Foot Brake, Motor Brake or no Brake on bandsaw

[Matthew Curtis]

Which do you prefer? Foot brake, Motor brake, or no brake.

[Tom Trees]

I don't think I would like a foot brake on my 24" bandsaw, although my say is a bit high off the ground with the mobile base.
Yes, I could adjust it a bit lower, but since I don't have a brake I don't need to.
I think of the foot brake as an emergency stop, as you would wear out the shoe if you kept doing it, you would probably whack
your knee off the table if you were in an emergency situation from the look of some, although it would be no bother to make an extension for the
break pedal to lower it or make it adjustable with flat stock and a few bolts.

I'm running my machine off a cheap VFD, and I just set the parameters to a coasting stop to not stress anything.
I just think of it they way used to be, when they were water powered :)
If I need to stop it you can use a bit of scrap.
I had a 20" 240v single phase saw before, and I thought the motor brake was really harsh as was the startup.
I have never used any other machine with a brake, so it may be just a case of getting used to it.

Another thing if you are mounting switches, I found I often stopped the machine by accident with my hip when cutting.
A slight bit annoying, and I defiantly would not like this to happen when resawing tall stuff, as there would be a bump on the timber from stopping.
I don't mind this happening with the tablesaw, yet...although I have heard this can be dangerous to go back to a previous cut.
I have since had to wire up a lightswitch as the new VFD on the bandsaw needs a part (relay) for the old switches to work.
I have not used the saw much since wiring the switch, but don't have any issues yet.
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Tom

[jack forsberg]

Depends what bandsaw I am using . Of the 5 saws 2 have electric and the largest has a hand brake

[John Lanciani]

The foot brake on my MM20 is darned near perfect. It's in just the right spot and the fact that it functions as the off switch makes it a simple matter to turn the saw off with a tap of my foot without having to let go of anything. I don't use it to completely stop the blade unless I need to.

[Ben Rivel]

Got a foot brake on my Hammer N4400 that is also connected to a switch that kills the motor when the brake is pressed and I use it all the time. Nice feature to have.

[Bruce Page]

I've used the foot brake on my MM16 only a few times, it works as it should, I just don't use it. I use the off switch and let it coast to a stop. I'm the only one in the shop. I don't think a blade break is important enough be a determining factor in a purchasing decision.
JMHO

[Doug Hepler]

I agree with Bruce Page. I bought what I considered the best saw for the money even though it did not have a brake. There were a lot of factors with higher priority like resaw capacity, blade tensioning capacity (I wanted to be able to tension and use a 3/4" blade), easy de-tensioning, cast iron table, decent fence, . . .

Doug

[John K Jordan]

I would love a foot brake on my 18" bandsaw. I can build the mechanism. I thought that a fiber break pad bearing against the lower wheel might work but I'd like to see how a factory brake works.

JKJ

[David Kumm]

I don't like to walk away from any machine with blades still running so mechanical foot brake, braking reisistor on vfd, Short stop injection brake or similar ( Versibrake ) are all used on my machines. Don't care as long as I have something. Dave

[John TenEyck]

The wheels on my Grizzly 0636X spin for a very long time if you don't step on the brake. I don't want to risk getting into that big bad blade after my attention is somewhere else, so I use it every time to turn off the machine and stop the blade. Works fine. The wheels on my little 14" Delta, on the other hand, stop pretty quickly on their own.

John

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I have a disease that cost me my hearing. It effects the inner ear and thus effects my balance. My MM-16 has a footbrake and I always use it.

Do what is right for you. There is no right or wrong in this matter IMO.

[Jeff Duncan]

As far as preferences go I prefer the footbrake. Generally speaking in the woodshop I prefer mechanical systems to electronic, mechanical I can usually wrap me head around how to fix, electronic gizmos....not so much. I wouldn't say a brake is necessary on a bandsaw, but it sure is a nice option to have.

good luck,
JeffD

[Jim Becker]

My MM16 has a foot brake but I've only ever used it a few times...it is a good safety feature, however...when you need it.

[glenn bradley]

Don't have one and don't miss it. Maybe if I had one I'd miss it but, sounds like there's folks that have one and don't often use it. I'd consider it a nice-to-have, not a deal breaker or "short-list" item for determining my selection.

[Rod Sheridan]

I like the electronic motor brake, either vis a VFD or DC injection, automatic, you don't have to do anything and no mechanical parts...........Regards, Rod.

[Larry Copas]

I have a 3 phase 20" Delta. When I ran it off a converter I used the foot brake most of the time. I never used the foot brake after switching to a VFD with built in braking.

[Mike Ontko]

I agree with Glenn's statement that it's a nice-to-have item but not an absolute necessity. I purposely purchased that feature in the 17" Grizzly G0513X2BF that comes with a motor brake that can be actuated by a panel mounted off switch or corresponding foot brake pedal. I was building beds at the time, and the pedal came in handy when resawing seven-foot lengths of 8/4 ash. It's not an absolute necessity, but then no safety device is actually needed for operating a particular piece of machinery. I found it's helpful to have the foot actuated brake when you're hands are tied up keeping the material steady.

[Chris Hachet]

I like using a VFD for braking on band saws. I also use it on my table saw and am probably going to set my lathe up that way also.