New Felder FB 610 Band Saw

[Keith Outten]

This week I drove to the Felder office in Delaware to pick up a new band saw I ordered. I wanted to both transport my new saw and take advantage of the opportunity to meet the folks at Felder. Because it was such a hectic round trip from Virginia to Delaware in a day I didn't get to spend any time with the Felder Staff but I hope to remedy that in the coming weeks.

The idea of a shop without a table saw has been discussed here many times and I have decided to give it a try. In order for me to give up my table saw I would have to have a pretty serious band saw that I felt could handle every aspect of the work I do in my shop. Like so many of you I have owned several band saws over the years starting with a small three wheel table top Craftsman to the 18" Jet band saw I have been using for several years now. Although I have been very happy with the Jet saw it doesn't have enough throat capacity to take the place of my table saw so I decided to upgrade.....hopefully for the last time. I should also mention that I have a panel saw that I use to break down sheet material, these days mostly long sheets of Corian.

My research here at The Creek led me to Felder based on the number of positive comments here. My second reason for selecting Felder is that they are a sponsor here and I believe that supporting our sponsors is in our best interests. After a long conversation with Rich Williams I decided on the FB 610 model, it is the largest saw in their product line that is 220 volt single phase and will fit in my garage door. The 610 has a five HP motor and a 22" by 30" table. The saw weighs in at about 800 pounds.

I picked the new band saw up on Wednesday and unloaded it by myself on Thursday. Friday I completed making all the adjustments and installed a plug on the cord. It was late when I started the saw for the first time, Jackie and I had scheduled to have dinner with Jim Becker and his family at 7pm so I only had a few minutes to run some test cuts. The first was a piece of scrap plywood and the second a piece of 1/2" Corian. Even with the stock OEM one inch blade the cuts were effortless and smoother that I ever expected. I hope to be able to give the new band saw a serious workout this weekend and provide more information about its performance, for now there isn't much more I can say except that my initial reaction to the new saw is WOW.

[Stephen Cherry]

Wow, great purchase. I have had a little dealing with the Deleware Felder guys, and I was very impressed. I saw the bandsaws there and my impression is that they were in par with my 24" Agazanni. I've had my saw for a while, and believe me, you will become spoiled by the effortless performance of this class of machine.

[Jeff Duncan]

I don't know too many things better than plugging in and running a new toy, especially when it's one that you've thought about and put away money for a while! I also don't know about not having a tablesaw in the shop, (I don't even like to do installs without one), but I am sure you'll get a LOT of good use out of that bandsaw:D

JeffD

[Sam Murdoch]

Pretty and pretty impressive looking. I wish I had the room for such a saw. I'm sure this will make you smile every time you use it. Congrats!

[Bruce Page]

WOW indeed! Did it come with a Mobility kit? :D

Beautiful machine, congrats!

[Beau Cassidy]

Drool! Very nice piece of equipment.

[Glenn Ancona]

Keith
congrats on the BS . The folks and the showroom in Delaware are first rate - no doubt. Went three times last year putting the new shop together and was able to hook up and run equipment before loading. They even loaded our new 975 saw fully assembled - we unloaded and were running the next morning.
thought I was alone cutting Corian on the BS and a machine such as that makes cutting the stuff almost enjoyable.

enjoy and post some solid surface picks would you?

glenn

[Keith Outten]

WOW indeed! Did it come with a Mobility kit? :D

Beautiful machine, congrats!

Thanks,

Felder does offer a mobility kit for the band saw but I use the mini pallet jack you see in the pictures to move machines around when necessary. For now I will leave it on the wooden pieces until I can build something better. It seems strange to me but the saw table is very low, even on the blocks it is an inch lower then the Jet band saw table. I can only guess that if you were re-sawing a 16" board the height would seem appropriate but I don't expect to use that much re-saw capacity for sign work. On the blocks the table height is 37" from the floor which is pretty comfortable for my height. I just finished moving the band saw to a more permanent location if there is such a thing :)
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[Keith Outten]

Glenn,

No problem posting solid surface pictures. If you look closely at the first and last pictures you will see two full sheets of Corian one sheet is black and the other Pearl Gray. They are for a large sign I was supposed to start last week but I still have plenty of time to get it done.

I have re-sawed a lot of Corian over the years on the Jet saw but it is painfully slow. That is a test I will be doing this afternoon on the Felder.
.

[Frank Trinkle]

I was waiting for this post!!:D

I called Felder a couple of days ago to order a Hammer A3 41 Jointer/Planer, and Jesse told me you were coming up to get a bandsaw! (He was trying to talk me out of the Laguna Italian LT20 I have on order.... I actually considered it, and who knows..I may go that route at some future date if I end up not being thrilled with the Laguna).

Someone mentioned Agazzani. I was told that Felder bandsaws are made by ACM, who also make the Laguna Italian saws. (This info also from Jesse).

[Keith Outten]

Frank,

Seems like good news travels faster than I do these days. I hope you will be as happy with your Laguna saw as I am with the Felder. Jesse was the guy who loaded my band saw and we had an opportunity to talk briefly. He and his wife just had a new baby and he was on his way to the hospital to visit so our conversation was cut short for a good reason :)

I have to admit that I am new to this style of band saw. I like the blade guides already as they were a snap to adjust. I can't figure out why the machined miter slot is not a standard size in fact it doesn't make sense to me that it is smaller.
.

[James Bilsky]

Agree the guys/gals (Geoff/Beth) in Delaware are great to deal with, picked up a Hammer A3-31, N4400 and K3 48x48 in May, transaction went smoothly, loaded equipment in rental truck (with lift gate - required & pallet jack) then back to northeastern MD. been using the equipment ever since, very nice- love the table saw, joiner/planer is so quiet (spiral cut head) makes you wonder if it's operating correctly, very smooth cuts, takes a while to get use to the minimal sound levels when operating.
regards
Jim

[Gus Dundon]

Congratulations on your new purchase. That band saw is a beast. Now I'm jealous.

[Keith Outten]

Thanks Gus,

I spent some time today working on the dust collection for the band saw. I should have it done tomorrow morning as I have to work around my shop schedule and a few home projects as well. This is a big saw, it wasn't until I got it home until I realized how big it really is........
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[Rick Fisher]

Great looking bandsaw. I looked at that saw at the AWFS. You can tell its gonna be real nice for resawing ..

[Keith Outten]

I just finished connecting the dust collection piping to the new saw.
Next I need to design and build a crosscut sled, this one will be a bit larger than any I have built in the past :)
It will take me a couple days to decide where a couple small machines will be have to be moved to since the floor space they occupied has been reassigned. The Felder band saw is number four as I still have the 18" Jet, a 10" Rikon and my Baileigh metal Cutting horizontal band saw.

[Tom Dalabon]

Keith,
Now that you have had a few months to work on the FB610, how do you like it? Any issues? Would you do anything differently? Would you recommend the saw?
I am in the market for a new saw and am very interested in the FB510 and the FB610.
Thanks, Tom

[Keith Outten]

Tom,

I love the Felder FB610 band saw. I haven't had any issues with it at all and the performance exceeds my expectations. This is the saw I have been waiting for and although it took a long time I finally have it in my shop. I have been ripping, crosscutting and re-sawing up a storm with the new saw. The sign jobs in my shop lately have been all over the map from wood to Corian to PVC signs so I have had a chance to give the saw a good workout over the last two months. I haven't had to do any tuning, tweaking or adjusting on the new saw it was dead on right out of the crate.

I have been too busy to make the crosscut sled, I have several jobs that are promised by next week and when they are shipped I will get it done. The only nit I have with the machine is the size of the miter slot. The European saws have miter slots that are 12 by 7 mm I think which is much smaller that the 3/4" by 3/8" slots that are the most common. I can machine several lengths of Corian for my guide bars so I have some extras but I don't understand why the difference in the slot size.

I sold my 18" Jet band saw last weekend and I don't think I will miss it one bit :)

I recommend the FB610 without reservation.

[Tom Bain]

Keith -- sounds like a great machine. I'll be in the market for a new bandsaw in the not too distant future. I'm curious about 2 things with the Felder:

1) How did you find going from the ball bearing guides to the euro-style guides? I've played around with a Mini-Max that has the Euro guides, and I didn't love them but maybe it's something you get used to after a while.
2) Is the lack of a quick tension release an issue for you at all?

Thanks.

[Craig Behnke]

The only nit I have with the machine is the size of the miter slot. The European saws have miter slots that are 12 by 7 mm I think which is much smaller that the 3/4" by 3/8" slots that are the most common. I can machine several lengths of Corian for my guide bars so I have some extras but I don't understand why the difference in the slot size.

I agree, the miter slot is annoying, but it's an easy fix.

I've had a Felder FB510 since April of this year and it's a fantastic machine that exceeds my needs (and skills).

I've found the lower blade guides are annoying to adjust (it's a cramped space) and the foot brake doesn't stop the saw very quickly...and one or two times it has not rebounded from the depressed position so the saw won't restart until you manually lift the foot brake. I let Felder know and I'll get around to troubleshooting it sometime, but I'm just too busy right now.

Small nits. Overall it's a beast of a machine and it has met or exceeded my expectations so far.

below are some pics of the cramped lower blade guide area;
274480274481274482274483

[Phil Thien]

What an awesome saw.

How is the cut quality? My little bandsaws don't provide the same cut quality I get from my table saw. But, I understand larger bandsaws can meet a table saw cut quality.

[Rick Potter]

Curious Keith,

Do you use a carbide blade to cut corian?
How wide will that saw cut?

Rick Potter

[Keith Outten]

Tom,

The guides seem to be fine for me but the larger blade might be a reason why.
I never have released the tension on any band saw I have ever owned, frankly it never seemed to be necessary.

Craig,

I don't remember having a problem adjusting the lower blade guides, maybe there is more clearance on the FB610. I'll check when I go back down to my shop.
My foot brake has been working perfectly, no problems so far.

Phil,

The cut quality is better than any other band saw I have ever used, even the re-saw cuts are pretty smooth on Corian and PVC, wood is even better. BUT I am still using the OEM blade that came with the saw so I expect the quality might improve even more when I install a high quality blade, I have just been to busy to place an order.

Rick,

Cutting Corian is the same as wood, the only difference is you need to go slower. A slow speed will make your blades last longer. Over the years I haven't noticed Corian to be hard on any of my blades or router bits but Ken Dolph warned me when I started using Corian to go slow when cutting or routing. I believe Corian is much easier on blades then many wood species. When I get a minute I intend to order a Lennox carbide blade, probably one inch wide to start with.

The FB610 has a 16" re-saw capacity. There is 22 5/8" between the blade and the column and 16" max to the edge of the fence when its in the vertical position.
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[bob cohen]

Hi Keith, Congrats on the saw. Looks like a real beauty. I am rebuilding my shop from scratch and also considered going the bandsaw rout instead of a table saw. Ultimately I got the table saw (PM2000), and now am in market for a bandsaw and jointer-planer. I keep changing my mind, of course, but for the bandsaw it will probably be the laguna LT20, the minimax MM16 or 20, or the felder FB610. My previous bandsaw was a laguna (16 inch Meber) and I was happy with it, especially after I outfitted it with a resaw king blade and upgraded to ceramic guides. But, I am not a fan of Laguna's customer service. I also have concerns about dust collection with their italian made saws (the meber was made in bulgaria?). What is your early opinion on dust collection with the FB610? Also how do you feel about the FB610 guides compared to the laguna's ceramic guides or other guides you have used? The adjustments on my ceramic guides (perhaps the original version) were cumbersome and the lower guide was positioned too far below the table in my opinion. The saw was a champ at resawing (provided the blade was sharp) but basically sucked at cutting curves. Resawing is my main concern with the new saw, but it would be nice if it could cut curves at least as well as a jigsaw. I had an inca 10 bandsaw before getting the laguna. Boy, do I regret parting with that. It cut curves beautifully and was a joy to use. Just not big enough for an all purpose saw.

[David Kumm]

The LT 20 and the MM 16 would be comparable for resawing and the MM 20 is the heaviest frame resaw of the ones you mentioned. For general work the wider throat and larger table of the 610 are handy but it was not developed as a resaw but rather a very nice lower priced alternative to Felders ACM sourced saws. Laguna LT are ACM too. Felder did a really nice job with the FB series that they assemble from components sourced elsewhere to compete with Italian machines but they are not primarily resaws. Depends on your main purpose. Dave

[Carl Knapp]

The LT 20 and the MM 16 would be comparable for resawing and the MM 20 is the heaviest frame resaw of the ones you mentioned. For general work the wider throat and larger table of the 610 are handy but it was not developed as a resaw but rather a very nice lower priced alternative to Felders ACM sourced saws. Laguna LT are ACM too. Felder did a really nice job with the FB series that they assemble from components sourced elsewhere to compete with Italian machines but they are not primarily resaws. Depends on your main purpose. Dave
274548274549274550
Dave,
Don't take offense, your posting bad information for the world to read. Call me if you need me to explain. Normally I will not jump in, although I need to correct some inaccuracies, The N4400, FB510 and FB610 are designed to Resaw. They can also run narrow blades. Weight alone doesn't give you frame strength. Frame design, bracing, gusseting Etc is more at play. The technology used today is the same found in unibody cars.

I ran high end collision shops for many years, The old heavy cold rolled steel framed cars and trucks collapsed and twisted more so than the much lighter unibody ones. I don't want to get into a debate, comment on any of the competition or get into a sales pitch here on line.

My suggestion to anyone looking for a machine would be to call the sales rep from each manufacturer and go through their machine in detail.

[David Kumm]

Carl, No offense taken and certainly didn't intend to give bad info. When I looked the the Felder saws in Atlanta a year ago, I was impressed with them. ( Felder runs the best booth there). I can't remember who I talked to there but he was very fair in telling me that as fine a saw as it is, it was not the equal of the ACM based machine for heavy use, and not meant to be. I may have mistakenly assumed that meant frame strength and resaw ability and in fairness that info is over a year old now. I should not have stated it wasn't developed as a resaw- assumption and not fact. I'm a cast iron guy but do like the smaller Centauro based saws over the comparable ACM until you get to 24" after which it doesn't matter much. You are absolutely correct that a buyer should check everything out for himself. There are some all Asian saws that are credible resaw machines as well. Dave

[Keith Outten]

Hi Keith, Congrats on the saw. Looks like a real beauty. I am rebuilding my shop from scratch and also considered going the bandsaw rout instead of a table saw. Ultimately I got the table saw (PM2000), and now am in market for a bandsaw and jointer-planer. I keep changing my mind, of course, but for the bandsaw it will probably be the laguna LT20, the minimax MM16 or 20, or the felder FB610. My previous bandsaw was a laguna (16 inch Meber) and I was happy with it, especially after I outfitted it with a resaw king blade and upgraded to ceramic guides. But, I am not a fan of Laguna's customer service. I also have concerns about dust collection with their italian made saws (the meber was made in bulgaria?). What is your early opinion on dust collection with the FB610? Also how do you feel about the FB610 guides compared to the laguna's ceramic guides or other guides you have used? The adjustments on my ceramic guides (perhaps the original version) were cumbersome and the lower guide was positioned too far below the table in my opinion. The saw was a champ at resawing (provided the blade was sharp) but basically sucked at cutting curves. Resawing is my main concern with the new saw, but it would be nice if it could cut curves at least as well as a jigsaw. I had an inca 10 bandsaw before getting the laguna. Boy, do I regret parting with that. It cut curves beautifully and was a joy to use. Just not big enough for an all purpose saw.

Bob,

My experience with band saw dust collection is very limited simply because the band saws I owned in the past really weren't worth the effort IMO. I agree that my position was pretty dumb but I never had a really good band saw that I felt was a production quality machine. I treated them like skill saws or jigs saws, you use them and get rid of them when you needed something bigger or they were worn out. I've known for a long time how valuable a high end band saw can be but my budget has been spent over the last few years in another direction and this year I decided it was time to upgrade some machines in my shop that aren't laser engravers or CNC routers. As it turned out the only areas of my shop that I felt warranted the financial investment this year were my Jet 18" band saw, welding machines and a new metal cutting band saw.

Its tough to upgrade both metal and woodworking machines in the same shop but my principal projects are signs which means I have to work in multiple mediums. I decided that my very old joiner, planer and mill/drill are still perfect for my shop and there was no need to even consider upgrading them. I spent a considerable amount of money on my table saw a few years ago and now I find that it rarely gets used anymore so I intend to re-purpose the floor space very soon because my 24 by 36 foot shop is very crowded.

Now back to the band saw dust collection topic I connected my new FB610 to my DC system on day one and I am very happy with the performance. I probably should share some details because my DC system is unlike most because I use an exterior chip box. My system has no cyclone, filters or bags. My 20 year old Grizzly 1.5 HP dust collector is connected to the primary machines from one end of my shop to the other via a 4" PVC pipe system. The exhaust line from the dust collector goes right thru the wall to an big steel tank outside my shop. The performance is excellent when you consider how inexpensive my system is and its based on the idea of removing the back pressure so a small system can function above its normal capacity and fine dust can't leak inside. Since the DC system is part of the band saw dust collection performance I thought I should share this information. In a nutshell I can use the band saw all day long without the need to stop and sweep or vacuum and I'm surprised at how few chips end up inside the bottom of the cabinet.

My evaluation of the guide system isn't worth much at this point because the FB610 is the first saw I have ever used with this design which is radically different from the bearing style systems that my previous saws used. So far so good, the Felder works better then I expected no matter what I have tried to cut or re-saw the FB610 has been a joy to use. I should add that the band saw is so dang tall that I need to reposition a couple ceiling lights because it is casting a shadow on my CNC router table :)

I gained a lot of knowledge from our Members here at The Creek before I contacted Felder. There are some very talented people here with lots of band saw expertise that I have been listening to for a long time, reading their posts trying to determine which saw would be the best value for my shop and hopefully be my last band saw. I spent a lot of time at IWF in Atlanta a couple years ago visiting vendors as well so I have been planning this purchase for some time.

I'm grinning like a smile onto a possum :)
.

[Ed Meathe]

Craig,

I have been researching bandsaws for the past year and have narrowed my list to two, one of which is the Felder FB510. I have found your posts on your experience with the FB510 very informative, particularly those regarding the tight adjustment space around the lower guides. Have you found this to be a significant issue? Also, I noted that the bandsaw shown in your shop pictures has changed from the original picture dated 5/18/2013 (FB510 with the green blade guards) to that shown in your recent post with the shop picture dated 9/15/2013 (red blade guards and a different style knob on the front plate of the upper housing). What model of bandsaw is this machine? Is there a reason that you changed from your original (5/18/2013) configuration? Experience of users of the FB510 are rather limited, so I truly appreciate your commentary and would like to incorporate your experience into my final decision process. Thank you for your input in this regard.

The images shown below are the ones that I am referring to in my post.

274646274647

[Craig Behnke]

Ed,

The tight quarters of the lower guide aren’t a deal breaker, but I wish the lower guides were as easy to access as the MM16 that I had some experience using (at a friends workshop). The MM bandsaws are fantastic machines and they are incredibly popular because they are so well made and perform so well.

I think the FB510 is a great high-end hobby machine, it has proven to be a fantastic bandsaw that exceeds my needs and skills. I had a fixed budget that I had to stay within. If I had an extra $1,000 to spend, I probably would have gone with the MM16 and the Hammer Jointer Planer (I really wanted the spiral cutterhead for working with figured wood). But doing that I would have given up some meaningful discounts and my shipping cost would have more than doubled.

I’ve read conflicting info, some say that the lower blade guide closeness to the underside of the table isn’t very significant…but I don’t know, I’m not a professional woodworker with 1,000’s of hours of experience resawing and such. I'm sure others Creeker's can help you with that question.

The change of green to red was just me modifying the machine. I thought the green accents were pretty ugly. I was just matching it to the Hammer Jointer grey and red color scheme, that was all.

Both Minimax and Felder make great machines and it’s very likely you’ll be very happy with either Bandsaw. So much depends on your budget and the type of work you’ll be doing. Either way, have some fun with the decision and keep us updated!

[Keith Outten]

The proximity of the lower blade guides to the dust collection connection may be the reason for the position of the guides. What you give up in access you gain in DC performance maybe.......just a thought.
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[Ed Meathe]

Craig and Keith,

Thank you for your replies. As it turns out, the other band saw in my two-saw selection list is the MM16. A friend of mine has the MM16 and has been very happy with it.

I have had a passion for wood working for most of my adult life. However, up until now, my wife and I have spent our time and financial resources raising and educating our children and developing our careers. Now that the children have completed college and are self-sufficient, and we have retired our most significant debt, it is time for me to indulge my passion. To that end, I have ‘confiscated’ two slots of our three car garage (my wife insists on having a covered, secure parking spot for her car) and am in the process of converting it to my workshop. I have a SawStop 10 inch, 3 HP cabinet saw, and I recently (1 week ago) ordered the Hammer A3-31 J/P. I fully expect to be working in my shop 3-4 days per week for 4 hours per day. My focus will be on building small to large pieces of furniture. I expect that I will do some resawing of raw timber, but mostly will be resawing unfinished lumber for veneers, inlays, etc. I will also be doing quite a bit of contour cutting.

Comparing the MM16 to the FB510 may not quite be comparing apples-to-apples – a better like-model comparison might be the MM20 to the FB510 – but the MM20 is well beyond by budget. At this point, I am slightly favoring the FB510 for its larger table size, deeper throat, and larger diameter wheels. The prices I have been quoted are very close, with an overall cost advantage going to the FB510 given the economy of scale I can achieve with simultaneous shipping of the A3-31 and FB510, as well as the discounts available on the Felder options.

Based upon Keith’s observation regarding the potential dust collection benefits of the smaller lower guide enclosure of the FB510, and the availability of dual dust ports, this also moves the scale a slight bit more toward the FB510. I have read Bill Pentz’s entire web page, and, based upon my engineering background, have found it quite insightful and informative. Most of my career has been spent doing clinical research at a large, multi-specialty medical center, and I have seen first-hand the debilitating consequences of pulmonary disease. Thus, I do not plan to skimp on the dust collection provisioning of my shop.

There is no doubt in my mind that I will not be able to immediately exploit the full capabilities of either the MM16 or the FB510; however, I am committed to rapidly closing the deficiencies in my wood working skills. I sincerely appreciate the input of Craig and Keith regarding the choice of band saws. I would welcome and value the input of other experienced wood workers on the forum.

I believe that I am going to enjoy and benefit from being a member of this community. Hopefully, in a few years, I may have the wood working skills necessary to contribute to discussions on this forum.

[Keith Outten]

Without woodworkers who ask questions 70% of the valuable information here would not exist.

Ed, all of the saws that you have on your list are excellent machines. Your final selection should be based on your own "Best Value" evaluation based on your needs, saw performance and cost. No doubt you'll be happy when the band saw you select is in your shop.

My situation is similar to yours, both my daughters are grown and graduated from college. All the loans have been satisfied and we have options today we never had before. I try my best to donate my time and resources to select projects when I can and I hope that I will always be able to contribute in some way. A percentage of my sign shop projects are donated to help those who need assistance and cannot afford my services.
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[Julie Moriarty]

Keith, you mentioned using the bandsaw in place of a table saw. I was wondering how that's been going. I have a Jet 18" with several blades (Woodmaster CT, Woodslicer, Carter) and none of them can give me the cut I get on my table saw. Here, I'm thinking mostly rip cuts and the edge I get with the bandsaw would have to be seriously milled before I could use the wood. Am I missing something or are you referring only to the requirements of your sign business when talking about a shop devoid of table saws?

[Rick Fisher]

Ed, Your choices in machinery .. (Hammer, Mini-Max, Felder) Those are fine choices. I would probably lean towards the 20" Felder saw for the same money but there is no bad choice. Get a really good blade on either of those saws and you will have no regrets.

[Keith Outten]

Julie,

Since I got my new band saw my table saw has been a storage bench. Honestly I haven't used the table saw much this year. The cut quality of the band saw is very close to what I get with my table saw and that is with the OEM blade so I expect it will improve. My decision to not use my table saw is based somewhat on my sign work, I know that others have also stopped using table saws as well which is why I started thinking about the possibility for my shop.

The new band saw will rip boards as fast as my table saw will and it seems to be much safer. I have owned a table saw for probably 35 years and I have had my share of close encounters and kickbacks, luckily none of my fingers have ever contacted the blade. Now here comes the hard part...my decision is based partly on a loss of grip in my hands over the years. If I can still do the work required, without a table saw, I will be better off and probably improve my chances of keeping all of my fingers. The years working in a shop take their toll.

I have a panel saw that I use to break down sheet goods and most of the pieces I cut end up on my CNC Router for final dimensioning. If I have to glue up large wood panels for a sign blank my joiner takes care of the edge prep so the edge quality isn't as crucial as it was in the past. Even though there are jobs that are best done on a table saw it all comes down to my ability to work safely and confidence is part of that equation. I know the grip in my hands is often unreliable so I am adjusting as best I can and still be able to work on select types of projects. Some of the jobs I used to do I won't even consider today.

My shop is pretty crowded so recovering the floor space that the table saw consumes will be valuable for other purposes. I have custom 24" table saw wings on each side of my saw which makes it wider than the stock 12" wings. Both of the custom wings have router raisers in them, that is the part I will miss the most but I am already planning on building a new Corian router table.
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[Tom Dalabon]

Thank you Keith,
I have some decisions to make!
Have a good Thanksgiving!

[Keith Outten]

Your welcome Tom and good luck with your decision.

FWIW I'm almost finished with my new sliding table for my band saw. I only have to cut and mount the fence.
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[Keith Outten]

I started a new thread for the slider.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?210739-Shop-Made-Band-Saw-Slider-with-Pic

[Rob Parsons]

Keith,

I'm thinking of getting a smallish pallet jack for my shop mobility needs. What size is yours and how do you like that system? Thanks.

[Rick Fisher]

Bump

Keith

Wondering if you still like the Felder FB610 .. I know this is a 3 year old post, but your an expert now if you still have it .. Anything to report ?

In particular I wonder if you've run a 3/8" or 1/4" blade on it ? Or what the smallest blade you've run is ?

Any problems, any regrets..

[Keith Outten]

Rick,

My Felder FB 610 has become the center of my workshop and it is literally in the center of my shop :). Its a great machine and is now invaluable for just about every job that I work on these days. This past Christmas I both machined and resawed some mahogany for several candle holders I was making, did the entire job on my band saw. I cut lots of Corian for sign jobs and have been using the FB610 for ripping lumber since I first got the saw. Corian cuts like butter with little effort required to push the material through the saw.

In short I have no regrets, this has been one of the best machines I have ever purchased. I wish that I could have been able to buy this machine ten years ago.

As far as blades go I only have one blade which is a one inch 3 TPI Lennox. I own one of the small Rikon band saws that I use for curved work.

[Keith Outten]

Keith,

I'm thinking of getting a smallish pallet jack for my shop mobility needs. What size is yours and how do you like that system? Thanks.


Rob,

I'm sorry I missed your question but if your still interested my pallet jack is the small one that Northern Tools sells. I hesitated purchasing a pallet jack for many years which was a mistake. I could kick myself for not buying one back when I was building my own shop stands as it would have been easy to design access for the pallet forks and save myself the cost of buying wheels. Even very heavy machines are a snap to move around with the pallet jack, much easier then pushing them on wheels.

I hesitated because my shop space is very limited and I didn't think that I could find a place to park the jack when it wasn't being used. This is a non-issue as I park the jack under any number of machines to keep it handy but out of the way so it doesn't take up any floor space at all. I've seen pictures of workbenches that some people build with pallet fork access built in instead of wheels, they can move their benches as well as their machines anywhere in seconds which is pretty handy.

[Ben Rivel]

Did you end up getting rid of your table saw or are you still using it as a workbench? What table saw did you have?

[Keith Outten]

Ben,

''I still have my Grizzly 1023 table saw and it's still a workbench most days. It has routers in each of the table extensions that are useful.

[Mike Heidrick]

Nice saw Keith.

[Keith Outten]

Thanks Mike,

I never fully understood how much of a difference there can be between the smaller band saws and the large models until I got the FB610. My last band saw was a Jet 18" and I was pretty happy with the saw but I had the feeling that the next step up would be significant and that was an understatement on my part. The difference in the Jet 18" and the FB610 is monumental. Part of the equation is the 1" blade which makes ripping lumber an easy task. When a saw frame is strong enough to tension a large blade properly its a whole new world :)

I'll take some pictures of the saw cut quality shortly and share them here.
.

[Sean Troy]

Holy Moly!!! That's a beauty !!

[bob cohen]

I've had my 610 for just over a year and have been extremely happy with it. I upgraded from an older Laguna 16, which was a nice saw but underpowered with a 1 hp lesson motor. The Felder is a beast when by comparison, particular when resawing. I hope you enjoy your saw as much as I have mine.

[Joshua Bass]

I agree, the miter slot is annoying, but it's an easy fix.

I've had a Felder FB510 since April of this year and it's a fantastic machine that exceeds my needs (and skills).
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Can you expand on what you mean about the miter slot? I understand it isnt a standard size, but how did you go about "fixing" it?

[Keith Outten]

I couldn't find steel runners to fit the miter slot in my FB610 so I made mine from Dupont Corian. I setup my CNC Router to cut several runners once I got the fit like I wanted it but the first one isn't showing any wear yet so the extras are on the shelf.

I'm still extremely happy with my band saw, it is enjoyable to use every time. I have now had plenty of opportunity to resaw several types of hardwoods and plenty of Corian. I did have to shim the fence to use it for resawing though and its a bit short for my taste so I will make a new fence just for resawing this Summer.

[Joel Wesseling]

The OP states 5hp for FB610. The specs on website show 4HP

Have they reduced the motor size for this machine?

[Rod Sheridan]

The OP states 5hp for FB610. The specs on website show 4HP

Have they reduced the motor size for this machine?

Joel, 5 HP isn't a standard metric motor, 3Kw is a standard, which is 4 HP.

I've never seen a Felder machine with a 5 HP single phase motor.............Rod.

[Keith Outten]

This is the information from the August 2013 invoice:

1X230V 60 Hz 5, 5HP (4 KW) S6/40%

It was sold to me as a 5 HP band saw.

[Joel Wesseling]

I talked with Felder Sales rep yesterday. He states that the largest single phase motor available is 4hp. I don't think he was working there in 2013, it appears other options were available then.

Thanks Guys. I think I'll save up for a 510, don't really need the larger cutting width anyway.

[David Kumm]

Check the machinery exchange on woodweb. there is a S400 used for sale that looks pretty cherry. Dave

[Joel Wesseling]

That s400 would do the job but no chance of me travelling across the boarder for it, and paying the exchange rate.

[Joel Wesseling]

Max Blade Width for FB610

So, I've owned FB610 for 3+ years now. I wore out my 1" resaw blade!

The max width shown on the saw tension scale is 1-3/8" but specs on felder site state blade width as 1/4 - 1-1/8

Planning to order a few blades from R&D. 1-1/4" resaw blade is tempting, but is it a good idea for this saw?

Hope you can help.

[Mike King]

I run a 1" on my FB540. I don't see much advantage to going wider and tensioning a wider blade would likely overtax the saw frame.

[Erik Loza]

In my experience, anything over 1" for our average woodworking needs is just extra $$$ without much benefit. So long as your saw can get the blade into the correct tension range, that's all you need to worry about. Bandsaw blades are a consumable. Just order more.

Erik

[Joel Wesseling]

Thanks!.. I'll stay with one inch!

[Keith Outten]

I put a high quality one inch blade on my FB 610 right out of the gate and couldn't be happier with the performance. This has been the saw I have always wanted, can't say enough about how pleased I am. At the time I felt the blade was awful expensive but it was worth every penny and a great saw deserves a great blade.

[Eric Arnsdorff]

Congrats on the new bandsaw!!!
I've recently purchased a similar sized saw that's new to me (2016 SCM/Centauro). It cuts incredibly well!
I share your excitement!!

[Alan Lightstone]

Keith (and Erik, for that matter):

What is the size of the miter track on Felder bandsaws (an FB710 in my case)?

Didn't realize it wasn't the standard size until this week (pretty sad, considering I've had my FB710 for 3 years or so). I guess this speaks to the fact that I haven't had to use a miter slot on it until recently.

Keith - still loving the FB610? I love my FB710. Does everything I throw at it with ease.

[Randall J Cox]

I couldn't find steel runners to fit the miter slot in my FB610 so I made mine from Dupont Corian. I setup my CNC Router to cut several runners once I got the fit like I wanted it but the first one isn't showing any wear yet so the extras are on the shelf.

I'm still extremely happy with my band saw, it is enjoyable to use every time. I have now had plenty of opportunity to resaw several types of hardwoods and plenty of Corian. I did have to shim the fence to use it for resawing though and its a bit short for my taste so I will make a new fence just for resawing this Summer.


I bought a used MiniMax S45 18" BS some years ago and it had the narrower slot in the table. Measured the slot width very carefully with a MM/CM (forgot which) scale ruler and ordered bar stock from McMaster Car, fit perfectly. Drilled some holes in the bar for my miter gauge, good to go. After living in Italy, Germany, Korea and the middle east in my USAF career, wasn't surprised it was metric. Randy

[Wes Grass]

15 or 16mm? Considering 19mm is almost exactly 3/4", you'd think they'd use that ... considering we 'Murrican's invented the band saw, table saw, and every other thing of usefulness in the world ;-)

Yeah, a nuisance of a sort. I looked at milling mine out to 3/4" awhile back, and don't have a clue now if it looked like a good idea or not. FB-600, first gen. I think I have a 1" carbide blade still in the box. It's got a 3/4" installed almost always. Switch to a 1/4" cutting foam for packaging. Picked up partial coils of blades off CL, cut and welded them myself. Handy to have access to a REAL metal cutting bandsaw (Grob) with a blade welder built in. Spent a few years drilling holes in die blanks and welding the blades in place to hog them out for EDM. Eventually we moved into the 20th Century in '83 and went to wire.

[Keith Outten]

Alan,

I am still of the opinion that my Felder FB 610 is an awesome band saw and I use it almost every day. It's the best money I ever spent on any saw. The gum ball machines I shared recently were all cut on my FB 610 with the band saw slider I made, I rarely ever use my table saw anymore. Yep, I have the narrow miter slot so I made some miter sliders from solid surface material, still using the first one and haven't seen any wear on it yet.