Another Bandsaw Question/Suggestion

[Lloyd Parker]

I have read through the forum about all the bandsaws out there.

I know the MM16, LT16HD, and Agazzani are the best saws on the market.

However, I am looking at this from a different perspective. My shop (garage) is only wired for 110V.

So I am looking for the best bandsaw that will work on 110V 20A circuit?

What do y'all suggest?

Thanks,

[Mike Cutler]

Lloyd.
My first question would be what are looking to use it for

The Jet 14", The Delta 14" and the Grizzly 14" are all nice bandsaws. They have motors that are 3/4-1hp and would easily run on 120 vac.

[Mark Singer]

Run a new circuit...

[Lloyd Parker]

No room to run a new circuit without drawing a new line from the pole and putting in a new circuit box. I would love to have a couple 220v plugs, but the electrician wanted a lot of $ for the work. Maybe when I build my next house.

As for what I am looking in for a saw. Basically what I am looking for in a saw, is the best I can get.

I have used a friends bandsaw a few times, however, I do not have extensive experience with bandsaws. I figure I will do a little bit of everything with it, cross-cut, rip-cut, resaw. I work with everything from 4/4 to 12/4, 4"-10" in width hardwoods and some softwoods too.

[Jim Becker]

You're pretty much fine for any saw that doesn't exceed about 1.5 to 1.75 hp...that includes the typical 14" machines and some of the 16-18" machines like the Jet.

[Brad Townsend]

No room to run a new circuit without drawing a new line from the pole and putting in a new circuit box.
Could you replace a couple of the breakers in the box with half-height doubles, giving you some space to add a 220 circuit? Get your hands on a copy of this
http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/0865734291.01._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-dp-500-arrow,TopRight,45,-64_OU01_AA240_SH20_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

and decide if you would feel comfortable wiring it yourself.

[Roy McQuay]

I have an 18" Jet wired for 110 and I don't have any complaints after 3 years. I don't do much resawing as it is limited to a 10" cut. I do a lot of curve cuts in oak with it and only use TimberWolf blades. I haven't used any other bandsaws so I can't say if one is best, only that mine has been sufficient.

[Lloyd Parker]

Thanks for the help. Guess I will go back and see what I can do with the garage wiring to see if I can get a 220v plug put in for a bandsaw.

[Conrad Aquino]

One thing to consider about adding an additional circuit on maxed out a sub panel is the wire size coming into it from the main.

You might be able to cram in a circuit for 220V by utilizing the half size breakers, but you could potentially exceed the amp capacity of either the sub panel bus bars or feeder line from the main panel.

I co-worker of mine recently had his sub-panel bus bars go into "melt down" mode from such a overload occuring when the electric clothes dryer, house central air conditioning and his shop were going all at once.

Putting in a new dedicated service to the garage for a workshop as a DIY project is not as bad as it seems and you could save some big bucks if you felt comfortable enough doing it.

I found the building permit (bureaucratic) process to be more difficult than the work.

Conrad

[Pete Brown]

Putting in a new dedicated service to the garage for a workshop as a DIY project is not as bad as it seems and you could save some big bucks if you felt comfortable enough doing it.

I found the building permit (bureaucratic) process to be more difficult than the work.

One note: in some parts of the country (like my part of Maryland) you are not allowed to either run the wire yourself, apply for a permit or otherwise do anything trade-specific (electrical, plumbing and hvac) at all.

That being said, a subpanel should be doable unless the power to the house is extremely low. You shouldn't be able to melt down a properly sized panel. If you can, you need a new panel anyway.

I had my house upgraded to 400 amps, a second panel installed, and 100 amp service all run out to my shed. The electricians did an excellent job, and it also made it easier to renovate my kitchen.

Pete

[Robert Waddell]

Lloyd,
The new heavier Rikon 14 is a good all around bandsaw that would not require new wiring. It has a 1.5 hp motor wired for 110v. Check it out if you have a Woodcraft near by. I think you will find it to be a lot if saw for the money.
Rob

[Sam Shank]

One note: in some parts of the country (like my part of Maryland) you are not allowed to either run the wire yourself, apply for a permit or otherwise do anything trade-specific (electrical, plumbing and hvac) at all.

How can that be? Are there police out there watching what you buy and what you do with it? Do the inspectors have a diagram of your pannel and where all the wires go? Will they really notice a new outlet or 50? How would they know if you replaced a leaky valve? Do you have to call a plumber to change a faucet? This is just silly.

[Mark Duginske]

Any band saw is better than no band saw. There have been a number of good suggestions in this thread. I usually suggest getting a standard type 14” saw with a riser block and standard block guides so you can run small blades so the saw can essentially function like a scroll saw. With the riser you can resaw. I usually suggest making a circular kerf cut on each side of the board for a thick resaw because takes less power and does not stress the blade as much. You can always upgrade to a bigger saw but even then it is a good idea to keep the 14” for smaller blades.

Good luck,

Mark Duginske

[Ken Fitzgerald]

How can that be? Are there police out there watching what you buy and what you do with it? Do the inspectors have a diagram of your pannel and where all the wires go? Will they really notice a new outlet or 50? How would they know if you replaced a leaky valve? Do you have to call a plumber to change a faucet? This is just silly.

Sam......I'm just your average home owner and am not connected in any way to the local building code inspector or city building code office.

The idiots that built my carport didn't get a permit and it showed. I've weighed over 200 lbs since age 19. When I roofed the house 2 years after I bought it I noticed the carport roof was mushy. The idiots builder's idea of a truss was a single piece of 2x4 from the bottom chord to each of the rafters with a single nail in each end of the 2x4. The header....double 2x8 with no plywood sandwiched in the middle. When we had 9" of snow on the ground (and roof) I measured a 2" sag in the middle of the header. I worked once as a draftsman. After conferring with a stuctural engineer employed by a truss manufacturer and using his suggestion, I replaced the poorly built header with a 12.5" x 5.5" glu-lam. Using a college carpentry text book as a reference, I drew up the plans to retruss the roof. I got the plans approved and retrussed the carport roof in place using 3/4" plywood gussets..... all done with building permits and inspections.

In the case of electrical work and rework, I know of people locally who had to hire the electrical work redone by a licensed electrician to bring it up to code to sell the house. The buyer of the house had hired a building inspector to inspect the home prior to the sale and the independent inspector found the improperly wired hot tub.

Improperly performed electrical wiring has burned down a large number of homes.

Building codes are there to protect people!

[John Bailey]

The Grizzly 513 and 513X are advertised as 220/110 prewired 220. The General International was - the last time I saw - advertised 110/220 prewired 110. The General International is pretty much the same saw as the Grizzly 513x.

John

[Nancy Laird]

Lloyd, Take a look at the Steel City 14 and 16. Both are 120/230, both are 1-1/2hp, both are 2-speed. Prices are very competitive, fit and finish right out of the box are superb, and they have gotten very nice reviews on a couple of other forums. Available at Woodworker's Supply and other dealers. 14" is $659.99, 16" is $999.99, and there is a $100 rebate on the 14" and $50.00 on the 16".

Nancy