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I bought 4 small Koa boards when I was in Kauai last month. We sent them home by USPS to save on extra baggage fees (along with all the other stuff that never fits in the bags on the way home....). They were "bargain" boards but each is almost perfectly quartered and they have some interesting figure. I thought they'd make nice donation ukuleles for schools or retirement communities (the sides won't match the backs and tops).

I have not done any reasawing. Can you tell me what kind of blade I would need? I have a 14" Jet bandsaw and a good fence.
Appreciate any other tips or information about resawing.

Thanks, Beth
"

Beth- I also have a 14" bandsaw and I use the Wood Slicer 1/2" blade from Highland Woodworking. They have a nice website.

The Bladerunner blades from Iturra design are the same as the woodslicers, but a lot less money. You'll need good sharp blades for Koa.

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Okay, so do I need to set up the bandsaw any differently from the regular blade? I assume you want good tension so you don't get any wandering. I don't have after-market blade guides/bearings. Just use what the machine came with. Is that okay?
Thanks for the replies!

Edit: After posting this, I went to Highland's site and they have a great detail sheet on resawing. How to set up the bandsaw, and how to set up the fence and blade. It's really a great resource. Don, the Iturra Design site looks like a blog and the last entry was May 2012. The Woodslicer blade is only about $30, so I think I'll go that route and try their setup technique.

Hi Beth,

I had a lot of trouble resawing with my 14" bandsaw. I then found out that I needed a 3tpi blade (3 teeth per inch). I found that once I used a 3tpi 1 inch blade resawing became lots easier. I used to get a lot of wandering no matter what I did but changing to the 3tpi blade worked a charm. I can now make my own veneers it's that successful.

Martin

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Martin Taylor
http://martintaylorguitars.com.au

The slicer blade doesn/t last long contact suffolk machinery the technician will help you. they make timberwolf resaw blades.Explain your BS and what you are planning to resaw.

Definately call Iturra. I thought my saw was doing ok for resaw before I spoke to him. After I spoke to him and purchased the woodslicer blades from him, some bearings (which is why I called in the first place) and a stronger tension spring, I am getting excellent resaw results. It is worth the call - he also sends out a really nice catalog with articles and tips in it as well. # is 904-642-two 8 0 two

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It's this new idea from recent decades that everyone gets a participation award. - MUX

Hi Beth,

You got good advice on blades so I won't chime in there. We went to Kauai a few years ago, and I did the same thing! Two of the boards were still fairly green when I got them home with moisture content over 20%. Within a few days, the boards started to check across the surface, so I quickly resawed them wet and stickered them under a plastic tent in the bathroom so they would dry out more slowly. I was able to save most of the wood. So, you might want to measure the MC and watch for checking while it acclimates.

Ken

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http://www.casperguitar.com

If the koa is dry I use a trimaster 1/2" blade if the koa is green I use a wood slicer. The acacias are best cut green. You don't need to do anything but sticker the slices right away. The ends should be sealed as soon as you get the wood. I have had the most trouble when trying to resaw the acacias when half dry. It seems like they saw better fully green or completely dry.

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Michael F Smith
Goat Rock Ukulele
http://goatrockukulele.com

http://www.lenoxtools.com/pages/Product ... dmasterrCT

These are the best blades for resawing I know of...a quality product.

I use a 1", 1.3 tpi blade. Although I bought two blades originally, it seems I've done a million cuts with the first blade...on every kind of hardwood and it's still purring happily.

A low number of teeth per inch for resawing...yes...and get the widest one you can use on your saw.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic

Great information, guys! I spoke with Mr Iturra this morning and made my order (what a helpful guy he is). I only have 6" of height for resawing, which will work for these little uke sets and give me an idea if I want to do more resawing in the future. If so, I'll likely modify my Jet for an additional 6", and get some of the bells and whistles that improve the yield.
Thanks for all the replies!

I'm using Woodmaster CT to resaw stuff. It will cut guitar sized boards (about 8" or more) pretty quickly. However I have a 18" bandsaw.

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Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

Yeah, a bigger saw would be nice. After the time I spent on the phone with Iturra, I started to research modifying my BS with a riser kit.....and I will do that if I get the opportunity to by boards in the future again.

Not sure if anyone mentioned this so far but there was a great video on setting up your bandsaw on the Wood Whisperer site. Marc even shows you how to set up your fence at the proper angle for resawing. If you are using Koa, you probably want to preserve as much stock as possible for planing and final thicknessing. That stuff isn't cheap. I have a couple boards I found in an OLD pile somewhere and still paid $25/board ft. It'll last me forever because I only use it to make the occasional one piece maple neck.

Anyway, in order to get a consistent cut with a bandsaw, it needs to be set up at a slight angle because the blade never cuts perpendicular to the fence. What's worse is every blade has its own specific angle.

Good luck!

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"I'm not going to say that perfection has never been achieved. However, if it has, it probably went unnoticed due to it's lack of character."

Blades shouldn't drift at all, if it drifts, it's dull.

If you have expensive stock it may be worth it to have someone who has the equipment and know how to resaw it for you.

_________________
Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

Thanks, Aaron. Iturra's catalog has a great and very detailed instruction on the setup and now to account for what the blade wants to do, but I'll check out Marc's discussion as well. I have some scrap hardwood I can practice on once my blade arrives. I really didn't pay much for the Koa...it was in the bargain area, so it will be good for a first effort at resawing.

I didn't say they drift. What I said was they cut at an angle. Every bandsaw blade has it's own specific angle. It has to do with the kerf of the blade teeth. I don't worry about it when I have room to put the stock in my power planer and even out the inconsistencies. But with Koa that now, apparently, costs $100/bd. ft., I would be a bit more cautious when trying to do a book match. That's all.

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"I'm not going to say that perfection has never been achieved. However, if it has, it probably went unnoticed due to it's lack of character."

By the way, a little off topic, but is it even possible to buy EIR billets to resaw?

_________________
Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com