Band Saw Terminology
Don’t know the proper terminology in the band saw world or just need a little more detail? In this section you will find all the terminology that is commonly used in the industry.
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Accuracy
The degree of conformity of a measurement to a standard or a true value. In metal sawing, accuracy is usually measured in thousandths of an inch per linear inch of deviation from a theoretical perpendicularity and parallelism to the plane of the machine bed.
Age Hardening
A process of aging that causes a change in properties. This change occurs slowly at room temperature and more rapidly at higher temperatures. This process increases both strength and hardness, but usually results in decreased ductility.
AISI
American Iron and Steel Institute
Alloy
Steel containing significant quantities of alloying elements added to cause changes in the mechanical and/or physical properties.
Annealing
Heating a metal to a specific temperature and then cooling the metal at a controlled rate, for the purpose of achieving one or more possible effects, including reduced hardness, better machinability, or reduced stress. There are several different types on annealing processes.
ASTM
American Society for Testing Materials.
Austentie
A solid solution in iron, of carbon or other solutes.
Back Clearance Angle
The angle of the back of a saw blade tooth.
Band Speed
The rate at which the band saw blade moves across the work to be cut. The rate is usually measured in surface feet per minute (s.f.m.) or meters per minute.
​Band Tension
Tautness of the band saw blade caused by forcing the idler band wheel away from the drive band wheel. Measured in pounds per square inch.
Band Wheels
Wheels around which the band saw blade is tensioned.
Beam Strength
The strength of a band saw blade measured by its ability to resist deflection. The four major factors contributing to beam strength are the width of the blade, the gauge or the thickness of the blade, the amount of blade tension, and the span.
Bend Test
A test to determine the ductility of metal. In metal cutting terms it applies to the flexing of a band saw blade to test the strength of the weld.
Bi-Metal
A high-speed steel edge material electron beam welded to a spring steel back. Such a construction provides the best combination of cutting performance and fatigue life.
Billet
A solid bar of semi-finished metal that has been hot worked by extrusion, forging, or rolling. Ranges in size from a minimum of about 1 1/2″ to a maximum of about 40″.
Blade Width
The dimension of the band saw blade from tooth tip to blade back.
Brinell Hardness
A test for determining the hardness of a metal by forcing a hard steel or carbide ball, of specified diameter, into the test material under a specified load.
Bundle Cutting
Putting multiple work pieces in an even stack to cut more than one piece at a time.
Burden
Fixed costs, also called “overhead”.
Camber
Deviation from straightness of the band saw blade. When the blade is laid out flat it is positive camber if the curvature is in the direction of the teeth, and negative camber if the curvature is away from the teeth.
Carbide Tipped
Tooth with carbide tips welded to a high-strength alloy back, resulting in a longer lasting, smoother cutting blade.
Carbon Steel
Steel containing carbon up to about 2% and only residual amounts of the other elements except those added for de-oxidization.
Carbon Steel Blades
A band saw blade made from carbon steel where the teeth have been hardened to a greater hardness than the back.
Case Hardening
Hardening a ferrous alloy so that the outer portion is much harder than the inner portion. There are several different methods or processes for case hardening.
Chatter
Noise that sounds like a dull rumble caused by any number of factors including overfeeding, incorrect tooth selection, or improper band speed.
Chip Load
The average amount of tooth penetration into the material determined by dividing the feed rate by the blade speed and multiplying the dividend by the number of teeth per foot of band saw blade.
Chip Weld
The bonding of a chip or portion of a chip to a tooth face. This is caused by softening the chip by elevated temperatures and subjecting the softened chip to extreme pressure.
Cold Work
Permanent strain produced in a metal by an external force causing plastic deformation. Usually increases hardness.
Coolant
See Cutting Fluid
Cutting Fluid
A liquid used to dissipate heat and lubricate the band saw blade teeth. The cutting fluid provides other benefits such as flushing the debris from the gullet.
Cutting Rate
The speed of cut measured in square inches of material cut per minute.
Dish
The concaved surface of material cut produced when the band saw blade deflects from a perpendicular path.
Depth of Penetration
The distance into the material the tooth tip penetrates for each cut.
Distance of Cut
The distance the blade travels from the point it enters the work to the point where the material is completely cut through.
Ductility
The ability of a metal to deform physically without fracturing.
Elastic Limit
The maximum stress to which a material may be subjected without any strain remaining after release of stress.
Fatigue
The phenomenon leading to fracture under repeated or fluctuating stresses having a maximum value less than the tensile strength of the material. Fatigue fractures are progressive, beginning as minute cracks that grow under action of fluctuating. stress.
Fatigue Life
The number of cycles a band saw blade can sustain prior to failure.
Feed Force
The pressure exerted by the band saw blade against the work piece measured in pounds.
Feed Rate
The linear travel of a band saw blade measured in inches per minute.
Feed Traverse Rate
The speed (in inches per minute) the saw frame travels without cutting.
Ferrous
Relating to or containing iron.
Finish
The surface condition of a work piece.
Flame Hardening
Quench hardening in which the heat is directly applied by flame.
Forging
Physically deforming metal into desired shapes with compressive force. This can be done with or without dies.
Free Machining
Characteristics of metal that make them easier to saw.
Gauge
The thickness of the back of a band saw blade measured in thousandths of an inch.
Gray Cast Iron
A cast iron that gives a gray fracture due to the presence of flake graphite. Often called gray iron.
Gullet
The space between two consecutive bandsaw blade teeth.
Gullet Capacity
The amount of chip that can curl up into the gullet area before the smooth curl becomes distorted.
Gullet Depth
The distance from the top of a tooth to the bottom of the gullet.
High Speed Steel
Tool steels which are specifically designed to maintain high hardness at elevated temperatures. Typical high speed steels used for band saw blade teeth include M2, matrix, and M42.
Hot Roll
A metal reduced in thickness by heating and then pressing between rollers.
Iron
A heavy malleable ductile magnetic silver-white metallic element that readily mists in moist air, occurs native in meteorites and is in most igneous rocks.
Kerf
The slot made in a work piece by the band saw blade.
Lubricity
A characteristic of a cutting fluid that reduces frictional contact between the metal being cut and the tooth face.
Machinability
The relative ease of machining a metal.
Nitriding
Introducing nitrogen into a solid alloy by holding at a suitable temperature in contact with a nitrogenous material usually ammonia of the molten cyanide of appropriate composition.
Pickling
Chemical surface treatment of metals to remove oxides.
Pitch
The number of teeth per inch in a saw blade.
Quench Hardening
Hardening a ferrous alloy by austenitizing and then rapid cooling.
Rake Angle
The angle formed by the tooth face with respect to a perpendicular line from the back edge of a band saw blade.
Raker Set
The saw tooth pattern in which one tooth is set to the right, one tooth is set to the left, and one tooth is unset.
SAE
Society of Automotive Engineers.
Saw Guides
The rollers and/or carbide blocks on both sides of the band saw blade which secure the blade so that the cutting action of the blade may occur.
Scale
A coating of oxide on the surface of metals.
Set
The offset of some or all of the teeth on a band saw blade to provide side clearance so that the back of the blade clears the material as the blade passes through.
Slugging
Sawing blanks or “slugs'” for subsequent machining operation.
Stress Relieving
Heating to a suitable temperature, holding long enough to reduce residual
Structural Shape
A piece of metal in anyone of several designs including “H” beams, “I'” beams, channels, angle iron, tubing and others as designated by the iron and steel industries. A shape generally must have at least 1 of its dimensions (excluding length) 3 inches or greater. Smaller shapes are often classified as “Bar Size Shapes”.
Tack Welds
Small scattered welds used to hold workpieces when nesting.
Temper
In heat treatment, reheating hardened steel or cast iron for deereasing the hardness and increasing the toughness.
Toughness
The ability of a metal to defonn plastically before fracturing.
Tooth Face
The surface of a band saw blade tooth on which a chip forms.
Tooth Form
The shape of the tooth, which includes spacing, rake angle, and gullet capacity. Industry terms include variable, variable positive, standard, skip, and hook.
Tooth Life
The useful life of a band saw blade measured in square inches of material cut by the blade.
Tooth Pitch
The distance (in inches) between tooth tips.
Tooth Set
The pattern in which teeth are offset from the blade. Industry terms include raker, van-raker, alternate, and wavy.
Tracking
The alignment of the band saw blade on the band wheel so that it is properly in line with the band wheel flanges and saw guides.
Width of Cut
The distance the saw tooth travels continuously “across the work.”. The point where a tooth enters the work to the point where that same tooth exits the work.
Work Hardening
Hardening of a work piece caused by cold working and failure to penetrate the metal by a band saw blade. May be caused by dull blades improper blade selection, excessive band speed or improper feed force.
