Startrite Bandsaw

[northwest]

As I posted in the What did you Acquire thread, we have a new bandsaw and now we have new blades so yesterday was fitting day:



Thing is, the band runs from right to left and you can see the direction of rotation on the wheel:




So it is running away from the fixed face of the vice, totally contrary to my idea of "best practice"? Would someone care to comment or explain the thinking behind this to me please?

 

[Keith 66]

A Warco at college ran the other way iirc, To be honest Startrite built an awful lot of bandsaws so knew what they were doing. Metal cutting bandsaws have flanged wheels & tend to run at higher tensions than ones intended for timber, also the blade is twisted through the guides, So as long as the machine is set up ok the direction of travel shouldnt make any difference.
I wonder if the direction of travel is down to its drive? The warco i worked had a worm drive gearbox so assuming a standard RH rotation motor that may explain why it ran the way it did, It also used to throw its saw band off the wheels with alarming frequency but that was down to poor build quality.
One would think the blade should run against the fixed side of the vice, Has anyone turned the vice round 180 degrees?, Might have done it to squeeze a job into it?
On a vertical wood bandsaw the teeth run downwards to keep the work on the table, What is important is to fit the blade the right way round, seen that done!

 

[hotponyshoes]

I'd have to check but I think my old donkey saw might cut on the outward stroke.

I'm presuming it's to pull the coolant through with the blade and push the chips out away from the workings of the machine?

Maybe on a band saw it helps stop chatter by keeping the far end of the arm under tension?

 

[RichardM]

According to lathes.co Startrite are still going, maybe worth a phone call. Looks the same as the diagrams though.

Startrite "Wespa", "Meba", "Habegger" and Automatic Bandsaws

Startrite Bandsaws 1950s to 1960s<br>Bandit 12S1,

www.lathes.co.uk

 

[merryman]

I'd have to check but I think my old donkey saw might cut on the outward stroke.

Only if you put the blade in backwards, the blades on power hacksaws work the opposite way to hand hacksaws. I have been tempted to turn one round, as only the first 3" of blade gets used unless you regularly cut RSJs or something like that. However hacksaw blades seem to last forever, compared to my Warco bandsaw.

 

[hotponyshoes]

Only if you put the blade in backwards, the blades on power hacksaws work the opposite way to hand hacksaws. I have been tempted to turn one round, as only the first 3" of blade gets used unless you regularly cut RSJs or something like that. However hacksaw blades seem to last forever, compared to my Warco bandsaw.

Mine lifts on the return stroke so won't cut if the blade is in backwards.

I could well be wrong about the direction, maybe I'm just remembering it being the other way to a hand hacksaw?

 

[tom2207]

two I use cut towards the motor , left to right in the picture ,,,

 

[nickk]

Could the pulleys have been swapped?

 

[James1979]

Mine cuts toward the vice. Bloke I bought it off had no end of issues with it - he had it set up running away from the vice.

I changed the phases and it runs properly. All of the ones I’ve used run toward the vice.

If yours didn’t have the arrow I’d say it was wrong. As @nickk puts, is it the right pulley or has it been swapped somehow? Does it have an arrow both sides for different applications? Stranger things have happened.

Edit - clarity

 

[MCKDAVID]

Mine cuts toward the vice. Bloke I bought it off had no end of issues with it.

I changed the phases and it runs properly. All of the ones I’ve used run toward the vice.

so did mine, cut fine.....

 

[Keith 66]

My money is on the vice being on backwards for some reason, With bandsaw blades the teeth direction depends on which way the blade is opened out from coiled, if its wrong way turn it inside out. But If it works fine dont worry about it!

 

[hotponyshoes]

My money is on the vice being on backwards for some reason, With bandsaw blades the teeth direction depends on which way the blade is opened out from coiled, if its wrong way turn it inside out. But If it works fine dont worry about it!

I don't think it's possible to swap the vice around.
Looks like the movable jaw is the one further away from the motor and is driven by the wheel on the far end of the machine.
I'd guess the inner /fixed jaw won't have the parts to attach to the thread and the thread won't reach if you did swap them?

Regarding blade coil, if its a blade supplied specifically for that machine it should be welded (and possibly even coiled) the correct way round?

 

[James1979]

Found this - https://sharkbandsawblades.co.uk/startrite_spare_parts_and_handbooks.html you’ll have to choose yours but it seems helpful

I clicked a random one and it was quite detailed. Said to put teeth on facing the pivot.

Also a straw poll of startrite saws on the tube shows them all running toward the hinge.

 

[Erie Fred]

Very odd.
However, notice the coolant pipe is plumbed into the right end blade guide.
Looks "factory made" that way, however one could have swapped the hose plumbing, the left guide looks like
it might have a tubing stub there for the hose.
Is there a wire wheel chip brush to the right ? Just before the drive wheel is where I always see them.

 

[dieselsamurai]

This is interesting I converted my Qualters and Smith to single phase and never thought of it, the coolant feed was on right so assumed blade went right to left and thats the direction it went when I wired motor up normal rotation. When I get home later i with check wether any marking for direction but thinking about it makes sense to cut towards fixed vice !

 

[Erie Fred]

Looking further, the first pix shows the chip pan short on the right end, if the rotation was reversed, the chips would probably mis the pan, and hit the floor.
Most "conventional" (left-to-right) machines have the chip pan go all the way to the right, completely covering under the right (drive) wheel.

 

[bletchmonster]

Fella next door has a very similar startrite and that cuts same as yours.
Very odd but seems to be the way there made.

 

[E T]

Femi uses that on their NG line.
Explanation of the principle at 1:37 in this video.

 

[dieselsamurai]

Just checked mine and its marked on drive wheel to cut right to left I've never really thought about it . Cuts straight as a die and used all the time

 

[northwest]

Femi uses that on their NG line.
Explanation of the principle at 1:37 in this video.

Excellent thank you. It is to catch all the chips on the table and when the bandsaw bows when running in this direction, all of the teeth stay in the material, or so he says anyway.