Pimp My Bandsaw

Well,it's that time of year again, time to treat the ol' family bandsaw to a set of fancy new orange urethane tires! Actually it's not so much the time of year as it is an overdue maintenance issue. My Shopsmith is at least 40 years old and the rubber tires were crappy and misshapen and I've always had a bit of a time keeping saw blades tracking properly. O how I've learned not to use any other brand of blades. P.S. It also didn't like 1/8" blades. It's been rather finicky. I haven't tested with a 1/4" blade yet, but the 1/2" works like a dream and I think the space age tires will indeed track far better, as everyone claims.

After you remove the old rubber tires you can clean the decades old glue off, I used a brillo pad. While I was doing that I simmered some water on the hotplate and warmed up the new tires in the hot water. A can opener worked to keep the urethane under water, and it matched.

I was super careful trying to get them on at first, they were so tight it felt like if my fingers got trapped underneath they'd be squished to smithereens. But after shooting the tires off the wheel several times like a rubber band I came to the conclusion I'd have to just wrassle 'em in there, fast and furious. You can also use a little dish soap to lube up the water and pop them on there, it really helped.

Also I would be remiss if I didn't mention, I of course wore safety glasses because as Hank Hill says "Now remember, safety glasses don't just make you look cool, they also protect your eyes."

I just know I'm gonna love my better tracking, way fancier bandsaw upgrade!