welding bandsaw blade

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Looking for some advice from people who have experience welding bandsaw blades.  I don't have the special machine for welding the blades but know I can TIG weld them without much trouble and would likely not need to clean the area up at all afterwords with a file of grinder.  My concern is what I would be doing to the metal near the weld, causing some kind of weakness.  How should I properly anneal the area to remove the stress or hard spots?Thanks, JimSmoky Lake Maple ProductsSpecialized Fabricators of Quality Maple EquipmentSmokylakemaple@gmail.com920.202.4500www.smokylakemaple.com
Reply:I've tig welded them and had okay results, but I would NOT do it again. I would and still do use a HIGH silver content solder and sliver solder them. Works way better and is much fast/easier.Granthttp://jackalopefab.com/MM210Synchrowave 200DXMiller XMT350 w/60series feederMiller Bobcat 250 with SGA 100 and spoolgunHTP PlasmaFull Machine shop with everything
Reply:Thanks Jackalope.From someone who welds them, what are you doing to anneal the area around the weld???Smoky Lake Maple ProductsSpecialized Fabricators of Quality Maple EquipmentSmokylakemaple@gmail.com920.202.4500www.smokylakemaple.com
Reply:When welding blades with a dedicated blade welder you would heat the immediate area of the weld to a dull cherry red in subdued light and slowly cool, maybe 2 minutes.  When finished you can bend the blade to a curve that is slightly smaller that the wheel to test for breakage. I would reccomend to grind a tooth off at the joint, I haven't tried TIG but it should work.Russell
Reply:Originally Posted by Smoky Lake MapleThanks Jackalope.From someone who welds them, what are you doing to anneal the area around the weld???
Reply:Silver soldering is quicker (less trouble) and works fine.Make a little jig to hold the blade in alignment and heat from beneath.  The silver solder melts right into place.
Reply:I have tigged them plenty of times but you must heat them cherry red after grinding the weld smooth with a torch to anneal the area..We have a Do All bandsaw with the welder attachment but that takes more time and the results are not that good..I clamp the blade ends to a aluminum piece of flat stock with a slight overlap with the teeth in line with each other and just fuse them together..Then proceed with the annealing.....zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:I silver solder them.  Been doing it that way for decades and never had one break.  Mapp gas or a 0 tip on a oxy-fuel torch.
Reply:All you have to do is configure the blades with an open air gap behind the weld area (at least 3" or so wide preferred), and then TIG weld the blades together with lower amperage than you normally would use, which will input more heat energy into the work and get a large area glowing red/yellow hot, and now rather than suddenly stopping your arc when you are done, you can feather off the current with your footpedal and hold the heat there, allowing it to slowly cool down over a period of 15-20 or so seconds until it is no longer glowing will IME, result in the weld area being annealed, soft metal.This method worked for me, to successfully weld a Lenox "Neo Type" high carbon type bandsaw blade material.Before I figured out the annealing part, (I tried welding the blade with a copper chiller plate behind and minimum heat input technique) the weld bead was the hardest metal I've ever seen (short of maybe tungsten carbide.)  Harder than a high carbon, hardened steel punch/drift.Last edited by jakeru; 07-22-2011 at 07:22 PM.
Reply:I also have a Do-All band saw with a blade welder.  It works good but I usually end up tig welding them., because its faster. I weld them using 316/16 stainless filler... works for me.