Foot Brake, Motor Brake or no Brake on bandsaw

[Larry Copas]

I have a 3 phase 20" Delta. When I ran it off a converter I used the foot brake most of the time. I never used the foot brake after switching to a VFD with built in braking.

[Mike Ontko]

I agree with Glenn's statement that it's a nice-to-have item but not an absolute necessity. I purposely purchased that feature in the 17" Grizzly G0513X2BF that comes with a motor brake that can be actuated by a panel mounted off switch or corresponding foot brake pedal. I was building beds at the time, and the pedal came in handy when resawing seven-foot lengths of 8/4 ash. It's not an absolute necessity, but then no safety device is actually needed for operating a particular piece of machinery. I found it's helpful to have the foot actuated brake when you're hands are tied up keeping the material steady.

[Chris Hachet]

I like using a VFD for braking on band saws. I also use it on my table saw and am probably going to set my lathe up that way also.