New 14" Shop Fox Bandsaw Gloat

[Vaughn McMillan]

Thanks to much advice here on the Creek, I took delivery Monday of my new Shop Fox W1706 14" bandsaw. Took me until tonight to muster up some help to get it lifted on the base, and the riser kit is not yet installed pending borrowing the right sized wrenches from the Snap-On Tools guy across the street (and some more muscle to lift the top off). Still, it's up, and it cuts wood. I still need to tweak it, but it was getting late and just wanted to see sawdust. I also don't plan to invest in a decent blade until I add the riser. The riser kit came with a 1/2 blade that I suspect is nothing to write home about, and I bought a 3/4" 3 TPI Olson at the dealer's when I picked up the saw, but I intend to get a decent 3/8" or so blade for most of the things I have in mind.

All in all, I'm impressed with the fit and finish, although there is a roughly 1" square spot behind the upper wheel where I can see the primer, but no paint. I'll call the dealer and see about getting some touch-up paint. The upper wheel seems to be well-balanced, and with no blade on, it'll spin for over 2 minutes with a moderate finger push. The base is substantial (about 60 pounds, IIRC) and there's more cast iron than I'd expected. The Shop Fox has a few upgrades over its G0555 cousin, namely cast iron wheels, the enclosed base, beefier knobs in some places, and a rack and pinion raise/lower adjustment for the upper guide assembly.

You'll notice the saw is set up on a half sheet of 3/4" CDX ply. I determined Monday night after assembling the mobile base that it didn't have enough clearance to roll on my carpeted garage floor. (The previous owners carpeted the garage, and I left it in place when we moved in. Over time, and since I've now I've caught this woodworking affliction, I'm starting to rethink the logic behind that decision. Especially since my "DC" currently consists of a Shop Vac and my "cyclone" is a Dyson Animal.)

Anyway, on with the show...here are the two main pieces prior to assembly:

27169

Here's the front view after putting it together:

27167

And the back side:

27168

And a shot with the doors opened up:

27170

Now all I've gotta do is get some help so I can finish putting it together. I know I'm not man enough to take the top off by myself. :o

Thanks again to all the Creekers who offered advice and opinions.

- Vaughn

P.S. Any hot tips on finding bandsaw box ideas? Preferably free, i.e., websites? Thanks in advance.

[tod evans]

congratulations on your saw vaughn! as for boxes......design your own! i`ve seen your work, you`re capable of doing whatever your warped little mind can envision :) so build your own stuff that`s all original.. it`ll sell. .02 tod

[Karl Laustrup]

congratulations on your saw vaughn! as for boxes......design your own! i`ve seen your work, you`re capable of doing whatever your warped little mind can envision :) so build your own stuff that`s all original.. it`ll sell. .02 tod

Plans? Plans? You don't need no stinking plans. Just get a chunk 'o wood and start cutting. ;) :eek: :D

Congrats on the saw. Now make more sawdust.

Karl

[Nate Rogers]

Nice gloat, Congrats Vaughn..

[John Bailey]

Vaughn,

It sure looks like you get a lot of saw for the money with the Shop Fox. Congratulations, looks like a good decision.

I would agree with the others about doing your own designs. From your past work, I'd say you've plenty of creative juices running through you. Trust the juice, do your own designs, and, of course, show us your stuff.

John

[Maurice Ungaro]

Vaughn,
That sure is a nice looking machine! Almost too pretty to use :D
Is that a quick release tension lever I see on the back side shot? Looks cool. Have you gotten any blades yet? I can recommend the Wood Slicer fom Highland Hardware - goes through stuff like "buttah": http://www.tools-for-woodworking.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1293

Be safe with it, and enjoy!

[Guy Germaine]

Post edited due to my lack of class. ;)
Nice saw Vaughn. Keep us posted on hoe the thing works. I'll be in the market for one some time next year.

[Travis Porter]

Congrats. Always nice to get a new toy, um tool.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Vaughn......I'd appreciate a feedback report after you've had a chance to use that saw a while! It could be on my short list!

[Bruce Page]

Vauhan, congratulations on a great gloat! The Shop Fox looks like a sweet BS. I was able to put the riser on my old Delta 14” by myself, it would've been a lot easier with some help.

[John Miliunas]

Congrats, Vaughn! Looks to be a substantial BS. I like the motor mounting on that as opposed to the typical mount in the cabinet. I'll bet it saves a bit on vibration, too!:) Keep us posted on your more intense tests with it and, most importantly, enjoy!!!:D :cool:

[Dan Forman]

Vaughn---Lookin good!!! I think this will serve you well in the years to come. Must be a relief to finally have it in hand.

Carpeted garage??? :D

Dan

[Bernie Weishapl]

Vaugh looks mighty fine. Should give you years of service. Don't give me I am not man enough stuff, I put my Griz riser in myself and I am a old man. :eek: :D I should have had help to. It would have made it a lot easier. Have fun and make some sawdust.

[Jim Becker]

How come nobody's said YOU SUCK yet???

'Cause we don't say things like that at SMC...kiddos are members, too... ;)

------

Congrats on the new saw, Vaughn!

[John Bailey]

No offense intended Guy, but Mr. Becker is correct. Creekers express themselves a little different.

John

[Vaughn McMillan]

Thanks for the comments, all. I've started the blade-shopping process, and a 1/2" Wood Slicer from Highland is definitely on the list. (Thanks for the link, Maurice, and yes, it's a tension release lever...very handy already.)

One minor issue I thought of last night after posting was the fact that Shop Fox was kind enough to include a metric end wrench and an allen wrench in the parts bags, to aid in the setup and adjustment. Unfortunately, these tools fit about half the fasteners you need to move. For example, to adjust the roller guides, you need the allen wrench supplied, plus one other size. The end wrench fits some of the nuts and bolts, but not the nuts and bolts that attach the saw to the base (during assembly) or the locking nuts on the tension adjuster (during use), for example. Seems like if they are gonna include tools, they should include both sizes needed.

Regarding bandsaw box ideas, heck...I wasn't looking for plans...just ideas to steal as a starting point. ;) (John Bailey, I'm gonna adopt your suggestion as a policy: Trust the juice.) I'll do some searching here to see what comes up. I know I've seen some nice ones here.

As far as being man enough to install the riser myself, ever since I broke my back in 2001, I can't lift 80 pounds at shoulder to head height like I used to. :rolleyes: (Especially doing it one-handed, while threading a bolt into a hole with the other hand.) I think I'll wait and get help. I'd imagine the Snap-On guy across the street and I can do it in about 5 minutes or less. I just gotta catch him before he settles in for the evening.

And Guy, your comment was taken as I'm sure it was intended, with no offense to me at all (I was laughing), but as Jim mentioned, we try to keep the tone here chilled a bit for all the kids and grandmas out there who might be looking in. (I'm sure I'm not the only one here who's much more polite and G-rated in writing than I am in person.) :D

- Vaughn

[Lee DeRaud]

(I'm sure I'm not the only one here who's much more polite and G-rated in writing than I am in person.) :DUm, yeah, well...(shuffles feet and tries to look innocent):rolleyes:

Nice score, Vaughn.

[Corey Hallagan]

Nice Vaughn, Enjoy the new saw, looking forward to seeing more great looking boxes etc.!

Corey

[Mark Singer]

Vaughn,
That is a nice saw...enjoy it !

[Andy Hoyt]

Um, yeah, well...(shuffles feet and tries to look innocent):rolleyes:

Nice score, Vaughn.

Yeah, but he's doing that shuffling on some killer 70's shag carpeting.

Only in LA, Only at Vaughn's.


Nice saw Vaughn. What's her name?

[oak barrett]

nice rig vaughn...

whats the price difference between the shop fox and the $457.25 (shipped) G0555


thanks

oak

[john whittaker]

Carpeted floor??:confused: And look at the purdy window treatments on the garage door.:eek: What's next...sipping wine spritzers and installing one of those new fangled spray misters that make the room smell like spring flowers:p

If I sound jeaulous....well....I'm not.....not very much....
Oh heck...What Guy said:mad:

Nice saw Vaughn. I followed your quest and think you made a wise choice. I actually tried to find a Shop Fox dealer in my area but no one carries the product here. Have fun.

[Matt Crew]

Congrat's Vaughn. Would appretiate some feedback myself. Hope to be looking at getting a bs come spring, I hope.

Would that be green shag carpeting?:p

[Vaughn McMillan]

nice rig vaughn...

whats the price difference between the shop fox and the $457.25 (shipped) G0555


thanks

oak Oak, by the time I added the riser block and mobile base, the Griz was going to be pretty close to $600. I was able to drive 45 minutes during a long lunch hour Monday and pick up the same setup in white for about $650, including tax. I bought it from Battel's Hardware...I believe they're in Whittier. Nice mom and pop type of Ace hardware store that also happens to carry a bunch of WW equipment. The fact that they had 3/4" x 105" bandsaw blades on the shelf says something about the kind of store it is. I didn't have time to look around, but I told them I needed to come back sometime when I could spend a couple hours drooling on stuff.

To all you jealous folks like John W who are longing for carpeted garages, rest assured, it's not shag (I do have some class, it just doesn't show), and it's a nice seafoam green, with padauk dust highlights. And don't knock the sweet-smelling spray mister thingies...they smell better than me. :D

BTW, I did get the riser block installed this evening. I did have some help, but the top assembly was lighter than I'd anticipated. (Even I could lift it.) The instructions for replacing the guide arm (or whatever the part that holds the upper roller guides is called) were pretty sparse, but I figured out how to disengage the rack and pinion mechanism to get the arm out. After a bit more tuning, I was able to peel 1/32" strips off the edge of a piece of 3/4" birdseye maple, then I cut a 10" firewood log in half just for grins. Still looking forward to seeing what it'll do with good blades. I think I'll be very happy with this saw.

- Vaughn

[oak barrett]

thanks for the reply vaughn..


i assume the grizzly resaw fence will fit on that thing.... have you considered getting that as well?

[Vaughn McMillan]

Hadn't seen the resaw fence Oak, and couldn't find it in a quick look at the Griz site or catalog. Do you have a link? I'm betting your assumption about it fitting is correct. Everything else seems to be the same.

- Vaughn

[Guy Germaine]

None taken, and I appologize.

[oak barrett]

vaughn..

here is the link to the griz resaw fence for the g0555..

there are some threads about it on a different WW forum where one of the grzzly folks frequents... he mentions a discount to $49.95 for those forums members until the end of the year... i sent you a pm with the link...



http://www.grizzly.com/products/item.aspx?itemnumber=H7584

http://images.grizzly.com/support/forum0001/Fence-detail-A.jpg

http://images.grizzly.com/grizzlycom/pics/jpeg500/H/h7584_det2.jpg
http://images.grizzly.com/grizzlycom/pics/jpeg500/H/H7584.jpg