The primary objective of the study is to measure the effect on cutting accuracy of side grinding swaged tooth bandsaws. The effect of side grinding on surface finish is included for comparison with previous work.
Swaged tooth bandsaws tend to leave quite a rough sawn surface. Cutting with large bites or uneven teeth aggravates this problem. Previous studies have shown that side grinding could improve surface finish but it was not shown to have any effect on cutting accuracy. However, sawmills and saw manufacturers have indicated that side grinding can improve cutting accuracy. Therefore, this contradiction needs to be resolved in order to quantify any benefits from side grinding.
The results indicate significant improvements in cutting accuracy and surface finish are possible. Side grinding 17-gauge and 16-gauge bandsaws respectively improved sawing accuracy up to 22% and 44%, reduced sawblade lateral displacement up to 36% and 68% and improved the sawn surface finish up to 24% and 11%.
Extremely careful bandsaw fitting and tooth alignment was necessary in the preparation of side ground saws. This cost-time-effectiveness has to be considered when adding side grinding to swaged saw preparation.