Laguna 14-12 Tracking Issue

[Mike Chalmers]

Just got the saw. So far, I am quite impressed, except for ....
1/2" blade will not stay on the bottom wheel. 3/8" works fine, but, no matter how far back I track the 1/2' blade on the top wheel, it jumps off the front of the bottom wheel when I turn the power on. Stays on when I am hand turning the wheels. Both blades are tracking close to the edge of the bottom wheel.

Laguna customer service not open on weekends, which is, I believe, a black mark. Will contact them this week. In the meantime, any thoughts?

[Curt Harms]

I would speculate that the lower wheel needs to be adjusted. I'm not familiar with the Laguna, my Rikon has 4 bolts that tilt the lower wheel axle. Adjusting bandsaw tracking can seem like a bit of a black art so I'd wait 'til Monday and talk to the wizards.

[Derek Stockley]

Any chance the weld on the 1/2" blade isn't straight? Maybe set it on a bench and see if it lies flat?

[Dan Clark]

Just got the saw. So far, I am quite impressed, except for ....
1/2" blade will not stay on the bottom wheel. 3/8" works fine, but, no matter how far back I track the 1/2' blade on the top wheel, it jumps off the front of the bottom wheel when I turn the power on. Stays on when I am hand turning the wheels. Both blades are tracking close to the edge of the bottom wheel.

Laguna customer service not open on weekends, which is, I believe, a black mark. Will contact them this week. In the meantime, any thoughts?
Mike,

Your saw may have an issue similar to my 14-12, but more severe. The lower wheel can be adjusted with the upper and lower adjusting nuts on the motor side of saw and close to the motor. It's pretty straight forward to adjust the nuts, but...

You should definitely talk to Laguna support first. Call 1-877-583-7278. You'll probably need to log a Support Case with the Customer Support rep for tracking purposes. They will ask for name, phone number, serial number, where purchased, etc. Standard questions. Takes a couple minutes. When that's done, make sure you ask for Brian Diaz. Brian is EXTREMELY knowledgeable and proactive. Hang in there. Laguna will take care of you.

Also, check out the two 14-12 reviews by Randy Woodworker. They are very through and cover the issues he found with the saw and their resolutions. The second is follow on review after he replaced the OEM tires with Carter Urethane tires. He has a lot of tips in his videos. They are a must-see for 14-12 owners.

I replaced my tires with Carter tires and they made major difference in vibration and noise. If you replace the tires, make sure you run a dowel around the wheel between the tire and wheel a couple times. This stretches and seats the tire.

Overall I like my saw and I'm satisfied that I got the best saw for my needs.

Regards,

Dan.

P.s. Here is the first Randy Woodworker video:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKAfLEHqQK4

[Dan Clark]

This is the second Randy Woodworking video:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KRo_lVzH90

[James Nugnes]

I would chime in as well that I think you are going to have to adjust the bottom wheel...after checking with Laguna tech support.

I have the saw and I can tell from the four bolt pattern on the bottom wheel that adjusting it is going to require nothing more or less complicated than any other four bolt pattern bandsaw bottom wheel.

Have you tried smaller blades on the saw? I only ask because at least in my past experience if that bottom wheel is off, it is only a matter of time before the blade will work off the saw, especially at power. It takes very little misalignment before that metal band just won't stay on. If the blade is coming off the front of the lower wheel that would suggest that it is tipped slightly upward. If the blade was slipping off the back that would suggest that the bottom wheel was tipped slightly downward.

I have not found it necessary to go to the Carter Blue tires as yet. My saw exhibits very little vibration or noise. Hence at least to this point I have not found a good reason to spend the $50 and the time and effort to change the tires on what is a brand new saw. However, as you might have seen from my thread and my experience I have adjusted just about every Tom, Dick and Larry thing on this saw other than the wheels for alignment. So far it is looking like I have gotten lucky on wheel alignment but I do wonder if my saw exhibits so little vibration and noise because I have adjusted elements of the saw that I don't see much talked about in videos or on the web generally AND my wheels are apparently in decent alignment from the factory.

Good luck with yours. I have to believe its the bottom wheel.

[Dan Clark]

Mike,

If you keep having issues, Brian told me to pass along his direct phone number and email:

800-332-4094, ext. 6155
brian_diaz@lagunatools.com

Good luck,

Dan.

[Dan Clark]

Mike,

Was Laguna Support able to resolve your 14-12 issues?

Thanks,

Dan.

[Mike Chalmers]

Yes they did. Adjusting the bottom wheel was relatively simple, and once they told me the proper procedure, I was all right with doing things outside of the manual on my new saw. Now to replace the blades wrecked.