Band Saw parts resources

[Andy Guss]

I was fortunate enough to buy an older Duro Metal Products 15" band saw last weekend, and I am in the process of inspecting it and cleaning it up.

I think that eventually I will need blades, upper blade guide, pulleys, and tires.

Aside from Iturra, I just wanted to hear if anybody had some good sources for old or custom sized parts for Band Saws. Clearly the 15" tire size is no longer as common, but I thought that I might benefit from some other parts suppliers as a reference for rebuiklding other things as they come up.

Thanks,

Andy

[Myk Rian]

The BOYD section of owwm.org

[Andy Guss]

So, I tried Iturra, Woodcraft, Amazon, Rockler, general web search, local tool store, etc.

Nobody seemed to have 15" urethane tires. Two people suggested just buying 14" tires and stretching them a little bit more to fit the 15" wheels of my bandsaw.

I tried another tack. Both Grizzly and Sears Craftsman have sold 15" bandsaws recently and offer the tires as replacement parts through their parts department, which you need to contact directly- even though these parts do not show up as available for retail through normal searches. So, that is one lesson learned. They are rubber instead of urethane, but at least it is an option.

Now I need to figure out how to spec out a custom upper blade guide when I don't have one to build off. A little math, a little guess work, some trial, a lot of error- I should get there eventually.

Also, the BOYD section is a great resource, but a little hit or miss for older parts for unusual machines. Even so, those guys are a wealth of knowledge, always a valuable resource.

[david brum]

I don't know if you saw this, but you can download the owner's manual for that saw from OWWM here:http://www.owwm.com/pubs/detail.aspx?id=2361

It should give you a pretty good idea what the upper guide looks like. BTW, you may be able to buy an upper guide assembly for an older 16" Grizzly. No idea if it's the right diameter but worth a try.

[Prashun Patel]

I would call Grizzly. They might be able to suggest parts from their own machines that might fit.

[Chris Mahmood]

Sulphur Grove will make custom diameter urethane tires: http://www.allbandsawblades.com/customer_service.htm