Probly stupid question.

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Is it practical to put a reostat on a small wood band saw to convert it to a metal band saw for small projects.  Or if any one has modified one for this please let me know how.
Reply:No. Wood bandsaws are not made to stand up the the load. It might work for a very short time but in the end it will fail.Miller DVI2Lincoln Precision Tig 225Thermodynamics Cutmaster 38Everything else needed.
Reply:I tried to do the very same thing- convert my wood bandsaw to cut metal.     I did some research on this a long time ago, and learned that doing it the easy way (with a rheostat) would not work.  Or perhaps it would work for a very short time before destroying my motor (can't recall which- only that it wasn't feasible).What I had to do was gear it down with bigger pulleys.  There are lots of online tips on calculating exactly what size pulleys you need to slow it down to run at a particular cutting rate. A small bi-metal blade can be picked up for less than $20, and the pulley-wheels range widely depending on diameter, but generally $2 for the little ones up to about $30 for the big ones.  If you live in Canada, Princess Auto has them.Lincoln AC225 & MigPak 140, Lincoln Magnum SpoolGun, Miller Spectrum 375-X Plasma, Syncrowave 200 TIG, Millermatic 252 MIG, Miller Digital Elite, General 7x12" horiz/vert bandsaw, 3' box/pan brake, 20 ton press, milling machine, 12x28 lathe, etc.
Reply:A guy on one of the knifemaking forums just did a conversion.  He used a gear reduction motor to drive the saw instead of the motor that came with it.  Works pretty well from what he's said.  The rheostat idea most likely won't work/will kill your motor.  You could probably also get away with using a higher HP 230v motor with a VFD to slow everything down to the correct speed while still maintaining a higher level of torque.  Next step to look at is blades, blade guides, etc...  Make sure everything is setup to be able to handle metal dust instead of wood.--Wintermute"No man's knowledge here can go beyond his experience." - John Lockewww.improvised-engineering.comManufacturer Agnostic:Blood----------Sweat---------Tears----|------------------|----------------|----Lincoln Red, Miller Blue, Esab Yellow
Reply:If you do decide to convert your band saw, be sure to remember that you can't try to cut fast, you will wear out the guides if you feed to fast, just take your time and it can work. But you will need to slow the blade down with pulleys or a new motor. Rheostats are motor killers.
Reply:We've done it.  Started with an older 14" Delta ($100 Craigslist find), added a 30:1 gear reducer ($15 Craigslist find) add a few pulleys and belts from the pile 'o pulleys and belts we have, and a nice Lenox bimetal blade, and we are cooking with gas.  We actually sold the official Delta machinery lamp that came with the saw for 85 bucks on ebay, putting us at about 30 bucks for the saw, not counting the blade.  Been running it for a couple years now, I do everything from long cuts in 1/2 inch plate down to much smaller curves in 14 guage steel, as well as many many cuts in .080 - .125 aluminum. Who is John Galt?