Band Saw Light

[Dell Littlefield]

I have a 14 inch Ridgid Bandsaw and would like to install a work light directly on it. Any suggestions?

[Rennie Heuer]

I believe Woodcraft and/or Delta sells a magnetic base lamp just for this purpose.

[Dell Littlefield]

Thanks, that was quick!

[Rennie Heuer]

Thanks, that was quick!
You're welcome! Hope this is what you were looking for.

[Dave Sweeney]

How about something like this, Delta Magnetic Light. (http://www.amazon.com/Delta-25-869-Magnetic-Power-Attachment/dp/B0000223AK/sr=1-1/qid=1161092652/ref=sr_1_1/104-3872339-5412753?ie=UTF8&s=hi)

EDIT: I gotta learn to type faster.

[David Wilson]

Harbor freight has them for about $8.00.

[Jim O'Dell]

Or get fancy and install a couple of can lights in the ceiling. :D Control them from a wall switch. Wait, that's what I wired into my shop. :eek: Jim.

[Byron Trantham]

I use one of the goose necked magnetic based lamps and it works great. I can re-direct it to exactly where I want it.

[Alan Schaffter]

I use the Delta magnetic light on both drill press and band saw. I removed (easily unscrews) the magnetic base, drilled a hole in the bottom of the drill press pulley housing, and mounted it there. On the bandsaw I removed the blankoff plug on the top of the saw's switch box and mounted the light there. I also did a little rewiring so no light wires are visible- only legally possible on 110V setup un less your 220V wiring has a neutral as well as a ground.

[Jim Becker]

I also use one of the inexpensive magnetic base work lights on the band saw. Works fine.

[Lee DeRaud]

Hmmm...do these lamps just run off their own plug or are they wired into the bandsaw?

[Jamie Buxton]

Hmmm...do these lamps just run off their own plug or are they wired into the bandsaw?

They generally plug in to a standard outlet. However, you could dive into the saw's electricals and run them off its switch. I did that on my Laguna LT16HD, and added one more trick. The Laguna runs from 230, so I added a stepdown transformer to run the 115-volt light.

[Doug Shepard]

They generally plug in to a standard outlet. However, you could dive into the saw's electricals and run them off its switch. I did that on my Laguna LT16HD, and added one more trick. The Laguna runs from 230, so I added a stepdown transformer to run the 115-volt light.

I like that idea. It beats having 2 cords running to the saw all the time, and having it wired to the switch means I wont have to keep remembering to turn it off when I'm done. Cool trick. Think I'll put that on my To-Do list.

[Steven Wilson]

The best light you can install is a Moffat lamp. It uses regular 100w bulbs, has many mounting options (c-clamp, mag, screw base) and is designed to be used in a rugged environment. I use to use the little Delta mag light but it's 40 watt and has a tendency to fall off when your machine is rocking (14" bandsaws do rock). I use Moffat lamps on my lathe, grinder, Tormek, bandsaw, and they work fantastic. The cheapest place I've found them (and a good look at lathe lighting) is http://www.turningwood.com/light_stand.htm

[Reg Mitchell]

I hand a 17 inch griz bandsaw at one time. I put a round floresent light on a swiveling arm on it. It was great mainly because it had one of those magnefying glasses built in it that the light gos around the glass. When I was following a line i would swing it into place and wouldn't have to bend over to see what I was cutting because there was plenty of light and it was magnefyed big enough I could see without haveing to lean in to see. They aren't too expensive.
Reg

[glenn bradley]

Harbor Freight has a magnetic based flex-neck lamp that for all the world looks like Rockler's but costs half; about $10 and goes on sale for $6 on a regular basis. I added a vibration tolerant bulb (made for ceiling fans) and it's been taking a beating for well over a year.

[Howie French]

this is what I use, lots of light,cheap - $6 WalMart , just need a place to clamp it.

[Glenn Clabo]

This is what I use...and it's on sale....
http://www.garrettwade.com/jump.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&itemID=105965

[Phil Thien]

Any suggestions when your saw is made entirely of aluminum and plastic (Inca).

[Hoa Dinh]

I have a Delta 25-858 Lamp Attachment (http://www.amazon.com/Delta-25-858-Lamp-Attachment/dp/B0000223AA). It came in a kit (light, riser-block, circle cutting jig) I bought for my 14" Rockwell.



http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/B0000223AA.01._AA280_SCLZZZZZZZ_.gif

[David Rose]

I've had two of these, and wish I had spent more. Though my saw is a Delta 14, it is about as smooth as those can be made to run. My first light would be OK, I suspect, until it got good and hot. Then it would flicker. I replaced several standard bulbs and finally went to HD ones. They flickered after a bit too, so I took the lamp back to Lowes for another of the same. I used the second one about a year and the flicker started again. It is really nerve racking to run a tool with the light going on and off! :eek: I finally got mad and gently whacked it with the push stick. I missed, hit the plastic knob, and of course broke it off. :mad: :o The replacement switch/socket that I bought was not the same as the old one, but it doesn't flicker... yet.

David


How about something like this, Delta Magnetic Light. (http://www.amazon.com/Delta-25-869-Magnetic-Power-Attachment/dp/B0000223AK/sr=1-1/qid=1161092652/ref=sr_1_1/104-3872339-5412753?ie=UTF8&s=hi)

EDIT: I gotta learn to type faster.

[Mark Singer]

The best lights I found are the halogen work lights with a magnetic base. I have one on the bandsaw and a larger version on a tripod so I can move it around and direct it. I use it for all hand joinery at the bench

[David Rose]

Whose do you like, Mark? I may be in the market soon. Do they get noticably hot in the work area? I also use an old photographer's hooded light on a tripod, but more light would be nice.

David


The best lights I found are the halogen work lights with a magnetic base. I have one on the bandsaw and a larger version on a tripod so I can move it around and direct it. I use it for all hand joinery at the bench

[Eddie Darby]

I own a Delta 14" bandsaw, and had the lower wattage bulbs ,which didn't do a very good job of lighting things up, so I made my own light. I used Rare Earth magnets to secure it onto the bandsaws body. The light fixture had a 100 watt bulb capacity along with a nice long gooseneck, so I could place it wear I wanted. I remove the weighted base that came with the light originally, and mounted it into a thick wooden base that had the rare earth magnets on the bottom. The wooden base was curved to match the contour of the bandsaws surface. To control the power cord, I used rare earth magnets on small blocks of wood that have a plastic electrical clip on them. Two of these allowed me to run the power cord safely out of the way.

It worked great.

Only one problem....Lee Valley then came out with the expensive version of this unit, and I saw that I could use the light in much more locations, since it has multiple mounting configurations, so I took the plunge and bought one. That too is great. I run the "T" track on my work table and move the light wherever I want it, very convenient.

A lot of places now sell this unit, here's 4 of them.

http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?familyid=4273

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=46866&cat=1,43456,43349

Already listed earlier...
http://www.garrettwade.com/jump.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&itemID=105965

http://www.turningwood.com/light_stand.htm

I list all of these, because they helped me to see all the different mounting jigs and uses. I still use the power cord controlling magnets.

One option was cheap and fun to build, and the other was more flexible in it's uses and more expensive.

[Keel McDonald]

How about something like this, Delta Magnetic Light. (http://www.amazon.com/Delta-25-869-Magnetic-Power-Attachment/dp/B0000223AK/sr=1-1/qid=1161092652/ref=sr_1_1/104-3872339-5412753?ie=UTF8&s=hi)

EDIT: I gotta learn to type faster.

Dave,

That's the light I use. It works great. I also use one on my drill press, and move it to my lathe when I use that too. I really need another one.