate.  Other first cut tips include:

• Teeth should be forming chips.
• Slowly increase feed rate/force once the blade fully enters the workpiece.
• With each following cut, gradually increase feed rate/force until desired cutting rate is reached.

Lenox’s website offers many more tips and answers to frequently asked questions about blades.  And they can be found here: http://www.lenoxtools.com/Pages/FAQ.aspx