Friction cutting on a band saw

C

cjensema

Joined
Dec 29, 1998
Messages
288
On another thread, Tom Mayo said "try friction cutting with a wood bandsaw...works like cutting butter....."

Can someone explain? What is friction cutting and how is it done? I have a 1/2 hp Grizzly benchtop bandsaw. Would that work?

Carl Jensema
 
Carl, friction cutting can be done with almost any bandsaw that will turn at 3000 sfpm or better. I use all my dull blades for this. It actually heats up the metal by friction to the point the it melts instead of cuts. Use plenty of safety precautions, most saws aren't designed for this type of cutting.

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Johnny Stout
 
I have found this to be a topic that has many opinions!!! Here is mine.....
I don't have a friction saw in my knife shop, the wood bandsaw I have, I would not use for this purpose because it is brand new and I need it to cut handle material!!!I burned up my old saw cutting Ti. like that!
At the machine shop were I work full time we have a large friction saw, it will cut 1/4" tool steel like butter.... However, I work with D2 and A2, both air hardening steels. The steel hardens about 1/8" in from the cut. The amount of time I save sawing, I loose profiling the hard blade on the belt grinder. I find I faster to use a regular steel cutting bandsaw with a good blade.
I wonder if going to Hawaii to see Toms process could be a write off........
Neil

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http://members.aol.com/blademakr/BlackwoodWP.html
 
well...here i am.....i have a metal cutting bandsaw with a variable speed motor and a standard 14" delta wood bandsaw....for years i have cut everything on my metal bandsaw.. i tried cutting ti on it and it just stripped the teeth off my $35 blade...so i started waiting till they got really dull and using them to cut ti....thats the .040 and .045 thickness.....well....i had to cut some .160 6/4 and nothing would work...even had problems with an abrasive cutoff wheel cause the heat made it work harden big time.. friend suggested wood bandsaw... fine toothed wood cutting blade a little worn.. worked like a champ....i could not believe how well it worked...then stuck my .040 on there and it worked even better...very little burr......try it....but i wouldnt recommend doing it if you have a big pile of sawdust under your bandsaw...maybe vacuum it up first....any questions send me an email..

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http://www.mayoknives.com


 
Thanks for all the information. I'll eventually give friction cutting a try, although I am a little concerned about burning out my band saw.

Carl Jensema
 
i dont think y ou need to be concerned about your bandsaw motor...it doesnt put that much strain on it....just make sure you get a hard fine toothed blade and wear it out a little first....tom
 
Doesn't the hot blade melt the rubber on your bandsaw wheels???

[This message has been edited by TJ Smith (edited 22 September 1999).]
 
No, this is a Ti-only thing. Ti has this odd property that around 1600F it gets very ductile - this makes it a pain to work with in most ways but lets a wood-cutting saw zip through it like soft plastic. Steel won't do this and will case-harden instead, taking all the teeth off of your saw in a hurry. Go REAL slow for steel.

I was interested to note that Owen Wood also uses this friction method for cutting Ti in his shop.

-Drew
 
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