elbo

absolutely not, it's just a guide for an approximation. every blade will vary a little on their circumferance, even two identical from the same manufacturer. I tighten the blade until there is no deflection when I put a little pressure on the side of the blade
I've had other band saws and always tightened them by the same method and the only one that broke was a 1/8 inch blade that my craftsman saw wasn't designed for.
I would suggest you getting a 3/4 inch blade which is the maximum your saw is designed for and only use it for resawing. With the cost of wood these days, I dont want to waste any so If I need a piece of wood 3/8 inch thick I resaw a piece of 3/4 and save the cutoff and eventually will glue two or more pieces together to get a thicker piece. No, I'm not scotch .
I also would get a 1/4 inch blade if you're planning on doing any curve cutting, for really tight curves, then you'll need a 1/8 blade, all of which your saw will handle, so long as you tension the blade right and let the saw do the work
If you see smke when you cut, then you're hogging the cut, slow down

jmc0319

Excellent feedback. Thanks a lot.

nealtw

You will find this interesting, he has a bigger saw but everything applies
http://www.thewoodwhisperer.com/videos/bandsaw-setup-tuneup/

jmc0319

One last band saw question I promise........I read and believe that the blade guides should be touching the sides of the blade correct?

nealtw

Wrap a dollar bill around the blade, snug the guides up to that and the back bearing too. When the blade is running good nothing should be touching it until you start to cut. I changed my blocks to a really hard wood because once in while thing would come out of adjustment and then the teeth were into the blocks, sparks and thing.

jmc0319

That sounds good. I will try the dollar trick. Sparks on a saw doesn't sound good.

elbo

creating a small space between the blocks and the blade is a good idea,IF, your saw has them. Your saw uses roller bearings, On my saw that also has rollers, I adjust the bearings so they just make minimal contact with the blade. I find this way of adjusting them allows for no drift and keeps the saw tracking true. When I had a craftsman saw, I still adjusted the blocks , which were called "cool blocks " as they were a different composition that the micarta blocks that came with the saw. The main reason for having the gap between the blade and the blocks is to keep the friction from the blocks touching the blade is to reduce heat which will cause early blade failure.
However, your saw has rollers so different rules apply
Don't sweat asking questions, the people here don't mind answering them, and getting some answers could possibly save someone from getting hurt. Of course , there probably will be different answers, from each reply, it's your job to figure out which advice you want to follow
By the way, make sure your rollers do not contact the blades teeth, they should ride just behind them . the rear roller , if sdjusted right, will keep the blade from moving backwards when the blade is cutting

jmc0319

Ok so I wanted to let you all know that my band saw is finally performing as expected. This should fall under "what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas". I never adjusted the lower blade guides AND I never re tightener the upper guides after I adjusted them. All is good now thanks for everyone's feedback. I ordered two good blades and am waiting for them.

oldognewtrick

Thanks for the update.