Green Rikon 10-325

[Paul Schaefer]

I've got a line on a used Rikon 10-325, one of the older green ones for $175. If it looks half as good as the pictures the seller provided, the price is more than fair. I've done some research on this and other forums, and the reviews are generally very positive. I've got two questions for the Creek:

Are there any bugaboos associated with this saw that I've somehow missed in my research?

How the heck do you move one of these? I've read that bandsaws should be shipped 'spine'-down. I'm guessing I'd have to take the table off the saw, then take the saw off the base, and hope that either the seller has a truck to move it in or that it can fit in the back of my wife's Subaru Forester with the seats folded down.

[Frederick Skelly]

I bought mine new. It does everything I need it to do. No bugaboos unique to this machine to watch for, that Im aware of. But look it over as you would any other - start it and make a test cut, check the tracking, look for damage or wear, etc. When you bring it home, go over it for loose screws/bolts and give it a good cleaning and lube.

Mine was packed spine down, without the table or base. Yup, it's no fun moving it and you'll need help to lift it vertical and onto the base.

I paid $700 for mine about 3 years ago, and that was the best price Id seen anywhere, after watching for a year. So if it checks out as a solid machine, you did well at $175, Paul.

Let us know how it turns out.

[Matt Day]

It weighs less than 250 lbs. it should be easy to handle and should fit in your Forester with the hatch open a bit. Amazon says its 75" tall. You could separate the business end from the base I'm sure, which would make it fit in your car. I did this with my old 14" Delta and it fit easily. Or you can push the front seat all the way forward, remove the headrest, and lay the seat back all the way. This lets you use the front passenger seat area. I do this for lumber and let's me hold 9' lengths.

All of my stationary machines are heavier than that and I've moved them all with my forester ('04), sometimes with a trailer but still.

[Curt Harms]

To move it, 4 bolts remove the saw from the base. At that point I'd think it would fit in the back of a Subaru. I just measured mine, the base of the saw itself is 21" X 15", it's about 54" tall. I don't think that removing the cast iron wheels & motor would be a huge job if necessary. Of course remove the table - that sucker ain't light and the mounting holes are not centered so you might need help holding the table while starting at least one bolt when you reassemble. One nice thing about the 2 piece design - saw & base - is that it's easy to build your own base to make the table height where you like it. I did that and might redo it to make the band saw table height about the same as the table saw and jointer/planer. That way I could use one as outfeed support for another. Right now the band saw table is about 2" higher than T.S. or J/P.

[lee cox]

I just sold my blue 14 inch Rikon last week. We used a dolly and some ratchet straps. We moved the whole thing upright and strapped it in the trailer.

The green Rikon 14 inchers had smaller motors than the blue ones.