FWIS3

My bandsaw is sidelined. The threads on the tensioner rod stripped and seized. This was a replacement tensioner that I installed last year because it had a crank that made the tensioning process easier. So, I bought another one and it stripped out the first time. Why? Because the square nut that came with the second one was a little too small, allowing it to rotate when it shouldn't. So I ran a tap through the old, properly sized nut to clean up the threads best I could. No joy. The nut threads were damaged enough that they buggered up the threads on the new rod on the first go. Cheap steel, if you ask me.

Yeah, I know that probably doesn't mean anything to anyone here, except maybe Z.

So, now I'm looking for alternatives. There's another brand of tensioner that might be better and I'll drive up to a local outlet today to check it out. Or, I can order a whole new tensioning assembly but I hate, hate buying assemblies when only part of it needs replacing. Kinda like buying $400 headlight assemblies when in the old days you just popped in a replacement headlight, or even better, a new bulb. Plus, the new assembly would have the same design problem that drew me to installing one with a crank handle.

http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/202048 ... 7AodvEYA3w

When I saw the title... well, I'm just glad it doesn't involve finger reattachment. Sorry for your woes.

Do you know the thread size?
Also, you know I have a 3D printer, if you need a part just draw it up, email me and I'll print it.
I'm slowly getting more time and printing stuff isn't an issue as it takes up about 3 minutes of my actual time regardless of how long the print time is.
Also, if you need it in metal, brass etc, give me the sizes, diameter and pitch as well as thread type (UNC, AF, Metric etc) and I can probably ask my mate down the road who has a fully equipped work shop to make something.
Failing that, send the fucker in, you know our address. I'll make something up that's durable either with the printer or on a lathe/milling machine down the road.
I owe you that for freezing you for two weeks, and I'd like to as well.

FZR1KG wrote:Do you know the thread size?
Also, you know I have a 3D printer, if you need a part just draw it up, email me and I'll print it.
I'm slowly getting more time and printing stuff isn't an issue as it takes up about 3 minutes of my actual time regardless of how long the print time is.
Also, if you need it in metal, brass etc, give me the sizes, diameter and pitch as well as thread type (UNC, AF, Metric etc) and I can probably ask my mate down the road who has a fully equipped work shop to make something.
Failing that, send the fucker in, you know our address. I'll make something up that's durable either with the printer or on a lathe/milling machine down the road.
I owe you that for freezing you for two weeks, and I'd like to as well.

I appreciate that but I have resources here. The other brand of tensioner I linked to appears to be the ticket. The local supplier didn't have one in stock, but had already ordered more.

If that one fails, maybe I'll come up for a visit.

Swift wrote:When I saw the title... well, I'm just glad it doesn't involve finger reattachment. Sorry for your woes.

Perhaps I should have titled it "bandsaw woes of a non-injury nature".

You know, the bandsaw is actually an evil, sneaky bastard. Unlike the table saw, which loudly advertises its abundant dangers so you are super-cautious when working with it, the bandsaw seems innocuous. What could go wrong? The blade moves only downward, you don't have to lean over the work surface, it can't throw anything at you. But damn, that blade can remove a finger without even slowing down if you aren't always completely aware of where your body parts are in relation to the saw.

geonuc wrote:

FZR1KG wrote:Do you know the thread size?
Also, you know I have a 3D printer, if you need a part just draw it up, email me and I'll print it.
I'm slowly getting more time and printing stuff isn't an issue as it takes up about 3 minutes of my actual time regardless of how long the print time is.
Also, if you need it in metal, brass etc, give me the sizes, diameter and pitch as well as thread type (UNC, AF, Metric etc) and I can probably ask my mate down the road who has a fully equipped work shop to make something.
Failing that, send the fucker in, you know our address. I'll make something up that's durable either with the printer or on a lathe/milling machine down the road.
I owe you that for freezing you for two weeks, and I'd like to as well.

I appreciate that but I have resources here. The other brand of tensioner I linked to appears to be the ticket. The local supplier didn't have one in stock, but had already ordered more.

If that one fails, maybe I'll come up for a visit.

Sounds like a plan.

geonuc wrote:

Swift wrote:When I saw the title... well, I'm just glad it doesn't involve finger reattachment. Sorry for your woes.

Perhaps I should have titled it "bandsaw woes of a non-injury nature".

You know, the bandsaw is actually an evil, sneaky bastard. Unlike the table saw, which loudly advertising its abundant dangers so you are super-cautious when working with it, the bandsaw seems innocuous. What could go wrong? The blade moves only downward, you don't have to lean over the work surface, it can't throw anything at you. But damn, that blade can remove a finger without even slowing down if you aren't always completely aware of where your body parts are in relation to the saw.

Oh but that table saw can be sneaky too. Husband basically cut a 1/4 inch dado in his finger with his old table saw and didn't even realize it til the blood started flowing.

gethen wrote:

geonuc wrote:

Swift wrote:When I saw the title... well, I'm just glad it doesn't involve finger reattachment. Sorry for your woes.

Perhaps I should have titled it "bandsaw woes of a non-injury nature".

You know, the bandsaw is actually an evil, sneaky bastard. Unlike the table saw, which loudly advertises its abundant dangers so you are super-cautious when working with it, the bandsaw seems innocuous. What could go wrong? The blade moves only downward, you don't have to lean over the work surface, it can't throw anything at you. But damn, that blade can remove a finger without even slowing down if you aren't always completely aware of where your body parts are in relation to the saw.

Oh but that table saw can be sneaky too. Husband basically cut a 1/4 inch dado in his finger with his old table saw and didn't even realize it til the blood started flowing.

Table saws are freaking dangerous. Glad it was only a small dado.

BTW, I got my new bandsaw part and it fits correctly. We're back in business.

geonuc wrote:

gethen wrote:

geonuc wrote:

Swift wrote:When I saw the title... well, I'm just glad it doesn't involve finger reattachment. Sorry for your woes.

Perhaps I should have titled it "bandsaw woes of a non-injury nature".

You know, the bandsaw is actually an evil, sneaky bastard. Unlike the table saw, which loudly advertises its abundant dangers so you are super-cautious when working with it, the bandsaw seems innocuous. What could go wrong? The blade moves only downward, you don't have to lean over the work surface, it can't throw anything at you. But damn, that blade can remove a finger without even slowing down if you aren't always completely aware of where your body parts are in relation to the saw.

Oh but that table saw can be sneaky too. Husband basically cut a 1/4 inch dado in his finger with his old table saw and didn't even realize it til the blood started flowing.

Table saws are freaking dangerous. Glad it was only a small dado.

I had a table saw incident in high school shop. No blood or loss of body parts but it scared the crap out of me (almost literally). To this day, I believe I was following all of the safety rules and don't know how I could have prevented it.

The reality of power equipment, especially equipment with sharp parts, is that they can be very dangerous. Which is why you follow safety procedures religiously. but at the end of the day all you are doing is minimizing the risk not eliminating it completely. Of course, I know people who can claim to have gone 40+ years without a single mishap. Which proves that minimizing the risk is worth the effort.

Only good thing about my husband's relatively minor accident is that he agreed thay the replacement saw he needed should be a Saw Stop. Almost impossible to really hurt yourself with it since when your skin touches the blade it completes an electrical circuit and the saw jams the breake into the blade so fast that about the only injury you can get is a scratch. Of course that means $150 + for a new blade, but that's much cheaper than a trip to the emergency room with a severed finger. Or worse.

Yeah, my wife and I agree a Saw Stop is required. Problem is that I don't have room in my shop now. It will have to wait until we move to Oregon.

Thumper, the safety rules are good but I find fanatic paranoia to be very helpful in preventing incidents.

geonuc wrote:Thumper, the safety rules are good but I find fanatic paranoia to be very helpful in preventing incidents.

I was thinking more about fanatic paranoia than safety rules when I was 30 some feet up in a tree with a running chainsaw a few weeks ago. I was trying not to drop any of it on the nearby garage, fall out of the tree, or cut myself in half.

Thumper wrote:I was trying not to drop any of it on the nearby garage, fall out of the tree, or cut myself in half.

That would be bad.

Right. That's bad. Okay. All right. Important safety tip. Thanks, Egon.

geonuc wrote:...Table saws are freaking dangerous...

"No chit, Cherlock...", said the dude who can only count to 9 1/2...