Looking to buy a new bandsaw

[Michael Sebar]

Buy not by lol text to speech. I am tossed between Jet and Grizzly 14” bandsaws. I just got rid of a 40 year old sears 10 inch band saw that served me well. After looking at Grizzly I can step into a 17” which is over kill but I won’t regret going bigger in a few years. Should I go with a Grizzly 17 or go with the Jet 14. Here are the prices and models of 2 Grizzly units and the Jet. If you have an alternate please let me know. I am trying to stay under 2k. All prices include shipping but not tax.

G0513X2 1750.00

G0513A40 1550.00

Jet JWBS-14SFX 1599.00

[Jim Becker]

I'd personally go with the larger saw. You'll get more power, more resaw height "out of the box", more mass, larger almost everything and still be able to use narrow bands if you need/want to.

[Cary Falk]

I had the G0513X2 until it got too small. It is a great saw. Much more saw than cast iron 14".

[Michael Sebar]

My thoughts exactly, just not sure if Jet or Grizzly is the better product. Price wise for size Grizzly wins. What did you replace your G0513X2 with?

[Rich Konopka]

I’m looking to upgrade myself and I have been looking for several months at Bandsaws. I have a small Rikon benchtop BS that handles “small” tasks very nicely.

What I learned is that all BS are not created equally. One of my biggest requirements is to be able to resaw large boards and pieces of wood. Not all 17 inch saws have the resaw height I think I need. Because some if my boards are 12-14 wide I need a 14”+ resaw capacity. The other day I found a Powermatic 20” bandsaw on marketplace for $1200. Was it available and legit? Yep. But upon further review I found the owners manual online and this 970lb beast could only resaw 12 5/8”. What a bummer.

I would suggest you look closely at the grizzlies because I found many of their BS to not have the resaw capacity I need. Their 21” BS has only 14” resaw or blade cutting height. The only BS I found they offered was the G0636X Ultimate which is a 17” BS with 16” cutting height. It’s also a great saw but the price puts it into a who new price category.

Btw, I leaning towards the Laguna 18BX.

Cheers.

[Dave Sabo]

My thoughts exactly, just not sure if Jet or Grizzly is the better product. Price wise for size Grizzly wins. What did you replace your G0513X2 with?

Neither . Both . Doesn’t matter. Both brands are the same for all practical purposes.

However - all the saws you’re looking at are not equal. The a40 has liteweight wheels and crummy guides. The Jet is a much smaller saw so an apple to an orange comp. really. If you really like it you should be comparing it to the rikon 19-324tg. Bonus is it’s cheaper than the Jet.

The “best” saw on your list is the griz X2. Not even close. And it’s not overkill despite your reservation. Which in the end makes it the better product in answer to your question.

[Dwayne Watt]

One thing to consider on the 17" Griz is the lack of a brake. The run down time of these saws with larger cast iron wheels is ridiculously long. That fact makes them inherently more perilous to the operator. You shut down the motor, walk away, come back, and the blade is still moving (silently and withouth any strong visual indications). I would give more consideration to the Grizzly G0513X2BF or perhaps the Harvey Ambassador C14 (14" resaw capable with 14" wheels). Anything with a foot brake is better option in my opinion.

[Michael Sebar]

Yes I thought of that but at 500 more makes it a real hard sell

[Cary Falk]

My thoughts exactly, just not sure if Jet or Grizzly is the better product. Price wise for size Grizzly wins. What did you replace your G0513X2 with?
Laguna LT18. I almost got a G0701 but the Laguna went on sale for cheaper at the time.

[Aaron Inami]

Jet JWBS-14SFX - likely a better quality saw than the Grizzly's and a good choice if you are limited to 120V A/C, but it's smaller 1.75HP and smaller 3/4" blade (which is not bad, but not as good as 1" blade for resaw).

Recommendation: Harvey Ambassador C14 (currently on sale for $1715. It's more powerful at 3HP than the Grizzly choices and it will also resaw 14" height (the Grizzly's are limited to 12"). It is listed as a 14" machine (based on flywheel diameter), but the entire machine is really sized to be more of a 15" machine (which is a step up from your normal 14" bandsaws).

Although, if you really are resawing at 14", it will likely be slow unless you get a big table 5HP machine like Cary's Laguna LT18.

[Bill Dufour]

Location. I see lots of 14" used bandsaws for sale near me. I think a lot of them get very little use in a home shop. For that price I would get a used 18-20 inch saw.
BilLD

[Jim Dwight]

I got the Jet you are considering several years ago. I upgraded from a home made 10 inch bandsaw. The Jet is hugely more capable. I've resawed 8x4 cherry as much as 8 inch wide with it. I couldn't push it through real fast but I thought the feed speed it would support was OK. It can do wider crosscuts but at some point the 1.75 hp motor might be an issue. It has not been for me so far. The guide bearings above the table are easy to adjust, the lower ones are not so easy. But I don't think I've messed with them since the original setup. It is hard to get the pin out of the table to change blades and I had to put simple wood dust chutes to get dust flowing out the ports well but overall I am very satisfied. I've never been limited by the 14 inch throat capacity. I don't own any Grizzly tools so I don't really know how they compare. I think the Jet may be a little nicer made but that is not a well informed opinion. The Jet is heavy but I assembled it myself without help and moved it to it's location in my shop. It is not on a movable base but I can move it enough without one by just tilting it and walking it. I like the combination of enough weight to be stable during cuts without being so heavy it is really hard to move.

[ChrisA Edwards]

I just went through the decision of buying another bandsaw. They attempted to deliver it this past Friday, but that's another story.

I currently own Laguna 14/12 1.75HP motor. Had it for 5+ years.

It's a great saw, but resawing hard woods, Maple, Purpleheart kiln dried, with a carbide blade, it struggles.

I bought the Grizzly G0636X 17" last week. Realistically, I doubt that I will ever try to resaw anything 16" high, but I'd like to do 10 ish inches. I looked at the 19" and 21" Grizzly's, but what bought me back to the 17" was the 5HP motor and the price was $1000+ less for the 17" than the 19".

Many times it often said "Buy your second machine first", "Buy once, cry once".

[Dave Sabo]

One thing to consider on the 17" Griz is the lack of a brake. The run down time of these saws with larger cast iron wheels is ridiculously long.


OMG ! Woodworking is dangerous , you might get hurt, maimed , or killed while doing it. Bandsaws have been around a loooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong time without brakes and msot still don;t have them. They've been used safely by millions without them too. Other tools take time to coast down and present danger while spinning . Does your drill press, router or shaper have a brake ? Tablesaw? Belt or Disc Sander ? Even your dulling chisels are dangerous and the only safety feature they have is between your ears , behind your eyes.

NONE of the saws up for consideration have brakes. None have lights, none have mobility kits or...... Yes, those could be added and adding a brake or braking motor via electronics is not feasible - it becomes a slippery and non-productive slope to campaign for feature(s) not within the scope- no matter how wonderful and useful they may be.




and smaller 3/4" blade (which is not bad, but not as good as 1" blade for resaw).

A little insight - none of those saws will properly tension the largest width blade their specs say they will accommodate. Especially that 1" claim. So if your overly concerned with the size of you ehm....blade then ok - you should buy the one that states the biggest number.

You're also not going get a better , faster, cheaper cut from a 1" blade over a 3/4" or even a 1/2" blade for that matter. If you don't believe so , you'd best start searching now for an old discontinued Hitachi or Makita saw that will take 3" blade because those are gonna stomp your little ol 1"er to the floor and make those 1-1/4" to 1-1/2" Italian saws whimper for their momma.

If we're just comparing size an all ;)

Too many fall into the trap that they need a big ol' wide blade to re-saw or rip. You don't.

[Bill Dufour]

It is very easy to add a brake to any three phase machine.
Bill D

[Aaron Inami]

Ughhh, the Harvey Ambassador 14 has a brake. But anyways....

[Doug Colombo]

Have you looked at the Rikon 14” ? It has a 13” resaw capacity and a good size table. I have had one for maybe 6 years and have no complaints. New saw has I believe a hi/low fence which can be a plus. Just re-sawed 8” thick walnut and was very pleased with the cut.

https://www.rikontools.com/product/10-326

[Tom Trees]

In regards to safety if seeing a brake as a must have, then table size should be on the cards.
Lots of the cheaper options have smaller tables,
which I personally see as far more of a risk compared, but then again I do have braking via VFD,
though it's not "dynamic braking" it's plenty good for my 24" saw.
That's my 2 cents, though I have my personal reasons being often fatigued in the shed.

I reckon that's likely part of the extra you might be paying for seemingly similar machines, from whomever the manufacturer.

[Michael Sebar]

It is very easy to add a brake to any three phase machine.
Bill D

Can you post some info on the brake, I would love to add one. Just ordered the Grizzly G0513X2, now I need to make some room in the shop and get a 220 splitter so I don't have to add another outlet for this puppy.

[John K Jordan]

…, now I need to make some room in the shop and get a 220 splitter so I don't have to add another outlet for this puppy.

I’ve made extensions and such with components bought from HD or the electrical supply house. The last one I made was a 220v extension cord, 20’ long I think, 50amp plug and receptacle. Used quality flexible cable from the supply house.

(I use this to use my welders and plasma cutter outside and away from the shop, to work on trailers and other farm equipment. I don’t know what the Code says about these but for ag use I don’t care - it works.)

[Bill Dufour]

Can you post some info on the brake, I would love to add one. Just ordered the Grizzly G0513X2, now I need to make some room in the shop and get a 220 splitter so I don't have to add another outlet for this puppy.
Use a vfd to supply power to a three phase motor and the vfd will offer electronic braking similar to Tesla regenerative braking. No moving parts. General recommendation is not to stop in under three seconds.
BILL D
Bill D

[Aaron Inami]

Michael, since you ordered a bandsaw that has a single-phase motor, you are going to have to pay at least another $400-600 for a proper sized 3-phase motor as well as a 2HP VFD, plus custom wiring into the motor and A/C. Just an FYI.

[Michael Sebar]

I purchased one from Amazon 220 30a y splitter only 50 bucks and it's 3 feet long. should have plenty of room to reach to BS

[Dave Sabo]

Michael, since you ordered a bandsaw that has a single-phase motor, you are going to have to pay at least another $400-600 for a proper sized 3-phase motor as well as a 2HP VFD, plus custom wiring into the motor and A/C. Just an FYI.


which is why I said:


adding a brake or braking motor via electronics is not feasible - it becomes a slippery and non-productive slope to campaign for feature(s) not within the scope- no matter how wonderful and useful they may be.

back in post #14

[Joel Gelman]

My first bandsaw was a Delta 14 inch and I now have and favor larger bandsaws. Last month I went to a bandsaw setup workshop with Alex Snodgrass. For 14 inch, he was into the Powermatic along with the Carter products, and demonstrated certain advantages. He has a financial interest, but I always thought Powermatic was a decent brand.

I figured it would be mentioned as an option in the 14 inch category.

[Sam Shankar]

I picked up a 2.5hp 220v Laguna 14bx a few years ago. As a hobbyist, I've been very pleased with it. It has plenty of power and capacity for resawing. It handles small stuff well too, and changing blades isn't hard because the guides are easy to adjust.

It has a brake too. Yes, you can be safe without one. Many people here are proof that no-brake bandsaws can be used very safely, just like no-brake table saws. But for me this was a no-brainer safety bonus, just like my SawStop. If a cut gets wonky in the middle of a piece, I can shut the saw down while keeping both hands on the piece. If I'm working with my kids or a visitor, I don't have to treat the saw as a loaded weapon while the blade spins down.

As for the price ($2k now!, yikes), well, I am a hobbyist with a busy job and lovely family. I want to spend my very limited time in the shop making stuff, not fiddling with my tools. I know not everyone is in this position, including a ton of folks whose work is far more beautiful than mine, but I have spent decades doing things on the cheap and regretting it--or eventually upgrading. I'm done with it. Life is too short.

[Michael Sebar]

Thanks everyone for the help and knowledge you offered. The new bandsaw was ordered on Monday afternoon and delivery is set for this Tuesday can’t wait. Quick shipping if I say so. I also ordered The T28000 base. If any one could recommend blades I would appreciate it. In all my years, using a bandsaw, I never knew there was such an art of selecting a type blade. I think I will need about 4 or 5 blades. This is what I will be cutting:

Veneers soft and hard wood
1/2 and 3/4 soft, hard, and ply regular cutting and tight turns.

[Dave Sabo]

.......... I always thought Powermatic was a decent brand.

I figured it would be mentioned as an option in the 14 inch category.

It used to be a LOT better than decent. Those days have gone though. Now, they're just another importer of Asian made woodworking equip.

I think the reason no one mentioned them in this thread is twofold. One , they don't make a saw in the category that's being discussed and the 14" delta clone they do make is more expensive than the saws kicked around here and it's less capable to boot. Which leads to the second reason - they don't offer a good value when stacked up against the competition when you do compare like for like.

[Sam Shankar]

If any one could recommend blades I would appreciate it.

I've followed the advice in this post (https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?149862-Lets-talk-bandsaw-blades!) successfully. I find that a sharp 1/2" 4TPI blade and diligent tensioning/setup on my 14BX will do 95% of what I need, ranging from resawing to reasonably tight curves.

[Michael Burnside]

Which leads to the second reason - they don't offer a good value when stacked up against the competition when you do compare like for like.

Regarding Powermatic, I respectfully disagree with this assessment as a whole. For bandsaws, I cannot speak to that as I own a Laguna 240V 14BX which I am happy to say is a very nice saw. It is a bit expensive, but it has done everything I've needed, including resawing some very thick stock.

[James Jayko]

OMG ! Woodworking is dangerous , you might get hurt, maimed , or killed while doing it. Bandsaws have been around a loooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong time without brakes and msot still don;t have them. They've been used safely by millions without them too. Other tools take time to coast down and present danger while spinning . Does your drill press, router or shaper have a brake ? Tablesaw? Belt or Disc Sander ? Even your dulling chisels are dangerous and the only safety feature they have is between your ears , behind your eyes.

NONE of the saws up for consideration have brakes. None have lights, none have mobility kits or...... Yes, those could be added and adding a brake or braking motor via electronics is not feasible - it becomes a slippery and non-productive slope to campaign for feature(s) not within the scope- no matter how wonderful and useful they may be.

I can never understand why people rally against safety features. Yes, people still run Unisaws or whatever without any sort of safety technology. But why would you buy one today, if you had other options? Its like my buddy from HS who to this day refuses to wear a seatbelt because he's convinced that if he HAD been wearing a seatbelt (and not been thrown from the car) when he got into an accident 25 years ago, he would have died. That may be true, though I'd guess not. Progress is not always bad, when it makes it less likely for you to massively injure yourself. Sure, the possibility is (somewhat) remote, but given that a bandsaw with a brake is ~$200 more than the similar saw without one, why would you rally about the safety feature being unnecessary?

Also, to be fair, your drill press, router table, shaper, table saw all spin down in a few seconds. A big bandsaw takes FOREVER to stop. So its sorta apples and potatoes.

[Michael Sebar]

I can never understand why people rally against safety features. Yes, people still run Unisaws or whatever without any sort of safety technology. But why would you buy one today, if you had other options? Its like my buddy from HS who to this day refuses to wear a seatbelt because he's convinced that if he HAD been wearing a seatbelt (and not been thrown from the car) when he got into an accident 25 years ago, he would have died. That may be true, though I'd guess not. Progress is not always bad, when it makes it less likely for you to massively injure yourself. Sure, the possibility is (somewhat) remote, but given that a bandsaw with a brake is ~$200 more than the similar saw without one, why would you rally about the safety feature being unnecessary?

Also, to be fair, your drill press, router table, shaper, table saw all spin down in a few seconds. A big bandsaw takes FOREVER to stop. So its sorta apples and potatoes.

at the time of purchase it was on sale and the one with the brake was 500.00 more.

[Edwin Santos]

It used to be a LOT better than decent. Those days have gone though. Now, they're just another importer of Asian made woodworking equip.

I think the reason no one mentioned them in this thread is twofold. One , they don't make a saw in the category that's being discussed and the 14" delta clone they do make is more expensive than the saws kicked around here and it's less capable to boot. Which leads to the second reason - they don't offer a good value when stacked up against the competition when you do compare like for like.

Maybe this opinion is valid for the smaller 14" class of machine.
I can tell you that Anderson Ranch Arts Center has a large current model Powermatic, maybe the 18 or 20" model and it is a very substantial machine. Enough so that people were waiting in line to use it over the Aggazani. I can't speak to the price or country of manufacture though.

[Michael Sebar]

Strange thing happened. I posted this morning around 6:20 thanking everyone for their help and mentioned if anyone had recommendations on blades. Someone responded with a link to another post about BS blades. This was done on my phone and went to the link from the response. I am now on my computer and it's all gone 2 posts. I refreshed my phone and it's also gone. Was it removed because of topic change?

[Sam Shankar]

I've followed the advice in this post (https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?149862-Lets-talk-bandsaw-blades!) successfully. I find that a sharp 1/2" 4TPI blade and diligent tensioning/setup on my 14BX will do 95% of what I need, ranging from resawing to reasonably tight curves.

You mean this post? I still see it.

[Michael Sebar]

Yes, I posted in the troubleshooting section. Maybe they fixed it because now I can see both.

[Dave Roock]

Hello Michael, What you need to have (buy or rent) is a narrow pallet jack to move and help the delivery driver with. Freight companies do not provide narrow pallet jacks on their trucks, just regular ones. I bought the same saw last spring. Watching the driver from Holland Freight try to move that narrow pallet with a regular pallet jack was something - I would have been swearing up a storm but he deserved much credit for his patience. Once he got it off the liftgate, I just grabbed it and swiveled it into a storage unit. You will see the worst built crate you have ever seen, the Chinese manufacturer should be ashamed to build such a travesty of a crate, Grizzly should be twice as ashamed for ever just sending their "fine woodworking equipment" out in a crate that is inferior to a childs tree fort. I will be posting about that experience. I just left it in storage I was so disgusted. Grizzly service was trying to be helpful and wanted to know what was damaged - I told the guy (in extreme frustration) that I could not even move the crate until I strengthened it with actual wood to reinforce the base and all sides, it is literally a huge joke of the cheapest wood imaginable. Picture those flimsy wood survey markers - most of the crate is built with such flimsy wood. I do plan to start using it after I rebuild the crate but will probably never buy any more tools from Grizzly.

[Michael Sebar]

I was hoping to use a hand truck. If I tossed the drive 20 bucks do you think he would help me with getting in the garage. The street and my garage door is only 25 feet if that much. The company is sending a smaller truck being I live in a private development. They may me able to back it into the driveway. Yes I know I dream a lot, if I have to I will double it.

[Dave Roock]

I was hoping to use a hand truck. If I tossed the drive 20 bucks do you think he would help me with getting in the garage. The street and my garage door is only 25 feet if that much. The company is sending a smaller truck being I live in a private development. They may me able to back it into the driveway. Yes I know I dream a lot, if I have to I will double it.
Instead of tossing the driver $20, rent a narrow pallet jack (cheap) = the driver will be overjoyed to be able to use that instead of the futile struggle with a regular pallet jack & will move it right into garage. Using a hand truck is difficult due to the pallet base being built with such poor quality, it will be falling apart or close to it. Pallet overall is narrow and top heavy - I moved mine the other day some with a appliance dolly/cart which has the tall height. When I rebuild crate, I will move it with that appliance dolly/cart. Also the motor for that saw is dual voltage - you can wire it for 110 volt with little effort, just switch a couple wires - instructions come with it. I bought mine for price and the good overall reviews.

[ChrisA Edwards]

Here's my Grizzly bandsaw being delivered last week. First attempt, the driver could not get the pallet jack under the Grizzly small pallet. Second attempt, 3 days later, it was delivered with the saw on top of a standard 4' square pallet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIXg3c_ZI4s


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIXg3c_ZI4s

[Dave Roock]

Here's my Grizzly bandsaw being delivered last week. First attempt, the driver could not get the pallet jack under the Grizzly small pallet. Second attempt, 3 days later, it was delivered with the saw on top of a standard 4' square pallet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIXg3c_ZI4s


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIXg3c_ZI4s

Thanks ! Everybody can see how the crate is almost falling apart = the worst built crates I have ever seen. Yours might have had some slightly better boards. Grizzly should be totally ashamed to send out such trash pallets. Bought a Shop Fox table saw through Home Depot - it came on the same puny pallet but someone @ Home Depot or freight company strapped it on a standard pallet. The cost of making a decent crate would add so little to the cost - extra $10 of wood would do far better. . Right off the boat and onward, not one bit of care from factory.

[John K Jordan]

Thanks ! Everybody can see how the crate is almost falling apart = the worst built crates I have ever seen. Yours might have had some slightly better boards. Grizzly should be totally ashamed to send out such trash pallets.

The 18” Rikon bandsaw came in a nice crate. I unloaded it from the back of a semi with forks on the tractor. Also, the metal-working machines from Little Machine shop came in strong crates, as did an 8” PM jointer and PM66. They can do it right if they want to.

[Dave Roock]

The 18” Rikon bandsaw came in a nice crate. I unloaded it from the back of a semi with forks on the tractor. Also, the metal-working machines from Little Machine shop came in strong crates, as did an 8” PM jointer and PM66. They can do it right if they want to.

I plan to chop some samples of the shoddy wood & send them to the Grizzly CEO. Have seen him on here defending his products. Nobody that cared about the customers or took pride in their company would allow such to continue. At least it will cost me minimal to ship the samples as they are so light..........The so-called "Quality Engineers" Grizzly has employed at the manufacturing site have failed mightily in allowing such shoddy work.

[Jim Becker]

I was hoping to use a hand truck.

That's not really practical for a heavy and top-heavy machine like a bandsaw. You can get seriously injured or worse when it tips and lands on top of you. Even if it's shipped on it's spine on a longer pallet, it's a bit much to handle if you don't have forks and a lifting mechanism that can handle the weight.

[Michael Sebar]

Plan A is to pay the drive to help me get it in to the garage. If that doesn’t work on to plan B.
Plan B is to rent a pallet jack, but after looking around I was not able to find a narrow one to rent. On to plan C.
Plan C is to try to lay it on its side on 2 dollies and push in. If plan C fails on to plan D.
Plan D pray that an angel from heaven comes down, moves into the garage for me. I have always been good in figuring out problems rather quickly. I will keep you up to date.

[ChrisA Edwards]

I've struggled with plan D, my go to is plan E and F (Elves and Fairies)......

[Dave Roock]

Plan A is to pay the drive to help me get it in to the garage. If that doesn’t work on to plan B.
Plan B is to rent a pallet jack, but after looking around I was not able to find a narrow one to rent. On to plan C.
Plan C is to try to lay it on its side on 2 dollies and push in. If plan C fails on to plan D.
Plan D pray that an angel from heaven comes down, moves into the garage for me. I have always been good in figuring out problems rather quickly. I will keep you up to date.

Well using an appliance handtruck is second best to getting a narrow pallet jack - you would move it just like you move a refrigerator. Watching the driver try to move it with a standard pallet jack will be a mess. If the freight company strapped it down on a regular pallet, then you should be okay.

[Bill Dufour]

Oliver move link. I lost the web site link. I think the angled support is hinged somehow to the base and lowered off vertical with a come along.
Bill D

[Michael Sebar]

496481
Well plan A worked. We used the pallet jack to get it up to the garage and found out it was too tall. We took it off the large crate, tilted it and dragged it in the rest of the way. Crate came in great condition no damage very happy. The driver got enough Starbucks coffee to last almost a week.

[Rod Sheridan]

Does your drill press, router or shaper have a brake ? Tablesaw?



Dave in answer to your question

1) drill press, no

2) router, mine is cordless, and mostly wood, so yeah it has a brake, as soon as I stop pulling it it stops cutting

3) Shaper, yes DC current injection

4) tablesaw, yes DC current injection

5) band saw, yes, homemade DC current injection

A blade brake on a large band saw is wonderful, I wouldn’t be without it…..Regards, Rod

[Rod Sheridan]

which is why I said:



back in post #14

DC current injection is an inexpensive braking method for single phase motors, and has no moving parts…..Rod

[Jim Becker]

My MM16 has a foot brake. I've not used it very often, but it's been used during those few times that the machine needed stopped "now" and it was not practical or not safe to take hands off the workpiece. Required? No, at least for most situations. Nice to have? Absolutely.

[John K Jordan]

My MM16 has a foot brake. I've not used it very often, but it's been used during those few times that the machine needed stopped "now" and it was not practical or not safe to take hands off the workpiece. Required? No, at least for most situations. Nice to have? Absolutely.

What's the braking mechanism on these things? Mechanical, electronic? Does something pinch the wheel, a pad press up against the wheel, have an actual disk or other brake on the shaft?

I want to make a brake for my 18" Rikon and have some ideas but I've never looked at the mechanism for one. There are many times I wish I had a brake.

JKJ

[Jim Becker]

John, it's a combination of both a microswitch to kill power to the motor while at the same time putting the brakes on the wheel...literally. You stomp on the pedal and the machine is stopped "really fast". That pedal doubles as the mount point for the johnson bar and caster for mobility on my machine, too.

[John K Jordan]

John, it's a combination of both a microswitch to kill power to the motor while at the same time putting the brakes on the wheel...literally. You stomp on the pedal and the machine is stopped "really fast". That pedal doubles as the mount point for the johnson bar and caster for mobility on my machine, too.

Do the brakes have some type of brake pad? Pressing or squeezing some part of the wheel? I could probably find a bandsaw with a mechanical brake locally and look at it.

I've stopped the bandsaw (after turning the power off) by squeezing the flat of the blade between two pieces of wood but that's not a great method. I'd be happy without an emergency stop, just want to stop the wheels.

[ChrisA Edwards]

My new Grizzly has a drum brake, part 36.

https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/i452/cedwards874/Brake.jpg

[John K Jordan]

My new Grizzly has a drum brake, part 36.


Thanks. I found the manual for your saw with the part nanes and all which should make things clearer, said it has a magnetic brake. It also states “Use the brake only in emergency situations…” I want something I can use routinely, not just in an emergency. I used a huge bandsaw in the 60’s with a mechanical foot brake we used often for safety, not just for emergencies. That saw had a 20’ long blade and could go for s long time when turned off.

[Dave Roock]

Excellent that the shipping company put in on a larger crate - a total joke trying to move without that. Mine came like it is shown in your photo - imagine someone trying to move that crate with the shoddy base they build - at least they could build a sturdy base and add a few boards for stability. Twisting and dragging works just fine - will not take much effort to uncrate is an upside. Hope all goes good for you in getting ready for service.

[Dwayne Watt]

On my bandsaw a brake pad simply pushes against the inside of a drum feature (~200 mm diameter) cast into the lower cast iron belt sheave. Nothing terribly exotic beyond a bit of extra material on the sheave and some linkage to connect the foot brake to the friction pad. The pad itself is roughly 20 x 70 mm and appears to be cerametallic. Mine looks more substantial in person than the Grizzly parts list drawing shown here..

[John K Jordan]

On my bandsaw a brake pad simply pushes against the inside of a drum feature (~200 mm diameter) cast into the lower cast iron belt sheave. Nothing terribly exotic beyond a bit of extra material on the sheave and some linkage to connect the foot brake to the friction pad. The pad itself is roughly 20 x 70 mm and appears to be cerametallic. Mine looks more substantial in person than the Grizzly parts list drawing shown here..

What bandsaw model?

[Michael Sebar]

Got it apart last night and laid it on its side and attached the base holding it on with duck tape till I get it upright. So far did everything myself. Now it’s stuck on its side till I get help I couldn’t get it upright myself to much presure on my back and I know it will leave and go out without me. Got some neighbors coming over tonight to do it for me. Should have it working by Friday eve.

[Michael Sebar]

On my bandsaw a brake pad simply pushes against the inside of a drum feature (~200 mm diameter) cast into the lower cast iron belt sheave. Nothing terribly exotic beyond a bit of extra material on the sheave and some linkage to connect the foot brake to the friction pad. The pad itself is roughly 20 x 70 mm and appears to be cerametallic. Mine looks more substantial in person than the Grizzly parts list drawing shown here.. got any pics?