Help evaluate my bandsaw options please

[Erik Litts]

Background: I'm currently about to begin construction of a 32' x 40' (I think) hobby shop / lumber drying building. I'm strictly a hobbyist at this point, but I'm planning to work towards some small scale sawing, drying and milling of specialty woods for sale to crafters.

The current issue is: I have a 12" band saw from my father that I don't love. Plastic everything and the band jumps off the wheels with any pressure at all. Most importantly, the maximum thickness it can cut is only about 5.5" and I want to be able to resaw and slice up small logs. As a result, I've been looking for an upgrade at a reasonable price for a while. (I like old iron) Yesterday I found an auction with two saws and was bidding on both, hoping to win one of them; and of course as these things happen, I won them both. Now I have to decide what to keep.

Saw 1: Rockwell 28-200. Picked it up for $235.440907440908440909440910
If I were to keep Saw 1, I'd probably need to replace the table (which looks to have a broken bracket) and find a riser kit.

Saw 2: Delta Model 20 Vertical Band Saw. Picked up for $500. 440911440912440913
This is 3 phase I believe, so I will need either a single phase motor or a rotary converter cause 3 phase power isn't available. It's also MUCH heavier and obviously bigger in general.


Options:

Keep Saw 1 and sell Saw 2. Given the prices I see the Delta Model 20 listed for, I'd hope I could even clear a profit here, which would pay for repairs to the Rockwell.
Keep saw 2 and sell Saw 1. I don't think I would get much more than what I paid for the Rockwell unless I got lucky. Unless of course it cleans up amazingly.
Sell both saws because there's something else I really should have been looking for.


P.S. I'm also open to any comments about things to look out for on the saws I ended up with, problem areas to watch or great improvements I could make.

[Erik Loza]

Personally, I would cross the first one off my list due to that table situation. Looks like solid PVC sheet? Not sure how you would put a fence on it. Also, not a fan of riser blocks. Let us know what you end up doing.

Erik

[mike stenson]

All other things being equal (power) I'd keep the larger of the two. I rarely think "wow, I wish I had a smaller bandsaw".

[Erik Litts]

The original table is still there under the plastic, but I'm uncertain what kind of condition it's in. Overall, the saw doesn't look like it's been kicked around too bad, so I'm optimistic.

[Frank Necaise]

I would keep saw #2 but take that with a grain of salt since I have 2 band saws. A bigger MiniMax S400 and an Old 14 inch Delta.

[Richard Coers]

That Rockwell could also have a bent top wheel tracking hinge. Very common if the blade was over tensioned. I would not want a 14" saw for cutting logs. But I've seen guys on the internet describe a 6" branch as a log. You'll need a machine that will properly tension a 3/4" blade for that. Curious method you have there for buying machinery. Spending $725 and then asking for help on making a decision.

[Mike Kees]

Bring them home,figure out what needs fixing. And then keep them both . Pretty good combination of two saws. I would not put a riser block in the 14'',waste of time and effort. Those saws are real good for 1/4'' ,3/8'' blades and curves and smaller or finesse type work.

[Jim Matthews]

Do you have three phase power in your shop?

Professional wiring (to maintain your homeowners coverage)
or a converter will not come cheap.

[Geoff Crimmins]

The 20" Delta would be a much better fit for the resawing you want to do. Just get a VFD to power it off of single-phase power. The Teco FM50 is one option that's used in applications like this. The 14" saw wouldn't be bad to keep as well and put a narrower (3/16" or 1/4") blade on it.

[Erik Litts]

No three phase, but you can get a functional converter for about $100.

[Bill Yacey]

I use a 14" with a 3/4" blade for resawing hardwoods without any issues; no riser block though.

[John Bailey]

I've used a VFD for years with my Oliver. Very good solution.

John

[Dave Sabo]

and I want to be able to resaw and slice up small logs.

If this is your goal, then the choice is clear.

And it ain't a saw with a busted table. :p

[Phillip Mitchell]

I would sell them both and get a small / medium sized band saw mill if your goal is to saw logs. No woodworking bandsaw is really optimized to saw logs, even small ones and it’s much more time consuming and cumbersome to move a log through a stationary blade over a relatively small table (without purpose built infeed and outfeed support...but you still have to lift and push the log through) compared to a band mill with a head/blade that rises on a rolling carriage to saw the log that is securely clamped down to a flat bed.

If you want to do smaller, more woodworking / furniture scaled work on a bandsaw, then I would evaluate the condition of the 20” Delta. If it wasn’t a basket case and didn’t need too much, I’d buy a VFD and go to town, but to expect it to saw logs is asking too much. Just my opinion.

[Jim Becker]

Honestly...I’m not sure either would be appropriate for your stated goal, but clearly the larger one is the only practical choice of the two you now own. Sawing even “small logs” and the likes isn’t a great job for a bandsaw designed primarily for dry lumber. Different stresses; different band requirements; need for lubrication to help cool the blade so It doesn’t dull prematurely, etc. at some point you’re going to want at least a small horizontal band mill to do the job of breaking things down from rough for your stated purposes and a heavier saw for re-sawing dry lumber to crafting dimensions

[Carroll Courtney]

I also have 20" saw and love it,I think that it will get you by for what you want for little while.But as a money maker I don't think its going to work for ya.When you do cross that line I would think that maybe one of those horizontal wood band saws be better suited for your purpose. I always wanted one for my own veneering but that dream never came true.

[Erik Litts]

I get the feeling it doesnt change the opinons much, but just for the sake of clarity, the kind of "sawing logs" Im looking at doing is the 2'-4' chunks of 4"-10" stuff that won't go on most sawmills. I like grabbing the trunks of the smaller decorative trees that people usually just throw away. Some of that wood is awesome for various types of projects, but isnt commercially available because the trees arent prolific.

Things like: Dogwood, Mulberry, Buckthorn, Black Locust, Catalpa, Apple.

Here is an example of one I got lucky on. This was a 7" branch of maple I scavenged and had a friend cut up for me.44096867

[Richard Coers]

I get the feeling it doesnt change the opinons much, but just for the sake of clarity, the kind of "sawing logs" Im looking at doing is the 2'-4' chunks of 4"-10" stuff that won't go on most sawmills. I like grabbing the trunks of the smaller decorative trees that people usually just throw away. Some of that wood is awesome for various types of projects, but isnt commercially available because the trees arent prolific.

Things like: Dogwood, Mulberry, Buckthorn, Black Locust, Catalpa, Apple.

Here is an example of one I got lucky on. This was a 7" branch of maple I scavenged and had a friend cut up for me.
Convert the 14" to this. Then the broken trunion makes no difference. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpI-NMNUQwI

[Jim Dwight]

If you have space, why not keep both? Put a 1/4 blade on the smaller one and use it for tight turns and smaller stock. Put a resaw blade, 3/4 or wider, on the big one. Besides the small logs you want to cut up, it will be useful for cutting tenons and even doing rip cuts. Any straight cut.

[Jeff Duncan]

I have the 20" Delta from the later Taiwan years and it's a well made machine. The design is based off the SCM saws as much of the industrial Delta machinery was originally built by them. Then the fabrication moved to Brazil, then Taiwan, but the quality is still much better than a lot of whats out there new. Yours may be a Brazil model?? The biggest difference I see between these saws and a new SCM is the re-saw height has been improved greatly, and the motors are larger, the rest of the build looks pretty much the same.
For re-sawing I run a 1" Lenox bi-metal blade that does a decent job sawing and has a pretty long lifespan. You can get blades with better cut quality, but then the lifespan is often much shorter.

good luck,
JeffD

[Melvin Feng]

What is the resaw height on that Delta?

If you want to be able to process logs up to 10" in diameter, I would want some extra clearance there, just in case, so at least 12" if not 14" of resaw height would be nice to give you some options. Having a nice large table is also convenient for processing logs on the bandsaw.

I have a Laguna 18 BX, and I've done a good amount of milling on it. I think it is great overall for the stated capacity with a resaw height of 16". It has a good sized table, so I can screw the log onto a jig that rides along the fence for straightish cuts (no, they won't be perfectly flat, you can run them on a jointer for that fine tuning). If the log is really green, I use the greenwood cutting blade from timberwolf, but it is only 1/2", they do have a wider one that I haven't tried yet. I also have a log crosscut sled that I use for cutting off the ends and squaring them up on the logs - it is best practice to have something to prevent the logs from rolling on the table (there are some pretty scary youtube videos of this happening, and it has happened to me once, so I am much more careful now), and with the crosscut sled on the bandsaw table, I sometimes use my entire resaw height to clear the top of the log on top of the sled (that sounded confusing, but does it make sense?).

If the log is somewhat dried, then I'll use a 1 inch timberwolf blade, and if the log is fairly clean, dry, and easy to handle, then I'll just use my 1.25" resaw king, as it can cut straight a lot easier than the other blades.

You can also cut the log into a cant first, and then use a featherboard to help make better cuts (I use the bow guidepro, and I think it is the best commercially available resaw featherboard for the bandsaw).

For the resaw height, I consider the Laguna 18 BX to actually be one of the best values. If you need more resaw height, there is a nice Rikon that has 19" of resaw height, but it is closer to $3k, if I remember correctly.

All that to say, it feels like you would have to make some significant compromises to get either of those saws to try to do what you want them to do. See if you can resell them as-is, or fix them up and sell them for possibly more, and then buy a bandsaw that fits exactly what you want to be able to do (maybe get something that can do a bit more, just in case).

This does depend on your budget though. If you needed to fix up one or both of the saws that you bought, how much do you have budgeted for that? What would your total cost be, and what is the most that you want to spend on this?

[Erik Litts]

Well, I finally got out to look at both saws. They decided to leave the 14" outside :(, so of course every bit of exposed metal is covered in rust. Not a huge issue, but its really annoying when they have plenty of inside storage space. Both of the trunnions are broken, along with one of the 2 guides. That said, everything inside seems to be moving smoothly.

The 20" is a different version than what I thought. I thought it was a 28-340 but it is actually a 28-654. Though I havent really looked to figure out all the differences. I still can't tell for sure if itthe motor works because I dont have 3 phase power, but it looks like the saw is in near percect shape other than being dirty and covered in metal shavings. It was badged as having been from Haworth furniture, and if they were the last owner, Im certain it was well maintained. I think the 20" is definitely what I'm gonna have to go with. I will have to look at whether it makes more sense to sell the 14" or hang onto it for later use in some way. If I happened to find someone willing to give me at least as much as I spent, selling it is probably the right choice, but if I'd take a loss, I'll hang onto it.