I am getting ready to purchase a bandsaw and am looking at 14" to 18" saws that are for resawing primarily. All comments and suggestions are appreciated.
First thing ,what kind of wood are you resawing? hard or soft and are you resawing once in awhile or alot? I have a jet 14 inch enclosed base hooked to a dust system. Ninty percent of my work is with pine or cedar and this saw works fine for me. I can cut boards up to six inches thick .If i i needed to i could buy a riser block kit and longer blades and cut up to a twelve inch board. I got my saw at Woodcraft on sale for about four hundred. There is going to be a big price difference between a 14 and an 18 inch saw. It justs depends on how you are going to use it. I would go with the fourteen and if in the future you decide to move up you can always sell it or some tool stores take trade ins.
The only advice I can offer is don’t go cheap. I picked up a 1/4" blade Black & Decker from my brother-in-law for free. It probably retails under $175 new. It is impossible to do accurate cuts with it and forget about cutting anything over 2 inches thick.
JJ, Probably like you, cedar and pine mostly with some red oak thrown in. I looked at the 14" saws and saw that I could pony up for an 18" JET for a few dollars more. I am really facinated with the potential of cutting my own wood from big limbs and small trunks.
Jon, I get the msg on don’t go cheap. You might be able to make a decent cut on the ole B&D saw if you can get enough tension on the blade (if the trunion will take the tension), the guides track, the tires aren’t slipping, the blade is decent, and the wheels are coplanar and tracking properly
Barry,
I have a Ryobi, small size for small jobs. I can cut stripwood down to 1mm (.040") thickness, perfect for that; probably overtaxed on large limbs. BTW if the machine is designed and built properly then you can compensate for the differences in the wood density/hardness by using the appropriate blades. Old story: Right tool for the specific job.
Hans, you know how to set up a bandsaw. To be able to take a 1mm cut consistantly means the saw is set up correctly. I checked out both of your websites and they were great, a work in progress. Yes, right tool for the job. I am checking on carbide blades for the different saws.
I have a ShopSmith 11 inch band saw. So far, I haven’t needed anything larger.
If I was to do it again, I would get the best 14 inch saw I could find, and be done with it. I cannot imagine needing anything bigger, unless I was doing professional work.
I have a Craftsman 9" that I use for most of my trestle/scale lumber cuts. It retailed for $150 2 years ago and came with roller bearing guides which I like, versus the phenolic/plastic blocks most low end saws come with.
I don’t resaw a lot past 4" pine or cedar, but I doubt the Craftsman would do a very good job due to it’s small 1/3 hp motor. I have used a Laguna 18" that a friend has on some large pecan and oak that was cut from standing dead wood for a couple of 8" x16"x60" fireplace mantles and it is the best saw I’ve ever used…but very expensive…very high quality. He told me if I damaged his blade I could expect a bill for big bucks…
Mark
The prollem with any power saw is if you buy cheap, you won’t have any satisfaction, and most hobbiers can’t afford or will not buy high end to get good cuts for the few projects we do.
There ain’t anything in the middle!
My brother has a high end cabinet grade table saw as big as a pool table, and he can make scale lumber 4 x 4’s with it!
But that ain’t a hobby saw. We are hobbyists.
Gotta make the best use with the small cheap or middle cost saws that we can.
j
J, I guess I am going to be one of those hobbyist to pony up up for a good saw. I have never been overly talented like some that can take a piece of junk and make it perform like the high priced spread. I started out wnting to get a grizzly and after looking around a lot thought that the 18" JET was the saw for me but upon further scrutiny the 18" JET had some serious short comings that I didn’t want to deal with so I have finally settled on another Grizzly
http://www.grizzly.com/products/19-Extreme-Bandsaw-3HP-Single-Phase/G0514X2
I am sure that someone will be along to say I don’t need that much saw, and what was I going to use it for. But, I think it will be a great saw with lots of versatility and potential to go in other directions than what i have been doing. The re-sawing of my own lo0gs really intrigues me. I guess I will need to go to work to pay for the shop that I want to build to put it in.
John Bouck said:
The prollem with any power saw is if you buy cheap, you won't have any satisfaction, and most hobbiers can't afford or will not buy high end to get good cuts for the few projects we do. There ain't anything in the middle! My brother has a high end cabinet grade table saw as big as a pool table, and he can make scale lumber 4 x 4's with it! But that ain't a hobby saw. We are hobbyists. Gotta make the best use with the small cheap or middle cost saws that we can. j
Barry,
Way to go, you’re all set!
Thanks, Hans, I kept looking and reading, The Bandsaw Book and Band Saw Handbook, and going to a couple of the woodworking forums like Sawmill Creek and Fine Woodworking and decided if i want a larger saw I wanted a foot brake, tension quick release, and other bells and whistloes and I won’t have to spend 2500 to 3K to get it. Now I just need to gather another $400 to be able to order it. Lets see what can I sell???
I have a 50 year old shopsmith that I use with the bandsaw. If I had to buy only one power tool, it would be a bandsaw. I’ve got several blades to cut diffent types of wood, metal and plastic. I’ve put new tires on it, and try to keep the 1/2 inch resaw blade in use.
With the variable speed of the SS, I can cut plastic without melting it back together. I usually resaw trex, cedar and redwood fence boards, and other sticks down to dimensional lumber for my 1:32 RR.
To me, setting the thing up properly will give good results on even inexpensive equipment. Not wanting to learn how to use the bandsaw will give you the same results whether the saw costs $150 or $950!
Look for a used one, maybe you can get some tips on how to use it.
My Grizzly G0514X2 Band Saw arrived . I ordered it back on 5/15/08 and Grizzly promptly told me it was back ordered til approx 6/20 and it would be shipped shortly there after. I had spent months trying to decide on a band saw from 14” to 20”. Oh well, Two weeks ago I called Grizzly and asked them for an update on my order and they said it was now expected on 6/6 and would be shipped out after then. Well, things get even better. On Saturday 5/31 I got a call from Grizzly and they said my saw was in Springfield, MO and would be shipped out UPS Freight on Monday 6/2. I said thank you then promptly hung up and yelled “life is good”. I got a call from UPS 6/3 saying the saw would be in the terminal 6/4 and when would I like it delivered. I said I wanted to pick it up at the terminal. They said they would call me on 6/4 when it was available for pick up. I got the call and went and picked it up at 1 pm. They put it on my trailer and my darling wife helped me strap it down and we got it home. Now this saw packed for shipping weighs 480 lb. I needed to get it down to under 200 lb to get it off the trailer and into the garage/shop with the people power available. The table was not installed so I took it inside and then removed the doors, the blade that came with the saw, and the upper and lower wheels. When it cooled off a bit I checked out the weight and my son and I were able to lift it off the trailer and get it into the garage.
I have been waiting for my mobile base to put it back together and use it. Life has been really hectic around the Reade Ranch and haven’t had any spare time to pursue hobbies.