Buying a large capacity bandsaw?

[Matthew Banchero]

I have been looking for a way to convert some of the waste wood from my tree service to small slabs and bowl blanks. I was looking into a portable bandsaw, but I'd be looking at $10k+ for anything halfway decent. At my wife's request I started looking at vertical bandsaws (she's the artist :-) . I'm considering the Grizzly G0568. It looks like it will do a 16" tall piece with enough width for some decent dimension material.

Are there other models I should be looking at for this application? It looks like the G0568 is right at $3000...I can swing that but not a whole lot more.

Any feedback on this machine. Searching the forums it looks like the big Grizzly's have a decent rep.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

Matt

[Bradley Gray]

I think a vertical bandsaw would be fine for making turning blanks but not so good for making slabs where a bandsaw mill do slabs, lumber and bowl blanks.

Check out sawmillexchange.com for used mills.

[Patrick Curry]

Grizzly is well regarded for the 'value' and customer service. I've owned one of their 8" jointers for a number of years and am very happy. Not many (if any) alternatives in the same price range.

That at being said, I decided to buy a Laguna LT 1800 bandsaw. Very nice fit and finish. Love the ceramic guides. 4hp leason motor and its does everything I need. Check them out. Also, I've been extremely pleased with their customer service.

[Bob Bouis]

I have a MM24 and I'd almost rather have the Grizzly 24" (or any other saw with less resaw). When you start getting up into the ridiculous resaw range (like 24"), you lose "beam strength" (i.e., rigidity) in the band. You can make up for it somewhat with more tension or thicker bands, somewhat, because of the larger wheels, but the extra resaw isn't really useful. Also, a vertical bandsaw is useless for cutting big slabs. Logs are too heavy and impossible to feed straight.

If you just want to cut slabs and not thinner lumber, a chainsaw mill will do it for cheap.

[Prashun Patel]

To harvest logs with a mill you really want to be able to take the mill to the wood.

Ask yourself how many slabs you really want. It is one thing if you are going into business to sell, but for your own use, a single big log can yield years of wood.

For my money I would buy a great chainsaw for blanks and then hire someone with a wood mizer for anything larger.

[Van Huskey]

As the other made clear slabbing is not the vertical bandsaws forte'. Not that occasionally slabbing a (relatively) small log isn't possible but after doing it once or twice you likely won't want to do it on any regular basis. Find a local sawyer to do your slabbing, it will be far more cost efficient. Turners tend to rely more on the chainsaw than the bandsaw for the heavy work of cutting blanks. That said a lot of them do cut their bowl blanks down nice and round on the bandsaw. Not a lot of turners have or need a 24" bandsaw for this work but I won't tell you not to spend money if you like.

What size lathe do you have? That goes a long way in helping to determine what size BS you need to prep your blanks.

[Matthew Banchero]

I work with a guy who has a custom portable mill that can make 42" wide cuts. He does the big stuff for me...at a rate of $100-125/hr. I'm looking to be able to take small burls and cut chunks without loosing half of my material to the curf of my saw chain. As for me being able to go to the wood, it isn't relevant. I'm only utilizing wood my clients as me to get rid of for them. the vast majority is beetle killed pine and fir with brown cubical rot with extensive shake, but every once in a while I take out a maple with a burl or dead walnut tree that should be used for something more than firewood or mulch.