Band Saw Question

[Richard Carner]

Just assembled a Lauguna 14/12 bandsaw. I'll provide a short review once my band saw blades arrive. I ordered 3 different widths from Timber Wolf. For re-sawing the person I talked to said that the most popular blade is a 3/4" x 4PC. Anyone have any experience with Timber Wolf's blades and/or with a 3/4" for re-sawing?

[Bill White]

Used a lot of TW blades at the furniture plant. We resawed reclaimed beams and decking from heart pine. That stuff is tough on blades. Did not have any carbide for fear of hitting any missed nails, but the TWs did as well as any other blade we tried.
Bill

[James Nugnes]

I am sure you will like your 14 Twelve. Can take some adjustment to get them properly set up. But once there operation is smooth and the cuts are very good for a 14.

[Richard Carner]

Used a lot of TW blades at the furniture plant. We resawed reclaimed beams and decking from heart pine. That stuff is tough on blades. Did not have any carbide for fear of hitting any missed nails, but the TWs did as well as any other blade we tried.
Bill

I have a friend in Homestead, FL he does a ton of processing specializing Cuban mahogany. He's swears by this brand.

[Richard Carner]

I am sure you will like your 14 Twelve. Can take some adjustment to get them properly set up. But once there operation is smooth and the cuts are very good for a 14.

It sure is a jump up from my Delta 14. Woodcraft was running a one day sale at $987. I bought the mobility kit and light while I was at it. Can't say much for their manual. The picts are horrible. Took me a while to install the mobility kit. The rear wheels had me stumped for a bit.

[James Nugnes]

Correct on the manual. I could have written a proper manual by the time I was done adjusting things.

The front wheel on the mobility kit is what had me scratching my head for awhile cause I could not get it to fully leave the floor when the saw was in the operating position. I have other mobility kits and this is the first one with enough play in the mechanism so that it simply will not leave the floor. It is not taking any of the weight apparently but it won't leave the floor. Called Laguna and the saw they keep in Tech Support does the same thing. So "its all good" I guess. That is a heck of a lot of slop in the mechanism though. Its not the position of the bolts for the bracket or the bolts in the mechanism either. I can see how much slop there is in there when I actuate the mechanism. I am OK with it...."sort of" but a simple comment either in their manual or their instructional video would save a ton of time for people who have mobility kits and are a bit stumped by this one.

What I found is that the components used are really pretty darned good for a $1,000 band saw. The factory assembly leaves something to be desired which is why I ended up adjusting so many elements of the saw that should have been adjusted during factory assembly.

I know the prevailing logic especially here is that there are so many band saws out there that there is no such thing as a band saw value any longer (meaning you get what you pay for period). To me, the way to establish value for YOU in a crowded field like that is to make a choice that favors the way you are going to use the tool. Plus I think the people at Grizzly and the people that like their products would argue that the premise that you can no longer find value in a crowded field is flawed in the first place. Now I didn't buy a Grizzly band saw. But it seems to me that they have a heck of a lot of very happy customers.

[Erik Loza]

I've had nothing but positive experiences with Timberwolf blades.

Erik

[Richard Carner]

Correct on the manual. I could have written a proper manual by the time I was done adjusting things.

The front wheel on the mobility kit is what had me scratching my head for awhile cause I could not get it to fully leave the floor when the saw was in the operating position. I have other mobility kits and this is the first one with enough play in the mechanism so that it simply will not leave the floor. It is not taking any of the weight apparently but it won't leave the floor. Called Laguna and the saw they keep in Tech Support does the same thing. So "its all good" I guess. That is a heck of a lot of slop in the mechanism though. Its not the position of the bolts for the bracket or the bolts in the mechanism either. I can see how much slop there is in there when I actuate the mechanism. I am OK with it...."sort of" but a simple comment either in their manual or their instructional video would save a ton of time for people who have mobility kits and are a bit stumped by this one.

The manual sucks. It's ridiculous to frustrate the customer with crap like this. And their site has no tutorials that I am aware of. Another thing about the mobility kit: they sent me the wrong size bolts that attach the rear wheels. I don't have a clue what machine they may go on but it isn't this one. I had to take a trip to hardware store and pick up some bolts. It must have taken me an hour to figure out how to assemble this kit. But mine does seem to move around pretty well on my ancient concrete floor that is pitted really badly. I think for what you get it is priced pretty high at $150.


What I found is that the components used are really pretty darned good for a $1,000 band saw. The factory assembly leaves something to be desired which is why I ended up adjusting so many elements of the saw that should have been adjusted during factory assembly.

Agreed about the components. I would argue though that band saws are pretty complicated machines. I think that they all have be tuned up in order to run correctly. It's the nature of the beast.

I know the prevailing logic especially here is that there are so many band saws out there that there is no such thing as a band saw value any longer (meaning you get what you pay for period). To me, the way to establish value for YOU in a crowded field like that is to make a choice that favors the way you are going to use the tool. Plus I think the people at Grizzly and the people that like their products would argue that the premise that you can no longer find value in a crowded field is flawed in the first place. Now I didn't buy a Grizzly band saw. But it seems to me that they have a heck of a lot of very happy customers.[/QUOTE]

"You pay for what you get" fits for me.

[James Nugnes]

I would be fine with the field adjustments if Laguna just did a better job of preparing you for them. There is a tutorial on the assembly of the 14 twelve at their web site but trust me, it is about as useless as the manual. If you go to the bottom of their home page, chose videos and the 14 twelve video is easy to find from there.

i have a thread here that I initially started just to cover one adjustment aspect that mine needed that was not covered anywhere by Laguna. That eventually turned into about five adjustment aspects that I ended up covering. If you search for the Laguna 14 twelve here it will come up for you. It titled something like "Laguna 14 twelve table trunnion issue". Funny I started it trying to help other owners with one adjustment and the adjustments just kept coming.

[Richard Carner]

I would be fine with the field adjustments if Laguna just did a better job of preparing you for them. There is a tutorial on the assembly of the 14 twelve at their web site but trust me, it is about as useless as the manual. If you go to the bottom of their home page, chose videos and the 14 twelve video is easy to find from there.

i have a thread here that I initially started just to cover one adjustment aspect that mine needed that was not covered anywhere by Laguna. That eventually turned into about five adjustment aspects that I ended up covering. If you search for the Laguna 14 twelve here it will come up for you. It titled something like "Laguna 14 twelve table trunnion issue". Funny I started it trying to help other owners with one adjustment and the adjustments just kept coming.

James, your thread with respect to the adjustment issues re: Laguna bandsaw are outstanding. And not just the problem with the trunnions and full movement of the table. You go on to explain in great detail what to do if the upper wheel hangs up. As well as how to make adjustments to the table relative to the blade. Thank you very much. I have copy/pasted this information in a Word document. I agree with you about the cheap ratcheting handles. I may convert to a decent set of threaded knobs. What a ridiculous pain they were to thread on! Once again - great contribution.

[glenn bradley]

I have run 3/4" TW 2-3 VPC for years. Great results with kiln and air dried material; I don't saw any green wood.

[Jim German]

I've got a Timber Wolf 3/4" x 2/3VPC M42(Bi-Metal) Blade and although I haven't used it a ton, Its worked quite well for what I have done. The other TW blades I have I've all been quite happy with. I will say hitting a nail will dull them pretty much instantly, but that's probably true of any HSS blade.

[terry mccammon]

+1 on the mobility kit. It does work well in terms of moving the saw but there is enough slop that my saw in never really solidly on the ground when I am using it. I got the kit and have not moved the saw very much so when I get a bit of ambition I am going to take it off and sell it.

[David Falkner]

I bought the 14 SUV about 6 months ago and never opened the manual - I just put the saw together. Even before it arrived I figured I would be tweaking on it for a while to get it like I want for resawing, but I think that's the case with most woodworking/metalworking gear. Just like buying a guitar, I figure the factory setup on the neck and action is just a starting point for me to fine tune to my needs and playing style.

Btw, the saw is awesome at resawing - you're gonna love your 14-12!

[Joe Craven]

Can't answer the question about blades but I'm curious if your delivery was impacted by the West Coast dock worker thing that ended late last month?

I have a 14/Twelve and mobility kit on order (already received blades, chose the Resaw King for that purpose) so I'm selfishly curious if I should expect my delivery any time soon. The only info I got from my local Woodcraft is that they'd call me when the equipment arrived... :(

[James Nugnes]

Those ratcheting handles and the spring on the mobility kit wheel are the only components of the 14 twelve that I think deserve a rating of "poorly mated to this tool" relative to their overall quality. Now I understand what really good ratcheting handles cost and once a supplier got through adding margins onto his cost, good ratcheting handles would cost us probably something like $75 added to the price of the tool, maybe more. IMO, we would be better off as users of the 14 twelve to hunt up either different ratcheting handles or apply something onto the trunnion bolts that does the job of holding them without actually being a handle....maybe wing nuts or big nuts that we could wrench on. So I am not unhappy with Laguna's decision really other than to say, ratcheting really does not give you much in that application. I would have preferred a higher quality fixture that did not ratchet if that is what it took to get to a price point. I would still have the option to get something that ratchets if I wanted it.

As for the mobility kit front wheel assembly. our poster above who tells us that he actually can't get the tool to stand firmly on its feet....that one bothers me. As I said, in my case, I can get the feet fully engaged with the floor. I just can't get the wheel fully disengaged from the floor. In my case I guess the weight of the saw itself prevents the wheel from causing enough interference. I agree.....if I could not get the tool firmly on its feet because of the darned wheel assembly, I would think that a problem. I do think a good deal of that slop can be taken out of the assembly. There are a fair number of nylox nuts on this tool. I am not sure if there are nylox nuts on the internals of the wheel assembly. There are not any on the bracket for the wheel. That could be an issue. But I really think it is sloppy because there is a spring in there that is just not up to snuff. Whereas the spring on the upper wheel tensioning assembly is a very good choice for our saw, I am inclined to think the slop in the wheel assembly will ultimately be traced to a weak spring. If I was really thinking straight when I had the wheel assembly off of the pedestal, I should have at least tried to find a different spring for it. That said, it would not have been easy to find a proper spring at the drop of a hat and it would have surely slowed up the assembly of the saw.

While operating the pedal actuated wheel and assembly without gravity working against that spring it seems to move the wheel properly. However as soon as gravity and the weight of the wheel and wheel axle bracket and shaft becomes part of the equation, meaning in its proper orientation with gravity in play, the wheel just sags and the spring simply does not appear to have the muscle required. Actually if you just look at that spring I think it is not hard to convince yourself that it would not likely be up to the task. It is not much of a spring even in the face of what does not appear to be much weight. Really while the ratcheting handles is something maybe best dealt with by us, the weak spring on the mobility kit is something best handled by Laguna with a change made in that spring part. The only other way I can think of to deal with it would be to try to find a complete wheel with the right shaft but with a much better spring and swap that front wheel right out......a bit much to expect of the customer IMO. But the only thing I can think of.

Since even the 14 twelve mobility kit at Laguna does the same thing on their saw as mine does, if buying the mobility kit, I would immediately trash the front wheel, buy a different front wheel with a more robust spring and go with that. Again being driven to that sort of solution is a bit galling when you consider the cost of that mobility kit. But its the only thing I can think of that both can be sourced readily and would IMO work. Probably something that would cost between $5 and $10 maybe from a HD or a Lowes.

[David Falkner]

I have a 1950 King Seeley 12" bandsaw and it has the best ratchet I've ever used, although it's not technically a ratchet. But it serves the same purpose.

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[Art Mann]

It sure is a jump up from my Delta 14. Woodcraft was running a one day sale at $987. I bought the mobility kit and light while I was at it. Can't say much for their manual. The picts are horrible. Took me a while to install the mobility kit. The rear wheels had me stumped for a bit.

I just checked and the Woodcraft web site says the Laguna 14/12 is on sale for $987 until March 27. I am planning to buy one before that time if I don't buy the LT14 SUV ($1619).

[David Falkner]

I just checked and the Woodcraft web site says the Laguna 14/12 is on sale for $987 until March 27. I am planning to buy one before that time if I don't buy the LT14 SUV ($1619).

I bought the SUV because I wanted 3 HP, 220V, and the ability to properly drive a 1" RK blade through about any wood for resawing purposes. It has not let me down; a great saw!