Wilton 8014FW, Operating Instructions And Parts Manual

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20
Gage
Use the standard gage (blade thickness) except
when the increased thickness of the workpiece
decreases accuracy and width cannot be
increased to compensate.
Examples of heavy gage applications:
1. When radius cutting in thick materials.
2. When the maximum width usable on the
machine still provides insufficient beam
strength for the blade. (Beam strength is the
blade’s resistance to compression caused
by strong feeding or the type of material
being cut).
Pitch
Pitch is measured in “teeth per inch” (T.P.I.) and
can be constant or variable. Figure 25 shows
blades with different pitches. A fine pitch (more
teeth per inch) will cut slower but smoother. A
coarse pitch (fewer teeth per inch) will cut
rougher but faster.
As a rule of thumb, the thicker the workpiece,
the coarser will be the blade pitch. If you have to
cut a hard or very brittle material, you will
probably want to use a blade with a finer pitch in
order to get clean cuts.
Using a blade with too few teeth may cause
vibration and a rough cut, while too many teeth
may cause the gullets to fill with shavings and
overheat the blade.
When cutting thin materials, the rule for blade
pitch is to have a minimum of two teeth
engaging the workpiece at all times.
Consult the chart on the front of the band saw to
determine pitch. There is also a chart on page
23 of this manual.
Shape
Figure 26 shows common types of tooth shape.
Tooth shape has an effect on cutting rate.
The Regular blade, sometimes called a “raker”
blade, has evenly spaced teeth that are the
same size as the gullets, and a 0-degree rake
angle. This is a good general-purpose blade,
and is often used on ferrous metals, hard
bronze, hard brass and thin materials.
The Skip type has fewer teeth and larger gullets,
providing the added chip clearance needed for
cutting softer, nonferrous materials, as well as
non-metallic applications such as wood, plastic,
cork, and composition materials.
Figure 25
Figure 26