realistic blade width on Steel City 18" bandsaw?

I recently bought the bandsaw mentioned in the subject, and I'm looking
at blades.

Does anyone have any experience with what this saw is realistically able
to tension? Do they exaggerate on the large saws the same way they do
on the small ones?

The manual says up to 1 1/4". I'm hoping this means I should be able to
handle a 1" blade.

Does the answer change if I eventually decide to go bimetal or carbide?

Chris