lapidary1234
starting to spend too much on rocks
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"If you like rocks you can't be all bad!!" ~ old timer quote
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Post by lapidary1234 on Jul 19, 2024 18:42:38 GMT -5
I have a 14" frantom that has a different kind of lever for the split nut than the ones shown here. Ill try and get a picture of it. I was just admiring how robust it is!!
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demihuman
starting to spend too much on rocks
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Post by demihuman on Jul 19, 2024 19:37:50 GMT -5
Hey! Thanks for the comments everyone!
I got a really nice email from Isiah at Cigar Box Rocks. Hopefully I'll be able to make a visit on one of our holiday trips to Portland this year. Here is my initial email:
"Hi guys, I found your website through the rock tumbling hobby forum page. I am just getting into the rock hounding hobby and I happen across an 18 inch. Frantom slab saw for cheap. I grabbed it and I’m cleaning it up. I want to get a new blade for it. I also have some questions about maybe getting some of the brass parts re-machined. The rods that the carriage ride on have a little etching from rust, and the rods that vice moves laterally on seem pretty loose in their brass (bronze?) brackets. Do you think having the brass brackets drilled and sleeved and having the rods cleaned up at a machine shop is a good idea? Is that a service you offer? Also do you have a good recommendation for an 18” blade on a 5/8” arbor for a beginner? Thanks a lot!"
And here is his reply:
"Good morning Ben,
Thanks for contacting us. That machine looks to be in excellent condition. You've done well by taking it apart and cleaning up the pieces. In my experience with Frantom saws, the carriage fits pretty snugly to the rails even with some etching. I wouldn't worry about doing anything to the brass sleeves. And as far as the cross feed (lateral movement), a little slop is totally fine. When the saw is in use, there is a constant forward pressure from the blade pushing against whatever is being held in the vise. I would suggest tightening some set screws and see if you can get a tighter fit, but some clearance in those parts is necessary to allow smooth travel left and right. We do offer machining services, but we are a minimum of 6-8 weeks out on those jobs. As far as a blade, most 18" blades will be cut with a 1" arbor. They will typically come with a set of blade bushings to drop it down to either 3/4" or 5/8". We also sell blade bushings.
Blade styles are a whole other topic. Generally speaking, a more expensive blade will leave a cleaner finish on your slabs. If you expect to cut big, hard rocks, a segmented blade like the picture in our logo is probably the best. The cutouts in the rim allow for more oil to be brought to the cutting surface. It also clears the debris away from the cut more effectively than other blade types. A continuous rim will give the smoothest finish, but will likely need to be sharpened more frequently and they don't seem to perform quite as well cutting big stuff. A notched rim is a hybrid of the two styles and tends to be the cheapest. I would opt for one of those to begin with. Get a feel for clamping rocks securely and operating your saw before you risk ruining a $500 blade. If something goes wrong, it just takes one cut to destroy a blade.
That's my advice, hope it helps!"
Super cool! What a nice guy!
I also asked him about pulling apart the arbor and he suggested not doing it. I got rid my old harbor freight grease gun a couple years ago because I never used it, but now I need a new one. The lesson is: Never throw tools away.
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Post by Rockoonz on Jul 19, 2024 21:23:19 GMT -5
demihuman sounds like you talked to Matt, he's a great guy, for that matter they all are.
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Post by Rockoonz on Jul 19, 2024 21:29:14 GMT -5
I have a 14" frantom that has a different kind of lever for the split nut than the ones shown here. Ill try and get a picture of it. I was just admiring how robust it is!! This one, right? My 14 and 18 have this style, in fact all 4 of the FranTom saws I have owned has them. ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/rockoonz/image/upload/v1721442365/w1swcavgv8nxd9npg8ky.jpg) I think those are the most common half nuts. I think HP China makes replacements for them.
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demihuman
starting to spend too much on rocks
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Post by demihuman on Jul 19, 2024 21:49:58 GMT -5
Also here’s a neat rock I found today. ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/dx3rhkxyb/image/upload/v1721443783/xjo4mluzjpzdmhefqupa.jpg)
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lapidary1234
starting to spend too much on rocks
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"If you like rocks you can't be all bad!!" ~ old timer quote
Member since October 2021
Posts: 181
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Post by lapidary1234 on Jul 19, 2024 22:08:56 GMT -5
I have a 14" frantom that has a different kind of lever for the split nut than the ones shown here. Ill try and get a picture of it. I was just admiring how robust it is!! This one, right? My 14 and 18 have this style, in fact all 4 of the FranTom saws I have owned has them. ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/rockoonz/image/upload/v1721442365/w1swcavgv8nxd9npg8ky.jpg) I think those are the most common half nuts. I think HP China makes replacements for them. Yes I think you are correct (saw is at different location then I am). I guess y'all probably mentioned this style, I was recently looking over the saw and admiring how robust it is...when I lift that lever it clamps with a good amount of force and is easy on the hands! Those frantom saws seem to be built really well, I wish I could find other segmented blades for it, I have one that I'm scared to use just in case something dumb happens...
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demihuman
starting to spend too much on rocks
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Post by demihuman on Jul 19, 2024 23:01:50 GMT -5
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lapidary1234
starting to spend too much on rocks
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"If you like rocks you can't be all bad!!" ~ old timer quote
Member since October 2021
Posts: 181
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Post by lapidary1234 on Jul 20, 2024 2:17:10 GMT -5
demihuman those are the blades I've been using with great success. What he said in the email is all too familiar! In all honesty I really can't tell a difference between these and the mk blades. I've had the last one on my saw for over 6 months now!
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demihuman
starting to spend too much on rocks
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Member since May 2024
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Post by demihuman on Jul 20, 2024 10:34:55 GMT -5
demihuman those are the blades I've been using with great success. I've had the last one on my saw for over 6 months now! Good to know!
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Post by Rockoonz on Jul 20, 2024 19:38:04 GMT -5
I have used the crimped edge blades for trim saws, The price is compelling for sure. The ones I tried on slab saws definitely don't compare to sintered though, the 303S I bought for a HP saw about 12 years ago is in it's 3rd slab saw with about 75% left. With the slab saw basket I brought back from the NW with me there is one of the green sintered/notched HP China blade, can't remember 16 or 18. They also sell 303 clones, sphereguy Matt likes them.
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demihuman
starting to spend too much on rocks
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Post by demihuman on Jul 31, 2024 23:22:19 GMT -5
Frantom update! I picked up some of the cheap-o blades from Kingsley North, I also realized the arbor is 3/4” not 5/8” so I got some bushings as well. I picked up a new cord, and put some grease in the arbor. I am not messing with the arbor for now. I got the carriage and vice back together and back in the saw today. Hopefully will cut something soon! I did have one minor set back. I thought it would be smart to throw all the rusty bolts in a rock tumbler to shine them up. It shined them up but also hammered the threads into uselessness. Oh well easily replaced. ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/dx3rhkxyb/image/upload/v1722486076/zckcp2etrzyixzruumdm.jpg) ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/dx3rhkxyb/image/upload/v1722486078/ufjay8rd8efklenixens.jpg)
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Post by Rockoonz on Aug 1, 2024 16:06:27 GMT -5
When using an adapter with a budget blade, if it doesn't fit tightly, you should stake it in. Just learned this with a Chinese sintered blade vs Blue Mt Jasper, some serious hard stuff. ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/rockoonz/image/upload/v1722546258/owb4v7xjuo7pixaxq2bv.jpg) ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/rockoonz/image/upload/v1722546323/gkqzcf5jabw2h09njq7c.jpg)
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demihuman
starting to spend too much on rocks
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Post by demihuman on Aug 5, 2024 22:57:04 GMT -5
When using an adapter with a budget blade, if it doesn't fit tightly, you should stake it in. Just learned this with a Chinese sintered blade vs Blue Mt Jasper, some serious hard stuff. Neat rocks! Did the adapter fail? By stake it in do you mean the hammer/chisel marks?
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Post by Rockoonz on Aug 5, 2024 23:04:48 GMT -5
When using an adapter with a budget blade, if it doesn't fit tightly, you should stake it in. Just learned this with a Chinese sintered blade vs Blue Mt Jasper, some serious hard stuff. Neat rocks! Did the adapter fail? By stake it in do you mean the hammer/chisel marks? The adaptor did fail, but Blue Mt is really hard and tough stuff. To stake it in I laid it flat on a heavy steel table top, and carefully tapped on a center punch on the adaptor, close to the blade. Only takes a little, I did 3/6/9/12 o clock then flipped it and did the other side.
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demihuman
starting to spend too much on rocks
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Post by demihuman on Aug 10, 2024 14:14:27 GMT -5
IT’S ALIVE!!! Carriage moving right at (edit) 3/8” per minute. So an inch is 2 minutes 40 seconds. The cheap blades got a little ripple in it but it spins around The biggest pulley is a little wobbly too. But everything is nice and quiet. I need to figure out what my first rock to cut is gonna be! ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/dx3rhkxyb/image/upload/v1723317245/b255mli1lrysoynrvffw.jpg) ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/dx3rhkxyb/image/upload/v1723317249/aicwibflftejhyzm8kf9.jpg) ![](https://res.cloudinary.com/dx3rhkxyb/image/upload/v1723317251/ez80fks7h4xk7exjobsj.jpg)
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AzRockGeek
has rocks in the head
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Post by AzRockGeek on Aug 10, 2024 14:21:06 GMT -5
Nice build so far. Your feed speed seems really fast, you want around 7 min per inch. Rockoonz
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demihuman
starting to spend too much on rocks
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Post by demihuman on Aug 10, 2024 14:36:00 GMT -5
Oh sorry bad math. Getting 3/8” per minute.
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AzRockGeek
has rocks in the head
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Post by AzRockGeek on Aug 10, 2024 16:41:39 GMT -5
Oh sorry bad math. Getting 3/8” per minute. That still seems really fast! Is that using the largest pulley on back pulley? What is the diameter of the pulley on your arbor that used for the feed mechanism? On my 18" Frantoms, it is 5".
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demihuman
starting to spend too much on rocks
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Post by demihuman on Aug 10, 2024 17:09:09 GMT -5
Oh sorry bad math. Getting 3/8” per minute. That still seems really fast! Is that using the largest pulley on back pulley? What is the diameter of the pulley on your arbor that used for the feed mechanism? On my 18" Frantoms, it is 5". You are right. I think they changed up the pulleys. There is a ~2.5” pulley that is set up as a belt tensioner. I am going to see if I can use that for the small side of the feed pulley. I think that should get me closer around 5-7 minutes an inch. My blade bushings haven’t arrived yet either and I am not feeling very confident about the one I fabricated. I have some sandstone with shell fossils and calcite crystals in it that I might try to cut. I might also just wait until the bushings come in :/
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AzRockGeek
has rocks in the head
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Post by AzRockGeek on Aug 10, 2024 17:30:02 GMT -5
You will probably be fine for smaller or softer rocks, you put a large agate in there, you might be buying new blade.
The tensioner pulley will not work on the arbor, it will be a much smaller shaft diameter. What is the size of your arbor and motor pullies? I believe OEM is motor 2.25". Arbor 8" and 5".
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