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I started a similar binge, sawed about 10 sets and a pile of tops - and I had to stop and build a couple. I still need to get back after it. I just have a couple guitars in the way now.

On the "saved". Yeah I "saved" a bunch too... . And everybody knows you have to spend money to save money . The problem is that I have probably 10 lifetimes worth of wood if I didn't buy another scrap. But I just bought 3 cedar posts yesterday

I find resawing with the proper tools for the job to be pure pleasure. After struggling with a 1.25HP Craftsman saw for 15 years I'm finally putting this beast to work. Just last weekend cutting up old oak and pine boards from a barn. The speed and accuracy in which this saw cuts makes me giddy

Very Nice

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Wow. That thing is a hoss!

Well. All good things must come to an end... And last night so did my carbide band. It was a Morse carbide and held up very well... But it finally cracked and split in half last night.

Switched to a Bi-metal Lennox Diemaster 2.
Seems like a decent band but shows a tendency to self-feed.... And when it does, the cut gets quite rough and wobbly. We will see how she does.

John, the diemaster is for metal work, though could be used on thin wood. For our purposes you need a band with deep gullets and ideally 1.5 - 3 tpi. The thicker your stock is, the more important this becomes. The waste material from the kerf needs a place to go. Once the gullets are full, the cutting action becomes a little unpredictable, not to mention the heat buildup.
I have found that releasing the tension on the band tends to increase longevity. I taped a note on the power switch to remind me.

JF, cant see your image, need tool pics!

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My memory is so good, sometimes I remember things that never happened.

JF No pic that I can see?

Well this is all thats left inside the shop............ and when milling lumber from logs that Jointer really comes in handy.

Sawed a pile of Honduran Mahogany, (back and sides) and Black Locust yesterday, (a few backs, lots of bridge plate stock) this should year some very nice backs.

I have access to a bit of good quality spruce, and I have resawed quite a few sets for 'tonewood' over the years. I enjoy the work, not because there is so much money to save or make; I don't sell any, and good spruce isn't that expensive to begin with, but its nice to be able to work with local woods, and you learn a lot. The best sets are just as nice as the primo alpine stuff I have bought from German and Italian sellers, it is the same species after all (picea abies). I split everything from freshly cut logs, and cut it and store it in my shop. A giant vintage band saw and jointer is a bit help, of course. There is a LOT of scrap, but since the wood is free, the only cost is my time and some machine maintenance, plus I get a lot of kindling... It can also be a selling point for some customers, some folks like the idea of a strictly local instrument.

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

Clinch, not sure why you cannot see the pics, sorry, but those wedges sure look nice

Here's some pics of my resaw. I still don't 'get' Google photo's and they keep changing it so it annoys the helk out of me.

https://goo.gl/photos/PJC6ocn6BEVVzfM88

Wow. That thing is a hoss.

With the stack of wood I have accumulated in hopes of resawing... I could probably do well with a saw like that. That looks like about a 2" wide band - which no doubt makes for a much more stable cut than my little 1/2" band.

Thanks

^ that's a 3 inch blade. Once I get into the cut it's almost like I don't need the fence at all as the wide blade feels like it just holds the line. It's a pure joy using that machine

I'm DIY everything if I can - woodworking skills are a must and resawing does take a little practice to get right - but having the control over how you slice up the stock is worth it. If I had limited tools or limited shop space, then buying sets would be a no brainer - but I'm fortunate enough to have a good sized shop with a lot of great investments in tooling over the years (Including a CNC that I also built myself).

And I enjoy the work!

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Mitch

I have run into to many pieces of nice wood to not venture into resawing

To me it's a wide carbide blade and good saw setup that make all the difference.

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Joe Beaver
Maker of Sawdust

what is the kerf on those 3" blades & are those saws still being mad?

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Mike McNerney

.023" kerf. I think this saw is not made anymore but you can usually find one used pretty easily. I love mine.

I used to have access to the big brother of that Hitachi saw. Still a 3" blade. I made some mistakes, no doubt, but I still have a really great stash of wood as a result. I wish I had sanded more of it, the same shop had a 48" belt sander that was extremely well tuned.

The band is .02x. I have a 3 inch Resaw King on mine. The advertised kerf is about .050, but it seems to be more like .060.

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Pat