Laugh about my saw blade (Full Version)

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constructordeguitarras -> Laugh about my saw blade (Dec. 3 2023 2:58:01)

I like to make my guitar sides 1/16 inch thick and use a table saw to cut the slots in the neck to receive them. I find that the table saw blades that proclaim to leave a 1/16-inch kerf are actually around 0.07" instead of 0.0625" thick. I have a carbide-tipped one and several all steel ones that are like this. The steel ones were very cheap (around $10 each) and it occurred to me that I could adjust the thickness of one by running it through my Performax 16-32 drum sander. I was hesitant because I didn't really want metal filings in the sander and the idea of possible kickback with a sharp blade occurred to me. But I figured, what did I have to lose? It's a cheap blade and a used sanding belt that didn't cost much either. So, standing to the side of the machine and taking very light cuts, I did the job and it worked okay. Except the conveyor belt on the sander was a replacement one that I had installed ten years ago and is made of rubbery plastic. Which melted in spots due to the heat generated from sanding and conducted through the metal. As I was working I thought the melted areas, which were dark, were just metal dust that I would remove later. They weren't. And the conveyor belt which cost $100 ten years ago now costs $175 to replace. Some cheap blade I made. I just thought you would enjoy laughing at me.



RobF -> RE: Laugh about my saw blade (Dec. 3 2023 3:06:29)

Ouch!



ernandez R -> RE: Laugh about my saw blade (Dec. 3 2023 4:15:50)

but what about the saw blade, did you get it thinned down to .055” or thereabouts?

I fret slot with my small bandsaw but but had to thin the blade some, I used a 2” sanding disc on a small 90 deg die grinder, fired up the bandsaw and went at it. I kept asking myself if what I was doing was really dumb or not. I got through it without any blood but hope this blade lasts me the rest of my life sort of fretboards, just turned 58 and I’m not that fast so I should be ok.


HR



estebanana -> RE: Laugh about my saw blade (Dec. 3 2023 5:40:37)

quote:

ORIGINAL: constructordeguitarras

I like to make my guitar sides 1/16 inch thick and use a table saw to cut the slots in the neck to receive them. I find that the table saw blades that proclaim to leave a 1/16-inch kerf are actually around 0.07" instead of 0.0625" thick. I have a carbide-tipped one and several all steel ones that are like this. The steel ones were very cheap (around $10 each) and it occurred to me that I could adjust the thickness of one by running it through my Performax 16-32 drum sander. I was hesitant because I didn't really want metal filings in the sander and the idea of possible kickback with a sharp blade occurred to me. But I figured, what did I have to lose? It's a cheap blade and a used sanding belt that didn't cost much either. So, standing to the side of the machine and taking very light cuts, I did the job and it worked okay. Except the conveyor belt on the sander was a replacement one that I had installed ten years ago and is made of rubbery plastic. Which melted in spots due to the heat generated from sanding and conducted through the metal. As I was working I thought the melted areas, which were dark, were just metal dust that I would remove later. They weren't. And the conveyor belt which cost $100 ten years ago now costs $175 to replace. Some cheap blade I made. I just thought you would enjoy laughing at me.



First I can’t tell whether you mean .070 or 0.70


There is a way to grind the kerf width and sharpen the teeth on a table saw blade using a dremel tool or an angle grinder with the blade chucked into a device that you can it spin in.

Sorry to hear you melted your belt.

I fret slot with a hand saw…



constructordeguitarras -> RE: Laugh about my saw blade (Dec. 3 2023 15:35:39)

quote:

I fret slot with my small bandsaw but

but what about the saw blade, did you get it thinned down to .055” or thereabouts?


That is very interesting, HR. I didn't realize that anyone cuts fret slots with a bandsaw. It's hard for me to imagine a good way to do it. I got the blade thinned down to 0.0615" and will try it out today.

Stephen, thanks for mentioning that sharpening device. I suppose a 0.7" kerf would be good for using the Romanillos wedging method of securing the ends of the sides to the neck, but that would be for a dado set.

Speaking of such devices (as that sharpening system), I once saw someone use a tiny circular saw blade attached to some kind of auxiliary arm on a lathe to cut slices from a rosette log. I wish they were still around so I could find out how to do that (not that I have a lathe) because being able to cut tiles from a log more accurately would save me a lot of trouble. I use a crude miter box with a dozuki.



constructordeguitarras -> RE: Laugh about my saw blade (Dec. 3 2023 19:58:18)

UPDATE: Well, the whole thing proved to be an exercise in futility (stupidity?) anyway: I tried the blade on scrap and it produced a kerf that was narrower on the deep end. Which is to be expected due to the improbability of adjusting the sanding drum to be perfectly parallel to the conveyor platform. I guess it's good to break up the monotony and have something to write about....



ernandez R -> RE: Laugh about my saw blade (Dec. 4 2023 2:34:07)

I’m not doing the standard Spanish neck rib join process.

I glue my fretboard to the neck assemble before it goes on the guitar so it’s easy enough to use the band saw.

I saw the slots while the neck edges are still parallel and I slot a fence to come up from behind to work as a depth stop. A couple sets of adjustment screws to dial in things: two pick op the back of the table to set the fence/slot depth and two to set the depth from edge to edge so it’s the same on each edge of the fretboard.

I bring the blade tension up some-kinda a zen thing but if you don’t it will make a wavy slot in relation to blade tooth pitch.

Harder to type than do.

I just make sharp pencil marks and eyeball it into the blade. Takes about 15/20 minutes to set up and 2.5 seconds a slot.

All on my 1972 craftsmen 12” with a 1/4” 6tpi blade I think. The blade kerf was like .028” or something like that but the blade was .020” I just worked it until it made the kerf I wanted, .021??? Not sure about the numbers at the moment.

I only use straight fret wire and prefer a loser slot, I set them in linseed oil cause that’s what I like.

To be honest it was what I had at the time I built my first guitar so I used it, then I just kept at it. I looked into all the other options and none were any better than what I was doing.

I haven’t jacked one up so bad it needed the big plane… yet ;)

In another life I made tools in a machine shop using grinders and what SF mentioned about using a stone mounted on a dremal makes sense. Just clamp the saw blade in the saw but use it as a fixture only and mount up the dremal and just rotate the blade around by hand only cutting the blade .003” at a time if that cooling with a squirt bottle filled with water. Laughing cause it might be easier to just make thicker ribs and be done with it ;)


HR



constructordeguitarras -> RE: Laugh about my saw blade (Dec. 5 2023 16:04:53)

Luthier Richard Brune has informed me that he has half a dozen table saw blades in various kerf widths, including fret slotting blades, custom made for him by Peerless Saw company in Ohio at reasonable prices. https://www.peerlesssaw.com



Jim Frieson -> RE: Laugh about my saw blade (Apr. 3 2024 8:53:08)

You could always take a diamond plate and rub it on the teeth . I have done that and did reduce the kerf but the cutting quality will be impaired .
Too bad it is now a pain in the neck to send parcels outside of Japan via Japan Post.
Carbide tipped blades I use here are 1.1 . 1.2 , 1.6 and 1.8 mm .
I use 1.6 and 1.8 blades for the neck/sides kerf .
I have ten 1.2 mm blades I use most .
I sharpen them with a simple jig .





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