Bandsaw Troubles and Questions

[gloomis]

Hey ya'll! I was given a Mark V some time ago and I have been in the process of refurbishing it so I can use it. I took the headstock completely apart some time ago, painted it, and reassembled it and lubricated it. I recently took the bandsaw apart, painted it, and calibrated it according to directions I found in the forums somewhere (I think written by JPEG).

All that to say that I just can't seem to get any torque out of the bandsaw no matter what I do. I have a sharp 3TPI 1/2" blade, carter guides, and bearing upgrades, but every time I try to resaw the blade grinds to a halt no matter how slow I feed the lumber to it. I've been running it at the slowest speed but still no luck.

Is the shopsmith bandsaw just really bad at resawing? Should I be able to resaw 4-5" tall lumber on this bandsaw? If so where's my problem? Could it be the headstock or is it likely the saw? I would really appreciate any help you can offer. Thanks!

[BuckeyeDennis]

You should be able to resaw up to the maximum capacity of the bandsaw.

Something must be slipping somewhere along the transmission path ... assuming that the headstock motor is still spinning when the bandsaw blade stops. Can you identify the last component in the drivetrain that is still turning? For example, if the headstock coupler is still spinning, that would indicate that the problem is in the bandsaw. And vice versa.

[gloomis]

The headatock starts to screech very loudly and the coupler stops spinning. I assume that means the headatock is slipping. Is it possible that I didn't tighten the belts properly?

[BuckeyeDennis]

That seems like a pretty good assumption.

I did a complete rebuild of my bandsaw, but I have a newer headstock (15 years young!), and so I’ve never had to tear into it. I’m sure that some of the headstock gurus will chime in shortly.

[garys]

Screeching from the headstock and output stopping likely indicates your belts are slipping. Look into getting new belts.

[gloomis]

Gotcha. I'll order the replacement belts and install them.

As a side question, I don't suppose there is a place I can buy them other than shopsmith's website? I heartily dislike ordering items through them because they charge a lot for shipping and they don't send items very quickly.

[reible]

The belt in question is the poly V-belt, it is quite possible that you did not get the tension correct when putting it all back together. I would check that first, you need to have no more then 1/8" movement when applying pressure to the belt. You can also apply belt dressing to the belt (to the inside of the belt). If the belt is tight and you have tried belt dressing and it still slips then you can move on to replacing it.

Ed

[DLB]

As a side question, I don't suppose there is a place I can buy them other than shopsmith's website? I heartily dislike ordering items through them because they charge a lot for shipping and they don't send items very quickly.

Note that older machines (Greenies, generally) originally use a Gilmer belt, slipping is near impossible but some of those machines also have a clutch. There are several alternate sources for belts. Jacob Anderson is a headstock repair specialist and offers several parts. There is an eBay seller that sells their own Poly-V, make sure you get the Mark V version as they also carry the 60's version Mark VII. While I understand and share your concerns with Shopsmith, I still support them when possible. I would miss them a lot more than the other guys if they were gone.

- David

[JPG]

So WHERE is the belt tension adjustment slot on the eccentric positioned?

It should be between 0600 and1200 by way of 0900.

[gloomis]

Sorry for the delay (I was out of town for Christmas). The eccentric is rotated to just past 0900 if I'm understanding you correctly. I'll try to post a picture below.

Also, I found Jacob Anderson's video on YouTube about the belt tension and he said he likes to see maybe a 1/4" give when he pushes on the belt, but mine gives quite a bit more than that.