Horizontal Bandsaw Maintenance

The horizontal bandsaw was not lowering properly, so I took a look at it. Turns out there was a large amount of built up metal dust that had solidified under the hinge pin and was creating too much friction for the saw to work properly. This buildup was very hard hard and was difficult to remove. It required penetrating oil, a hammer and chisel, and about 45 minutes of work to get it cleaned off.

Whenever you use the bandsaw, please pay special attention to cleaning off any debris from the hinge area. The easiest way to do this is to lift the top all the way to the vertical position so that the hinge is exposed. You can vacuum it out with the shopvac, clean it with a brush, wipe it with a towel, whatever works. I don’t know how long it takes to get this bad or how long it has been in this state, but if it gets cleaned regularly it shouldn’t be an issue.

Here are the before and after pictures:


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It takes exactly the amount of time we’ve owned it, probably.

It really did take a good amount of work to clean it. I watched Christian chisel away at it for a while until I got bored. Good thing he didn’t.

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He probably did, but then again, he’s the type to ride a :bike: across town, even if he doesn’t have to.

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Last night the bandsaw was having issues lowering again. Turns out the hinge was all gummed up with shavings again. So clearly it doesn’t take too long for this issue to re-occur. It was much easier to clean this time since it wasn’t packed in nearly as solid as the last time, but it would be nice if the people that use it would do a better job cleaning up so other people don’t have to.

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@Tommy suggested making a cover for the hinge to keep debris off of it, so I whipped something up in Fusion. I’ve got it printing now, so tomorrow we’ll see which dimensions I got wrong. :slight_smile:

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thank you Christian. You are AWESOME!

Well, I’m definitely not awesome at measuring. But the second attempt fits pretty well.

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I saw that on there this evening. Seemed to be doing the job well.

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Had a chance to look at , but not use it yet. Noticed the wire restraint on the power cord was broken,
Actually noticed it bout a week ago. I will pick up a part if I get a chance today.

My mistake, it’s not the restraint, It appears the case is broken, I’ll have to check how bad.