Bob Ball
01-01-2014, 6:41 PM
I have been reading this Forum for several years, using other folk's experiences to inform my equipment purchases.
I recently joined so that I could share my experiences with a GO 514X2 Grizzly Band Saw that is currently sitting out in my shop waiting to get picked up for return, as well as get some feedback on what is normal and what is not.
In summary (fuller details below) the machine may have been damaged when it fell over face forward in a truck (the top 1/3 of the five slats on the front side of the crate were broken off and the styrofoam was broken/fallen into crate), but it is not clear if that is what causes this saw to shake so terribly. Looking at the front side of the band saw, the spine of the frame (just left of the switches) appears to be fairly straight. The left end of the saw frame (backbone of the spine) is slightly bent in the direction the sawblade pulls when tensioned (1/8" rocker in a 4' straight edge placed at the top). The wheels appear to be fairly well balanced but out of round (1/16'+ for bottom wheel). Other than small scratchs and paint rubbed off the front of the spine above the key, no other cosmetic damage is apparent (doors not dented, etc.).
The top wheel can easily be adjusted to center the blade on both wheels, but when the blade is centered the wheels are not coplanar. When the top wheel is adjusted to make the wheels coplanar the teeth of the supplied 3/4" blade slightly overhangs the tire on the top wheel and is only slightly inside the tire on the lower wheel. Is this unusual? It does not appear that any wider blade could be used without correcting something structural...shim wheel(s)? Machine is supposed to be able to run up to a 1.25" blade.
Which is more important: centering the blade or have the wheels coplanar? Neither adjustment seemed to lessen the shaking. All four corners were firmly in contact with a level concrete slab (I read the December 2012 Thread on vibration/floor levelling). Replacment machine is supposed to be shipped sometime after they get this one picked up...I imagine it wil eventually happen, but Grizzly has not met the timelines they have given me so far, and I have had to initiate all contacts but one. Thanks for any suggestions.
Full timeline below for those who want to wade through it.
12/09/2013
Order Placed Online
12/19/2013
Bandsaw Delivered from Springfield MO to southwestern CO w/ damage as noted:
When this G514X2 Bandsaw was delivered on December 19, 2013 the top 1/3 of the front side of the crate was broken off and missing. When I signed to acknowledge delivery I noted in writing the above damage, that it appeared that the machine had fallen over, and that it was possible the frame was bent.
Before attempting to uncrate and assemble the G514X2 I called and spoke with Grizzly customer service representative Josh, to find out if I should hold the machine for return shipping, or should put it together and see if it worked properly. After conferring with a supervisor, Josh returned to the line and suggested I assemble the bandsaw, but do my best to save what was left of the crate in case it had to be returned.
I emailed photos of the crated machine as I received it, to Grizzly on December 19.
12/25/2013
I completed assembly on December 25. When turned on the bandsaw shakes terribly from front to back. I went through most of troubleshooting suggestions in the manual (align/tension blade, proper tension of drive belt, not rubbing anywhere, solid on floor, etc.) to no avail.
12/26/2013
I called and eventually was able to speak to Grizzly technical representative Larry on December 26. I re-described the damage that was apparent when I received the machine. Larry had no access to the photos I had sent in the week before...this seems like a weakness in Grizzly’s internal communication that should be simple to improve. In any event, after rehashing the situation and how it acts (the bandsaw shakes violently front-to-back from the table up, the base remains solidly on the floor) and explaining what I had examined so far, Larry suggested I remove the blade and see if the shaking changed. He also suggested I make the coplanar gauge described in the owners manual. Larry assured me that someone else would call me to follow up with a resolution of the problem.
After I got off the phone with Larry I followed his suggestion and removed the blade. There was about a four-fold decrease in the shaking, though the machine still vibrated noticeably. I also made and used the coplanar gauge he and the owner’s manual described: if the top wheel was adjusted so that the wheels were coplanar the teeth of the supplied ¾” wide blade overhung the tire on the top wheel slightly, while the teeth were just inside the edge of the tire on the lower wheel. Aligning the wheels did not reduce the vibration. Also of concern was the fact the blade could not be centered unless the wheels were adjusted to not be coplanar. The owner’s manual gives instructions on centering the blade, and later on making the wheels coplanar, but I did not see instructions on how to achieve both, or which was more important.
Based on my observations the wheels appear to be fairly well balanced but out of round: more than 1/16” of runout on the bottom wheel. Placing a 4’ straightedge at the top of the spine, on the front side of the machine, on the edge just left of the key/switches, showed that side of the frame to be relatively straight. Placing a 4’ straight edge at the top on the spine, on the left edge of the saw (the backbone side of the frame, the side that is tensioned when the blade is tightened), the straightedge rested on a high place and rocked a strong 1/8” from end to end.
12/27/2013
Larry with Grizzly customer service (not the technician Larry I had spoken to on 12/26) called me and suggested they pick up the original machine and ship me a replacement. I explained that I was only willing to try another machine if he would promise that it would be assembled and tested before shipment…I was not willing to invest the amount of time I have spent on this machine on another one without that condition. Larry told me he could ensure the new machine was tested before shipment and I agreed to try another one. Larry told me I would be contacted by someone at Grizzly shipping within 24 hours to arrange the return.
12/30/2013
Three days had passed without any contact from Grizzly so I phoned again and was passed from Ruth to George. George left the line for a while (I think he said he was checking with Robert) because he could not tell from my activity file what was going on. He came back on the line and said that nothing had happened because no one at Grizzly had entered my email address (they had it all along and he read it to me) into the activity file. He also told me someone from Grizzly shipping would contact me with return shipping details. As of today (January 1, 2014) I still have not received any email updates from Grizzly, so I do not understand how that could have presented any delay.
A woman from Grizzly shipping called me later 12/30/2013 to say that SAIA trucking should call me within 24 hours with return shipping arrangments. She also explained that the replacement saw would not ship until the original one was picked up. 48 hours later nothing has happened. SAIA only serves my area on Thursdays, so if it is not scheduled for 01/02/2014 it will not happen until 01/09/2014.
This afternoon (01/01/2014) I emailed Grizzly ORD explaining that I looked forward to hearing from someone at Grizzly that they had contacted SAIA and SAIA will call me to schedule a pick up of the saw tomorrow.
I recently joined so that I could share my experiences with a GO 514X2 Grizzly Band Saw that is currently sitting out in my shop waiting to get picked up for return, as well as get some feedback on what is normal and what is not.
In summary (fuller details below) the machine may have been damaged when it fell over face forward in a truck (the top 1/3 of the five slats on the front side of the crate were broken off and the styrofoam was broken/fallen into crate), but it is not clear if that is what causes this saw to shake so terribly. Looking at the front side of the band saw, the spine of the frame (just left of the switches) appears to be fairly straight. The left end of the saw frame (backbone of the spine) is slightly bent in the direction the sawblade pulls when tensioned (1/8" rocker in a 4' straight edge placed at the top). The wheels appear to be fairly well balanced but out of round (1/16'+ for bottom wheel). Other than small scratchs and paint rubbed off the front of the spine above the key, no other cosmetic damage is apparent (doors not dented, etc.).
The top wheel can easily be adjusted to center the blade on both wheels, but when the blade is centered the wheels are not coplanar. When the top wheel is adjusted to make the wheels coplanar the teeth of the supplied 3/4" blade slightly overhangs the tire on the top wheel and is only slightly inside the tire on the lower wheel. Is this unusual? It does not appear that any wider blade could be used without correcting something structural...shim wheel(s)? Machine is supposed to be able to run up to a 1.25" blade.
Which is more important: centering the blade or have the wheels coplanar? Neither adjustment seemed to lessen the shaking. All four corners were firmly in contact with a level concrete slab (I read the December 2012 Thread on vibration/floor levelling). Replacment machine is supposed to be shipped sometime after they get this one picked up...I imagine it wil eventually happen, but Grizzly has not met the timelines they have given me so far, and I have had to initiate all contacts but one. Thanks for any suggestions.
Full timeline below for those who want to wade through it.
12/09/2013
Order Placed Online
12/19/2013
Bandsaw Delivered from Springfield MO to southwestern CO w/ damage as noted:
When this G514X2 Bandsaw was delivered on December 19, 2013 the top 1/3 of the front side of the crate was broken off and missing. When I signed to acknowledge delivery I noted in writing the above damage, that it appeared that the machine had fallen over, and that it was possible the frame was bent.
Before attempting to uncrate and assemble the G514X2 I called and spoke with Grizzly customer service representative Josh, to find out if I should hold the machine for return shipping, or should put it together and see if it worked properly. After conferring with a supervisor, Josh returned to the line and suggested I assemble the bandsaw, but do my best to save what was left of the crate in case it had to be returned.
I emailed photos of the crated machine as I received it, to Grizzly on December 19.
12/25/2013
I completed assembly on December 25. When turned on the bandsaw shakes terribly from front to back. I went through most of troubleshooting suggestions in the manual (align/tension blade, proper tension of drive belt, not rubbing anywhere, solid on floor, etc.) to no avail.
12/26/2013
I called and eventually was able to speak to Grizzly technical representative Larry on December 26. I re-described the damage that was apparent when I received the machine. Larry had no access to the photos I had sent in the week before...this seems like a weakness in Grizzly’s internal communication that should be simple to improve. In any event, after rehashing the situation and how it acts (the bandsaw shakes violently front-to-back from the table up, the base remains solidly on the floor) and explaining what I had examined so far, Larry suggested I remove the blade and see if the shaking changed. He also suggested I make the coplanar gauge described in the owners manual. Larry assured me that someone else would call me to follow up with a resolution of the problem.
After I got off the phone with Larry I followed his suggestion and removed the blade. There was about a four-fold decrease in the shaking, though the machine still vibrated noticeably. I also made and used the coplanar gauge he and the owner’s manual described: if the top wheel was adjusted so that the wheels were coplanar the teeth of the supplied ¾” wide blade overhung the tire on the top wheel slightly, while the teeth were just inside the edge of the tire on the lower wheel. Aligning the wheels did not reduce the vibration. Also of concern was the fact the blade could not be centered unless the wheels were adjusted to not be coplanar. The owner’s manual gives instructions on centering the blade, and later on making the wheels coplanar, but I did not see instructions on how to achieve both, or which was more important.
Based on my observations the wheels appear to be fairly well balanced but out of round: more than 1/16” of runout on the bottom wheel. Placing a 4’ straightedge at the top of the spine, on the front side of the machine, on the edge just left of the key/switches, showed that side of the frame to be relatively straight. Placing a 4’ straight edge at the top on the spine, on the left edge of the saw (the backbone side of the frame, the side that is tensioned when the blade is tightened), the straightedge rested on a high place and rocked a strong 1/8” from end to end.
12/27/2013
Larry with Grizzly customer service (not the technician Larry I had spoken to on 12/26) called me and suggested they pick up the original machine and ship me a replacement. I explained that I was only willing to try another machine if he would promise that it would be assembled and tested before shipment…I was not willing to invest the amount of time I have spent on this machine on another one without that condition. Larry told me he could ensure the new machine was tested before shipment and I agreed to try another one. Larry told me I would be contacted by someone at Grizzly shipping within 24 hours to arrange the return.
12/30/2013
Three days had passed without any contact from Grizzly so I phoned again and was passed from Ruth to George. George left the line for a while (I think he said he was checking with Robert) because he could not tell from my activity file what was going on. He came back on the line and said that nothing had happened because no one at Grizzly had entered my email address (they had it all along and he read it to me) into the activity file. He also told me someone from Grizzly shipping would contact me with return shipping details. As of today (January 1, 2014) I still have not received any email updates from Grizzly, so I do not understand how that could have presented any delay.
A woman from Grizzly shipping called me later 12/30/2013 to say that SAIA trucking should call me within 24 hours with return shipping arrangments. She also explained that the replacement saw would not ship until the original one was picked up. 48 hours later nothing has happened. SAIA only serves my area on Thursdays, so if it is not scheduled for 01/02/2014 it will not happen until 01/09/2014.
This afternoon (01/01/2014) I emailed Grizzly ORD explaining that I looked forward to hearing from someone at Grizzly that they had contacted SAIA and SAIA will call me to schedule a pick up of the saw tomorrow.