Bandsaw blade width

[sorcerertd]

I searched around and don't see quite what I'm looking for. I'm not looking for recommendations on a brand or type, but just what difference the blade width makes. I bought a cheap tabletop saw to tide me over until I am able to buy a bigger one. It accepts blades of 1/8", 1/4", and 3/8" width. I only plan to use it for pen blanks, 1" x 12" blanks, and a few stopper blanks. What are the advantages to the different widths?

As far as pen blanks, I'll be squaring them off with Rick's offset jig anyway, but I will probably attempt some segmenting cuts, so a smoother cut is better - minimal sanding preferred. Would 6 TPI be adequate for that? I'm sure that how well I tune the saw and how aggressive I am with the feed will be one of the primary factors in how it really cuts.

 

[tomas]

The width of the blade determines a couple of things. The thinner the blade, the more flexible it is. Also, the thinner the blade the smaller radius it will cut. Teeth per inch (TPI) effects the smoothness of the cut. The more TPI, the smoother the cut. If you are doing re-sawing, you'll want to use the widest blade available for you saw in order to minimize drift.

 

[Kenny Durrant]

What little I know about them is the wider the blade the easier it is to cut a straight line. The thinner the blade the smaller diameter circle it will cut. Another thing is the more teeth per inch the smoother the cut and better for the plastics. The fewer teeth per inch the easier it will cut through thicker wood. The fewer teeth will also grab and chip out the plastic blanks. If your really interested what I know about cutting plastics with a corse tooth blade it might cause you to have do some laundry when finished.

 

[sorcerertd]

Thanks for that info. Straight is good and I stick mainly to woods. I do know that the blade it came with sucks and it's doubtful that a new one will make the drift any worse. Somewhere, I saw a guideline that whatever you are cutting should have at least 3 teeth in it. I'll start with a 3/8 x 6 TPI and see how it works for me.