Shopsmith Forums

I bought a c-list shopsmith about a year ago. I have everything working (basic 5, belt sander, and a jointer) except the bandsaw. It is a green magna from the late 50s I think. I have not checked the serial numbers. Anyway bearings seem good on wheels, will probably replace the guide blocks and backup rollers. How do I know if I should replace the tires. Seems like a lot of work I would like to avoid. Duckman

How do I know if I should replace the tires

============


JOM
A couple things to look for wold be dry rot, cracks , missing pieces ,bad wear .loose belts..

I picked up a set not long ago with the glue , some belts don,t come with glue.

I'll gladly buy your bandsaw if you don't want to go to the hassle
I'm actually looking for a bandsaw. There are plenty of SS inc bandsaws to go around for $200 or so. But, I would prefer a Magna that matches my machine...
If nothing is worn out in the casting (not sure how they are actually built), It's worth the hassle.
That being said, as Hobbyman2 said, dry rot,cracks or missing chunks needs to be replaced...
Now, down to the technicalities... The shape, angle, out of roundness of your bandsaw wheel will greatly affect your blade tracking. If your wheels have a slight angle or taper to either side (or both sides - crowning), it will cause the blade to walk one way or another. Replace the tires.
Out of roundness (very common in industrial bandsaws) of the wheels will over-stress (most likely) the motor or break blades when blades are tensioned properly. An indicator set up on the outside of the wheel will let you know how out of round they are. If you see .005-.010 or more deviation, you're gonna notice a improvement in performance with replacing the tires.

But for real, If anyone has a Magna "greenie" bandsaw that they have and don't want or think is too worn out to fix, hit me up. As long as the castings are good, parts should be readily available...

Also... Undersized wheels (due to wear or compression of the tires over time) will affect your blade tension (especially with a blade tensioning guide). Essentially affecting your your blade tracking, either pushing it into your guide bearings or throwing blades.If your wheels are'nt 11" replace tires AND ALLWAYS buy ShopSmith blades that you know will be the proper length (they're affordable)... Trust me. Especially with a blade tensioning guide (redundant. I know. While handy, can cause problems in a worn out machine). I've seen quite a few machines come into my shop that were run using aftermarket or improper length blades, and it's just not cost effective.

Do realize the SS bandsaw is 'unique. More than one statement above is not true for the SS bandsaw.

The wheels are intentionally beveled and have no crown.

The tension indicator will not be affected by tire od or blade length. The blade length tolerance is small.

The rubber tires will compensate for slight out of roundness without breaking blades.

Ok. Intentionally beveled. Now what happens when the tires (or wheels if bare metal wheels - not SS, I know) start to wear opposite the "intentional bevel"? They crown. And the tires should be replaced.

I also have an Italian built tabletop 9" sitting in my shop waiting on parts to come from Italy with a bent up housing I'm gonna have to straighten that says differently about improper wheel sizes and blade lengths when "adjusted" to the proper setting. When I asked the customer if it was starting to get hard to adjust to the proper tension, he said, "Yeah. Yeah it is!" SMH

I'm not familiar with SS bandsaws, I will be once I pick up my own... Not many come into a metal working machinery repair shop for service. I'm just stating what issues I normally see with metal cutting bandsaws that come into my shop.

I posted that because it appeared you had experience with other more typical bandsaws. The SS bandsaw is truly a different beast.

The bevel will not be worn by use. Any wear will occur to the tires.

I caution you that the wheels are intentionally NOT co-planer and attempting to make them so will be a bad thing to do. The upper wheel is actually canted. Top of upper wheel leans away from the lower wheel.

Not intuitively obvious at all.

JPG is correct. Forget almost everything you know about band saws. The SS band saw is truly unique. It does and has for 60 + years worked very very well. You need to learn it's differences/idiosyncrasies before you can repair it successfully.