Grizzly 17" BS pricing question

[Dave Aronson]

So I'm looking at the grizzly bandsaws and trying to figure out which model would fit me best. The 17" 513's look good but the price for the X2 is up $100 from December :-( Do you think it will drop again later this year? It looks like the biggest difference between the X2 and the P is the fence, are there any other big differences?

I'm just a hobbiest WW, so maybe I should stick to there 14" model and get a riser kit when I decide to do any resawing. Am I going over kill on this? My time on bandsaws is extremely limited.

[jon claw]

Hey man. I have a "513" band saw and it works pretty well. The one thing I would mention about the saw is that 17" is kind of an odd size. When you start shopping for tires and blades you might find yourself limited in options. You can always make your own blades but the tire options are definitely limited. Just a thought. Like I said, for the price, the saw is great but those are things that I wish I had thought about before I bought it.

[Dave Aronson]

Hey man. I have a "513" band saw and it works pretty well. The one thing I would mention about the saw is that 17" is kind of an odd size. When you start shopping for tires and blades you might find yourself limited in options. You can always make your own blades but the tire options are definitely limited. Just a thought. Like I said, for the price, the saw is great but those are things that I wish I had thought about before I bought it.

Which 513 do you have? Does it have enough power for resawing? It looks like the blades in timberwolf and woodcutter come in that length. What made you choose the 17" over the 14". Sorry for all the questions.

[Curt Harms]

I've never shopped tires but I need 111" blades and just order what i need. The only sizes readily available are 93.5" & 105" for cast iron 14" saws. There's way more variety available for less $ via the mail order route. I'll bet you could get any size tires you want from a business that specializes in saws & machinery too.

[Mike Goetzke]

First off I wouldn't worry about blades. Most popular suppliers cut to size. I had a 14" Delta and really liked it but recently bought the 513x2 and there is no comparison. I originally was going to buy the 513 but you can search for a previous post on all the differences but as I recall the X2 has cast iron wheels, cast trunnion, bigger table, upgraded guides....


Mike

[Anthony Whitesell]

I did the same research as you about two years ago. I opted for the G0513X2 over the 513 and the 14"+riser. Here's a summary of my thought process. Take from it what you'd like.

-G0513(anything) comes setup for 12" resaw out of the box. No need to disassemble and resassemble in order to get up and running.
-G0513X2 vs plain G0513 has better wheels (cast iron), better fence, and better table adjust mechanism (trunnion). Basically everything the catalog lists as an improvement is.
-In regards to the 14" saws, definately review the G0555 versus the G0555X for analogous differences.
-The 513 series would like 220V or requires high amp (20-30A) 110V. Getting 220V if you don't have it already may be a dealer breaker. I rewired some stuff and made room for another 220V breaker.

Based on current pricing
G0555 is $450
Add a larger table, cast iron wheels, enclosed base, and extra 1/2HP to get to the G0555X at $700
Adding to either of the above $75 for the riser block. ($525 and 775 respectively)
At this point if we add another 1/2HP, a larger table again, and over all larger size (including 2" of throat) to get to the G0513X2 at $995

So it will depend on you much "value" you place on the size and cast iron versus aluminum is the price steps (555->555X=$250 and 555X w/riser->513X2=$220) as to which saw and accessories you require.

[alex grams]

Dave,
I have the 513x2 and have rarely (if ever) had a problem with power when it comes to resawing. Probably the widest resaw i have done is about 10" in oak and maple. With a good blade (resaw king) the saw will perform wonderfully. The 513x2B with the brake really doesn't offer much more in the way of functionality. Shiraz (Grizzly Pres/Owner) posted at one point that the brake is purely from customer preference, but he saw no huge advantage from it, and it does not directly impact the saw performing better.

Give Grizzly a call and ask if they are going to have any more sales anytime soon. I think they typically run a spring/summer sale.

[Dave Aronson]

thanks everyone. based on the feedback and all the positive reviews for 513X2 I'll go with that one. I'm going to cross my fingers that they will put it on sale soon. Maybe I'll call them but it seems odd that they would tell me a sale is coming soon.

[alex grams]

Dave,
If you are looking for a mobile base, I would advise against the shopfox one that they advertise with the bandsaw on the grizzly website. I had one and it constantly had problems with the casters not having enough clearance and hitting the frame.

I would go with the HTC Mobile Base (http://www.amazon.com/PortaMate-PM1000-Universal-Mobile-Base/dp/B00016BI5O/ref=sr_1_3?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1302011095&sr=1-3) I have had good results with the 2 HTC bases I have purchased. The Shop Fox base has been collecting dust in the attic for 3-4 years now.

[Anthony Whitesell]

I have my 513X2 on a Jet branded mobile base (a quick search turned up model 708118, but I thought mine started with a '6'). It has predrilled metal stringers and two fixed locking wheels in the front and two single locking casters in the back. With all the weight on it the two fixed locked casters keep the machine from trying to pivot. Honestly, I'm not sure if the wheels are even locked. I opted for this version over the lift-to-move bases because I didn't like lifting (and essentially tilting) the bandsaw to move it. There was now clearance issue for the lower door. It just made it.

[Dave Aronson]

Dave,
If you are looking for a mobile base, I would advise against the shopfox one that they advertise with the bandsaw on the grizzly website. I had one and it constantly had problems with the casters not having enough clearance and hitting the frame.

I would go with the HTC Mobile Base (http://www.amazon.com/PortaMate-PM1000-Universal-Mobile-Base/dp/B00016BI5O/ref=sr_1_3?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1302011095&sr=1-3) I have had good results with the 2 HTC bases I have purchased. The Shop Fox base has been collecting dust in the attic for 3-4 years now.

Cool, I have one of those on my jointer now. good base.

FYI; I called Grizzly and they said that the Summer sale will start May 14th. They didn't know what would be on sale yet though. I was surprised about how nice they were about it.

[Joe Shinall]

Dave, I ended up on that price climb looking at the 17" Grizzlies as well. I kept going back and forth on which one and was it worth it for the extra money.

Ask me how that went....

I have a 19" G0514X2 being delivered tomorrow....

[Dave MacArthur]

Click my "what bandsaw to buy?" thread in my signature for a ton of threads covering the 513x etc.

I think the 513x2 is the way to go, I would not consider a 14" now at all due to the price point and outstanding reviews of the 513 in all it's flavors.