Delta 14" Bandsaw - USA made or Foreign ??

[Marc Jeske]

Going for a Delta 14" bandsaw 120 miles away, with an extremely
un knowledgeable seller.

$100.... on a "matching paint" steel stand w motor below, in very clean shape,is all they can tell me

No photos..., yet anyway.

One question - If it turns out the saw is newer than "Old Iron" and has the three big triangles pressed embossed in the upper cover, does that clearly delineate if it is USA made or Foreign ?

Otherwise the above answer does not for sure clarify, will the nameplate clearly tell me ??

Trying to avoid non USA.

Thank you all, Marc

[Mike Manning]

Marc,
I don't know the answer. I'm sure someone will come along soon who does. I do know that when I see those triangles on Delta equipment I think Chiwanese made. Be interesting to know the answer. I too prefer the older American made machines. Good luck.

Mike

[Bruce Wrenn]

If it's an open stand, and the motor is mounted below in the stand, it's Chinese made. The one big plus for these machines is the larger table. For a hundred bucks, buy it, use it and sell it off for hundred+ bucks when you find a made in the USA machine.

[John K Jordan]

One question - If it turns out the saw is newer than "Old Iron" and has the three big triangles pressed embossed in the upper cover, does that clearly delineate if it is USA made or Foreign ?
Otherwise the above answer does not for sure clarify, will the nameplate clearly tell me ??

My spare 14" woodcutting bandsaw is a Delta bought new from WoodCraft around about year 2000 more or less, can't remember. I have no idea if this will help delineate anything but this is what it has:

- embossed triangles on the front of the upper cabinet.

- an enclosed lower cabinet

- a sticker near the bottom of the upper cabinet proclaiming "Proudly made in the USA".

- a nameplate sticker on the back of the upper cabinet with a catalog number, a serial number, and the words "Delta Machinery - Jackson, TN 38305 U.S.A. - Made in the U.S.A."

- a nameplate sticker on the left side of the lower cabinet with a catalog number, a serial number, and the words "Delta Machinery - Jackson, TN 38305 U.S.A. - Made in the U.S.A." The catalog and serial numbers are different from those on the top cabinet. With the separate numbers I assumed the type of base was an option.

If there is any question about the origin perhaps Delta could tell you from the S/N.

BTW, I don't use it much since I got the bigger Rikon saw but it is a great saw. I added a riser block, a quick tensioner, inside sawdust brushes, mobile base, and a stronger tension spring and updated tension bracket from Iturra Design. Right after I got it I followed Duginske's book and gave the saw a complete going over including making the wheels coplanar. When I guessed at the tension the saw was horrible, tracked poorly, bowed in the cut, bogged down often. The purchase of a Starrett tension gauge turned it into an excellent resaw machine and a big green wood turning blank processor.

JKJ

[Davis Young]

The embossed triangles on the upper door was a feature of Chinese- and USA-made saws so you can't determine country of origin from that. According to the Delta 2003-04 catalog, Delta's Chinese-made saws had open (28-276, 3/4 hp) and closed stands (28-206, 1 hp) whereas the USA-made saws had a closed stand (various model numbers but mainly 28-348 or 28-248, 1-1/2 hp). The main difference between the two closed stand model for identification purposes is that the Chinese-made stand had a plastic hinged door whereas the USA made saw had sheet metal screws holding in a removable access panel. The Chinese and USA models had 16" x 16" tables so table size is not necessarily an indication of origin, though the previous year of the USA-made saws only had a 14" x 14" table with 1 hp motor. This is taken from the 2002-03 catalog and is the difference that Bruce stated. Also in the 2002-03 catalog was a model that had an open stand but with the motor on top of the stand and behind the saw (28-231, 1-1/2 hp). Delta has had a version of this going back to the Rockwell days but by this iteration, the saw seems to have been made overseas.

[Marc Jeske]

Very detailed excellent answers.

Thank you All, will see what turns out.. One of those Craigslist things,... Never know till it's done.

Marc

[Kyle Iwamoto]

Mine is made in US. 16-142, embossed triangles, motor above stand, small 14" table. No pics included? Be careful......