Beginner's mistake

[Bill Wilson]

Yep...that is the finished box PatteM... my first one.

Oily or anyone else... I have a variable speed saw DW788... but I really have no idea when I should be turning up the speed... and when I should slow it down. Any advice in this area? I have been turning it down when I cut real thin stuff... and up with thicker cuts... but I don't know if that is what I should be doing or not.

Thanks in advance

I think blade speed is pretty much a personal preference. The only real hard & fast rule is that, everything else being equal, a faster running blade will generate more heat. That implies that higher blade speed increases the chances of burning. I don't think it's quite that simple. Thickness of the material is just one variable in the equation. Blade size & type, hardness of the material, feed rate and sharpness of the blade all play a role. Generally speaking, it's easier to control the cut in thin material with a slower blade speed and generally speaking you make faster progress cutting thick material at a higher blade speed. If you are experiencing burning, you could start by slowing the blade speed. You could also change to a different blade or slow your feed rate down to accomplish the same thing. Your task is to find the combination that works for you.

[Camero68]

[bstark]

Yep...that is the finished box PatteM... my first one.

Oily or anyone else... I have a variable speed saw DW788... but I really have no idea when I should be turning up the speed... and when I should slow it down. Any advice in this area? I have been turning it down when I cut real thin stuff... and up with thicker cuts... but I don't know if that is what I should be doing or not.

Thanks in advance

[western.flyer]

that 5 should have cut that..
Go really slow

It should have. It could have been just a dull blade from the start and not your mistake. It used to happen sometimes to me but not so much after I switched from Olson blades to FD. You still get one every so often that just don't wanna cut.

[oily]

that 5 should have cut that..
Go really slow

[Out of The Woods]

We've all done it

[PatteM]

Ooo, is that the finished box that you wound up with? NICE!

[Hawaiilad]

Don't feel bad...I have been cutting on the Scroll Saw and Band saw for well over 30 years and yesterday I installed a new band saw blade and away I went cutting a drawer out for a band saw box...saw started smoking and I thought I just had a New bad blade....turns out I had it turned inside out...try that one

[sawitall]

you could just keep going and call it your smoking box remember never say die , its not ruined its distressed and it sells for more that way lol

[bstark]

Good heavens - what are you going to make from 2" wood?

I was trying to make this box. The instructions called for stack cutting 2 1" inch blocks to form the inside of the box. I didn't pay attention to what wood it called for... but it must have been something softer than what I tried with.

LOL fredfret... thanks for the advice.

[fredfret]

Using a scraper will help remove the evidance of fire by friction experiments, better than sandpaper. I'm telling this as a voice that has done those tests many times.
fredfret
wichita,, ks

[PatteM]

Good heavens - what are you going to make from 2" wood? Sure would like to see whatever it is, all finished! See, the real trick is to figure out your way around the "mistake" - incorporate it, or change the design plan a little bit to avoid it, or whatever it takes - good luck!

[Dragon]

Experience is something one cannot buy. You learn a lot from mistakes and trial and error. We all do it.
Diane

[bstark]

So I thought I could cut 2 inch red oak with a FD-UR 5... but sniff sniff... is something burning? I had just put a new blade in too. Then I thought... NP... I can cut 1 inch... but I was dumb enough to leave the same blade in and almost ruined another piece because it wouldn't cut right.

Live and learn.

-brad