Starting / Stopping Bandsaw - Frequent or Continuous?

[Paul F Spiegel]

I have a Grizzly 0514x which is about 11-12 years old. It's been a great machine, and I've not put a lot of stress on it. For the last week or two, I've been resawing some lumber from a couple trees that came down. (Ash) I've been impressed with how well the saw has been handling logs sometimes 15" in diameter and 4-5 feet in length. With each cut of a log, I shut down the saw, reposition the log and the makeshift fence, and then start another cut. Toward the end of today, I hit the start button and the saw sounded like it was binding. Turned off power and checked the fly wheels, but they were moving just fine. Tried again and blew a fuse.

Now I'm thinking the capacitor(s) are going bad. This is a 19" saw w/ a 3hp motor running on 220v. In doing some research, I've read (on this forum) competing advice. Some say I should start the saw and let it run, even while I'm setting up for the next cut. Others have advised that there is no harm done in frequent start/stop cycles as I've been doing the last week or two.

Not to keep the argument going, but any advice on this question? (Any thoughts on this being a bad capacitor will also be appreciated.)

Thanks,
Paul

[Bill Dufour]

Most motors are rated at 10-12 starts per hour. any more can lead to overheating.
Did it sound bad under load or free running, same question for when the fuse blew.

[Paul F Spiegel]

Up until the point of failure, it gave no warning of problems - things were always quick to start and free-running.
When it failed, it sounded like the blade was binding. In reality, the blade/flywheels were free and clear, which made me think the capacitors were not cranking out the power to get the motor spinning.
I definitely cycled more than 10-12 times per hour. Maybe 2-3 times that, depending on how long to adjust the fence and setup the next cut.

[John K Jordan]

When sawing log segments into turning blanks I sometimes saw for several hours without stopping the bandsaw. (My saw is an 18' Rikon, 220v.) I do stop when setting up a log section where I have to do something special to prepare for that cut that may be unsafe with the blade running or if the setup might take a little extra time, but otherwise I just leave it running. I'm not so worried about multiple starts as much as the time it takes for the saw to come to a complete stop. (mine has no foot brake) Note that I've had more switches fail on machines than capacitors.

I've had capacitors go out on several machines over the years and they all acted the same - turn on the power and the motor just hummed and didn't turn. The lathe/bandsaw/belt sander/whatever could always be started (carefully!) moving by hand (or a push stick for the bandsaw!) On one small lathe I could make it run forward or backwards depending on the direction I turned the handwheel. Note that I would NEVER leave the switch on in this condition for more than a second or two without kick starting it in fear of causing damage.

My failed start/run capacitors have had a strong and distinctive burned/chemical smell.

I'm no expert on motor capacitors but a binding sound and blown fuse makes me suspect something else. (BTW, what does "binding" sound like - metal against metal, screech, what?)

JKJ



I have a Grizzly 0514x which is about 11-12 years old. It's been a great machine, and I've not put a lot of stress on it. For the last week or two, I've been resawing some lumber from a couple trees that came down. (Ash) I've been impressed with how well the saw has been handling logs sometimes 15" in diameter and 4-5 feet in length. With each cut of a log, I shut down the saw, reposition the log and the makeshift fence, and then start another cut. Toward the end of today, I hit the start button and the saw sounded like it was binding. Turned off power and checked the fly wheels, but they were moving just fine. Tried again and blew a fuse.

Now I'm thinking the capacitor(s) are going bad. This is a 19" saw w/ a 3hp motor running on 220v. In doing some research, I've read (on this forum) competing advice. Some say I should start the saw and let it run, even while I'm setting up for the next cut. Others have advised that there is no harm done in frequent start/stop cycles as I've been doing the last week or two.

Not to keep the argument going, but any advice on this question? (Any thoughts on this being a bad capacitor will also be appreciated.)

Thanks,
Paul

[Rob Charles]

From the outside looking in: If you feel more comfortable and relaxed when you "reposition the log and the makeshift fence, and then start another cut" and do so in a safe, unhurried way, by all means, please continue to do so. The cost and effort in replacing a capacitor, or even a motor will be minuscule in comparison to an injury. I learned long ago to take time, keep a clean work area and be safe in when working in the shop.

As an added thought, it might be worth the time & effort to check check your saw's circuit for high resistance, or loose, connections.

[Paul F Spiegel]

When sawing log segments into turning blanks I sometimes saw for several hours without stopping the bandsaw. (My saw is an 18' Rikon, 220v.) I do stop when setting up a log section where I have to do something special to prepare for that cut that may be unsafe with the blade running or if the setup might take a little extra time, but otherwise I just leave it running. I'm not so worried about multiple starts as much as the time it takes for the saw to come to a complete stop. (mine has no foot brake) Note that I've had more switches fail on machines than capacitors.

I've had capacitors go out on several machines over the years and they all acted the same - turn on the power and the motor just hummed and didn't turn. The lathe/bandsaw/belt sander/whatever could always be started (carefully!) moving by hand (or a push stick for the bandsaw!) On one small lathe I could make it run forward or backwards depending on the direction I turned the handwheel. Note that I would NEVER leave the switch on in this condition for more than a second or two without kick starting it in fear of causing damage.

My failed start/run capacitors have had a strong and distinctive burned/chemical smell.

I'm no expert on motor capacitors but a binding sound and blown fuse makes me suspect something else. (BTW, what does "binding" sound like - metal against metal, screech, what?)

JKJ

If I pushed the wood into the blade (instead of just before the blade) and then try to start the saw, it might bind, where the blade doesn't move and there's a hum while the motor tries to get things going. I never let it go on more than a split second. The problem I'm having with the saw sounds exactly like this, except I can move the blade and flywheels by hand with no resistance.
Now that you mention it, I detected no odor from a burned out capacitor.

[Alex Zeller]

My 514X has a heater (Grizzly calls it an over load relay) along with the magnetic switch. I would assume that yours has the same. It should protect your motor from drawing too much current. My manual says it's set for 12 amps. When you say you blew a fuse are you talking about tripping a circuit breaker in your panel? If so what amperage breaker is it? The relay is connected to the magnetic switch so the motor should just shut off (the same as if you hit the off button).

My motor is also an induction motor, so no brushes. About the only thing that can go bad is the windings and the bearings. If the motor spins freely then the bearings sound like they aren't the problem. If the motor's windings shorted out it should have tripped the relay as long as it's set at 12 amps. Caps are cheap and simple to swap out. I would just get the specs off of each one and get them from Amazon. There's a couple tests you could do if you have a multi-meter.

[John K Jordan]

If I pushed the wood into the blade (instead of just before the blade) and then try to start the saw, it might bind, where the blade doesn't move and there's a hum while the motor tries to get things going. I never let it go on more than a split second. The problem I'm having with the saw sounds exactly like this, except I can move the blade and flywheels by hand with no resistance.
Now that you mention it, I detected no odor from a burned out capacitor.


If things on the saw turn easily by hand but turning on the switch instantly trips a breaker/blows a fuse I'd check some things.
(assuming you have a multimeter and are familiar with using it)
- Unplug the saw and check for proper power at the receptacle perhaps plug something else into the receptacle if you have another machine with the same plug. (It's possible a developing power problem could have done what you described, although that seems remote.)
- Unplug the saw and check the resistance across the plug terminals, should be an open circuit with the switch off.
- Check the switch and the wiring from the switch to the motor and the electrical connections at the motor.
- Check the motor windings. A local motor repair shop could do this easily if you take the motor to them.

JKJ

[Paul F Spiegel]

Well, I finally cleared enough "stuff" to get to the motor and mag switch - While I never smelled or heard the capacitor go bad, the small leak of oil/fluid from the starting cap tells me that's probably my problem. Have ordered a replacement from Amazon, so should know more soon.

To answer a previous question - I wired the bandsaw into a disconnect switch with two 15amp fuses - these blow before the circuit breaker has a chance to react.

Thanks for the feedback - i'll post something if the capacitor replacement turns out to NOT fix the issue.