24" bandsaw options

[Thomas Crawford]

Hoping some folks on here could shed some light on their experience with various 24" bandsaws. Right now I have a Jet 16" and am considering moving up to 24". I may or may not keep the 16 if I do it. Looking for a bigger table, more power, bigger resaw capability.

I had long planned to get a Sawstop but I'm rethinking that to save space. Would do the large bandsaw and tracksaw instead. Precise joinery with hand tools.

Felder, Powermatic, Laguna, Grizzly, etc

[Mike Kees]

I have a 1980 Centauro CO 600. I found it about a year ago. This is an excellent saw with a huge table. Mine has about 14" of resaw capacity since I changed to Carter guides on it. I use it for ripping and resawing wood exclusively. My saw has a 3 h.p. motor only ,however once the solid cast iron wheels get up to speed there is about 120 pounds of "mass in motion" that does not slow down when Resawing or cutting up logs etc. I rebuilt this machine and at the end am in it for about $1100. I would look used, if you do not mind a bit of work.

[Jim Becker]

When you get up into the 24" space, you're talking major nice tools no matter what the brand name on it. SCM should be on your list along with the others you mention plus "old iron" if you can find something that meets your approval and you're willing to do anything necessary to make it sing the song of its people.

[Mick Simon]

I have the SCM S500P 20" saw with a 4.8hp motor and 20" resaw capacity that I bought new last summer. I'll add a +1 to Jim's advice to look at SCM also.
On another note, if you have the room I would not get rid of the Jet. Many of the larger saws do not track smaller blades without changing or modifying the guides. I kept my old Inca for that reason and it's a luxury to leave it set up with a ¼" and the SCM set up to resaw.

[Tom M King]

Absolutely keep the smaller saw.

[Rick Potter]

I picked up a 2000 24" Agazzani a while back. I love it, and it is a monster with a 1" carbide blade. I suppose I could put a small blade on it, but that would be like driving the Rolls to work instead of the Chevy. I don't turn often, but I have saved some elm and birch from our yard trees, and hope to get some small amount of useable wood from them for family gifts.

I am glad I kept my 14" Delta, and use it much more often than the big one.

I am thinking about adapting my Jessem slider to the big one, and building a flip up outfeed table.

[H. Gregory Porter]

+1 for SCM (Minimax)

call Sam Blasco at SCM. He is a full time woodworker and a rep for them. Very knowledgeable and had many practical suggestions. I seem to recall he owns several brands. I purchased my Sawstop first. But had I spoken with Sam beforehand, I’d likely not have the table saw. Even if you choose another manufacturer, I’d still suggest a conversation with him. You should be able to get his number through SCM. I believe his shop is in Texas.

Search “sam blasco minimax” in YouTube and you can see a few videos. If you can’t find his contact, email me at gpdeut2929 at gmail.com

[Jim Becker]

... and building a flip up outfeed table.

This has worked out for me really nicely, Rick. I don't need that extra support often, but when I do, it comes in handy. And when it's not in use, it, um....doesn't block the door. :) Flip is in the right side of the photo in front of the clamp wall.

428476

[Rick Potter]

Lookin good, Jim.

That is pretty much what I have in mind.

What do you think of a permanent 6 or 8" (out)side table extension? I have been considering that also, with a miter slot in it that fits a normal miter gage.

[Jim Becker]

Lookin good, Jim.

That is pretty much what I have in mind.

What do you think of a permanent 6 or 8" (out)side table extension? I have been considering that also, with a miter slot in it that fits a normal miter gage.

The "permanent" side of mine behind the blade is about 24", give or take. The kind of work you do should influence how you equip your bandsaw "station" relative to extra permanent material support on the outfeed side. (Infeed generally needs to be more flexible because your physical position will move around, depending on what and how you are cutting with the machine. If you do, say 8" permanent, then you have that plus the distance to the floor minus the thickness of the surface for your combination of fixed and folding support. I used a leftover piece of Ikea counter top from a bathroom renovation project for my support surfaces...there's a thread about that (https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?259888-Project-Bandsaw-Outfeed-from-um-scraps-)&highlight=bandsaw).

[Thomas Crawford]

Thanks everyone. Looks like following get me single phase 24":

SCM minimax S600p, resaw 24", motor 4.8HP (breaker? likely 30A)
Laguna 24HD Italian, resaw 17", motor 6HP (40A breaker!)
Powermatic 24, resaw 15", motor 5HP (30amp breaker)
Felder 640, resaw 15 3/4", motor 3kW/~4.5
Felder 610?

random old arn, very difficult to find in my region
Grizzly tops out at 19.5"

For the 240V ciruits in my shop I ran all 10ga wire so I'm covered for 30A. I have 1 circuit run with 6ga. Probably rules out the Laguna for flexibility.

Will need to see some quotes but I doubt the Powermatic makes sense. SCM might be getting out of my price range. Hard to know if I'd ever resaw anything at 24" anyway.

[Bill Dufour]

Do not rule out three phase. Probably cheaper to buy a used three phase saw and add a VFD then pay a premium for a high hp single phase saw. A rule of thumb is any used equipment that is three phase is heavy industrial stuff that should last a long time.
Bil lD

[Rod Wolfy]

Thanks everyone. Looks like following get me single phase 24":

random old arn, very difficult to find in my region
Grizzly tops out at 19.5"

For the 240V ciruits in my shop I ran all 10ga wire so I'm covered for 30A. I have 1 circuit run with 6ga. Probably rules out the Laguna for flexibility.

SCM might be getting out of my price range. Hard to know if I'd ever resaw anything at 24" anyway.


Thomas, I found your post interesting. I used to have a Felder combination machine & Aggazani 20". I sold my 14" bandsaw to buy the 20" Aggy, but then regretted selling the smaller bandsaw. I was frustrated by switching the large, heavy blades all the time for the small, easy to cut radius curves and wished that I had kept the 14" with a dedicated 3/16" on it.

I moved and downsized about 6 years ago, selling both of the Felder and the Aggy. I actually had a Bosch job site table saw for a few years after the move, but I was frustrated by not being able to rip very well. I learned years ago to use a track saw to cut down my sheet goods, before putting them on the Felder (I didn't have the large 8' sliding table version). After the move, I still used saw horses and my Festool to cut down plywood. IMO, I would not give up the 3hp table saw for a 24" 5hp bandsaw. The benefits to me of using a table saw for ripping down 8/4 Walnut or a 30" sheet of plywood, or cutting off little 1" strips for a cutting board are too much to give up. I got a Sawstop with a 36" table a couple years ago. I have been considering adding a sliding table to the left of the blade.

I have a Jet Pro 14" bandsaw, but it seems small. I have never resawed a 16" piece of lumber and I don't know of too many hardwood dealers that commonly sell large amounts of lumber that wide. In all honesty, I don't resaw or veneer much. But, I recently wanted a bandsaw that could handle bigger blades and cuts, too.

I saw a 2008 16" Minimax locally for $2100 (13" resaw), a 2001 28" Aggy for $3k (16" resaw) and a 2016 Felder B4400 for $2800. None had a quick tensioning bar. I looked at some new Felders/AMC/Centauros on line, but they don't have quick tension bars, apparently. The 24" AMC (Star 600) has 15" of resaw.

I ordered a 21" Grizzly last week with a 5hp motor (G0531B, with 14" resaw capacity). I went to the showroom last night (Bellingham, WA) and they had 17", 19", 21" and the big 24" bandsaws in stock. I took some photos, but mostly of the 21". Almost no one there, due to the Corona virus.

The 19" was really nice; however, it only had 12" of resaw. You could upgrade to their 5hp resaw machine, with 19" resaw and all the bells and whistles (including a power raising/lowering post); however, they didn't have a floor model to demo and the price was $3800. They claim its as good or better than the Italian models and I would believe this.

I was really interested in the 24" with a 16" capacity. They have it with a 5hp one phase or a 7.5 3-phase motor. It was REALLY nice. The 21" and 24" have tables that tilt with a rack and pinion. They were driven by a double V belt and had magnetic safety switches on the upper doors (the lower door has a bar to the upper door and won't open, unless the upper door is opened). I noted that the motor was mounted above the wheel center of axis (vs. below - closer to the floor), which made it a 165" or 180" blade vs. the 142" blade on the 19" saws, which had the motor closer to the floor and the center of the wheel above. The 24" had metal blade height and table tilt handles and I really considered cancelling my 21" to get the 24". The 24" was over 900 lbs and had a foot brake, with a wired switch to the motor.

The tipping points to me, were the base on the 21" was 33" wide and the base on the 24" was 41" wide. I would be giving up another 10" of floor space for only an extra 3" of cutting width (21" vs. 24"). The 21" had a motor brake that stopped the blade in 3 seconds and the 24" relied on how hard you pushed down on the foot brake for the band to stop. My Aggy had a foot brake and it was really convenient when both hands were occupied, but you had to keep your foot pushed down until the blade stopped. The 24" Grizzly had so much mass in the wheels (which I checked and found cut outs in the back of the wheels and lead added for balancing), that it would take quite a bit of pressure to slow those wheels down.

Grizzly's 17" resaw bandsaw has 16" and would be every bit as nice as the 21", but it has almost the same throat depth as my Jet, which I am keeping.

Given your choice, I would recommend the 24" Grizzly without reservations. It was massive! It was a really impressive saw, especially what you get for the price.

[David Kumm]

The Minimax 640, Felder 640, and Laguna Italian 24" are all ACM saws so other than resaw height, they are identical. SCM recently changed their supplier from Centauro to ACM. They are higher tension saws than the Felder 610 . Dave

[Thomas Crawford]

The only thing I can think of for the resaw height would be actually milling logs.

[Thomas Crawford]

Rod -

That's super helpful. For some reason I searched incorrectly on Grizzly earlier and missed everying >19".

The price on the 24" is really great. The 20" feels too close in size to my 16". I'll have to compare with the MM and Felder.

[Jim Becker]

I can confirm that the SCM/Minimax 4.8v motor requires a 30 amp circuit unless they have changed motors, too.

[Terry Therneau]

I have a 26" Moak, direct drive with a huge 3HP Lima motor. I think that the old industrial iron like this can hold its own with any of the newer, and so it is worth looking. But I agree that finding one is a bit of luck. This one fell into my lap wrt the right time and place, cost me $1/lb. (It weighs 1100)

[Michael Todrin]

First off, I agree with Jim that all these 24" saws are serious business and that you should keep your smaller saw if possible. As far as which to choose there are a couple ways to look at this that might help you narrow down your choices.

1. Do you need 20"+ of resaw or will you be satisfied with 16 or so? If you need the taller resaw your decision has been made for you and you should get the Minimax.

2. Are you in a hurry to have the saw on hand? If not, and you are in the mood for a little adventure it can be fun to hunt down and drag home a used saw.

I was in this position last year and after a couple months of searching found a great used saw. It was 3 phase and needed a vfd, but as others have said, that is not prohibitively difficult.

[glenn bradley]

Absolutely keep the smaller saw.


Yes, this. Too many people, myself included, have spent more than they had to when replacing the smaller saw upon realizing they should have kept it.