36" Towsley bandsaw rebuild finished

[Dave Bureau]

I just finished the rebuild of a JT Towsley 36" wooden wheel bandsaw. Awesome machine.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Dave,

Beautifully done! Are those the original wheels?

[Dave Bureau]

Yes they are the original wheels, in mint condition.

[Ken Garlock]

Nice looking restoration, Dave.:cool::cool:

At 36", what the heck size blade does it take?

[Dave Bureau]

18'6" blade. 17" resaw cap. :D

[Steve Rozmiarek]

Nice work Dave, looks ready to go another 100 years!

[Dan Ewalt]

One word Dave....... NICE!!!!!!:D

[Cary Falk]

WOW! That's purdy.:D:cool:

[Rich Neighbarger]

Nicely done. It's nice to see old tools still in use. I often wonder about the history an old tool and if the projects it was used for also survived over the years.

[Dave Bureau]

Thanks guys. The person I bought it from is 90 years old. He said that it has been sitting in his garage for 60 years and it was old when he got it. He said that he didnt use it much but it was nice to have around. It will complement my 100 year 16" Crescent jointer just nicely.

[johnny means]

Very sexy piece of equipment. Is the motor a retro fit?

[Dave Bureau]

I believe it use to be an old line shaft machine as it did have some clutch linkage that came with it. The past owner had a 2hp motor on it. I installed a new 5hp TEFC single phase motor.

[Ben Franz]

Excellent job on the restoration - what a great old machine! I wonder why old bandsaws (in particular) attract so much attention and admiration when they get rescued? Seems like my favorite type of rebuild story of all.

[Bob Vallaster]

Nice work. Elegant simplicity. A thing of beauty.
I imagine the black spokes just disappear at speed.

BobV

[Dave Bureau]

Nice work. Elegant simplicity. A thing of beauty.
I imagine the black spokes just disappear at speed.

BobV
yes the spokes do disappear at speed. it now runs at about 330 rpm. I am going to do a pully change to run at 600rpm. The old manufacturers catalog recommends about 600. What amazed me was how true and balanced the wooded wheels are. The balancing weights are in bored holes under the tires.

[Gary Herrmann]

Beautiful restoration, Dave. Bandsaw as art. Makes my MM16 look sadly utilitarian.

[Stephen Edwards]

It's a piece of Art. Period.

[Eduard Nemirovsky]

It is a piece of ART!!!

[Norman Pyles]

Sweet looking bandsaw!!!

[Rick Fisher]

Fantastic job ... What a beautiful saw.. If I where a batchelor, I would put it in the den.. :)

[Bill Huber]

Man that is one nice looking saw, and one great restoration.

I like to have it to put on the living room, now I am sure the wife would disagree.

[Rick Fisher]

Man that is one nice looking saw, and one great restoration.

I like to have it to put on the living room, now I am sure the wife would disagree.

Bill, they just dont get it.. lol..

[Dan Forman]

Now that's a curvaceous saw! Looks great.

Dan

[Rod Sheridan]

Dave, that's a very nice restoration indeed.

Did you have to replace the babbit bearings?

Regards, Rod.

[Dave Bureau]

Dave, that's a very nice restoration indeed.

Did you have to replace the babbit bearings?

Regards, Rod.
No I didn't. They were in mint condition and still have plenty of room for adjustment. I have done babbit bearing replacemant before and was ready to do these but it wasnt necessary. I have everything to do babbit replacement left over from the last job.

[Doug Shepard]

I love it. All except for the cyclone fence safety wheel guards. It just looks out of period somehow. I'm thinking some nice wooden lattice covers to go with those wooden wheels.:D

[Josh Reid]

Dangggggg. Thats awesome. Just a tad bit jealous.

[Dave Bureau]

I love it. All except for the cyclone fence safety wheel guards. It just looks out of period somehow. I'm thinking some nice wooden lattice covers to go with those wooden wheels.:D

They do look a little strange but they are the original guards.

[Kirk Poore]

Excellent job on the restoration - what a great old machine! I wonder why old bandsaws (in particular) attract so much attention and admiration when they get rescued? Seems like my favorite type of rebuild story of all.

Who wouldn't rather look at this:
http://i965.photobucket.com/albums/ae134/dbureau/bandsawrebuild022.jpg than this? http://www.minimax-usa.com/components/com_virtuemart/shop_image/product/resized/MM36_Bandsaw_48b2f4ac1c3af_300x300.jpg

Nice job, Dave. I agree that your 330 rpm is too slow--it will be much better at 600 rpm. Oh, as a second data point, the upper guard on my H&B 30" saw (circa 1915) is mesh too, though I have a cast iron door for the bottom wheel.

Kirk

[Garth Keel]

and very satisfying when done.