Tested some Agazzani's at Eagle

[Rich Person]

I stopped by Eagle tonight and Jesse showed me some of the Agazzani's. I took in a piece of 10.5"x1" purpleheart--thinking that would be a pretty solid test. I was interested to see the quality of cut, but also had my mind set on a B-24, but wanted to test the 3hp B-20.

I also brought a maple board, but Jesse started right off with the purpleheart on the B-20. He cut of a 1/8 slice by hand using the standard fence. The purpleheart went strait through at a good pace. The cut looked very smooth and very even. He did the same cut on the B-24 at the same pace with pretty much the same result. Both units had Lenox carbides.

I thought some would appreciate this in light of the recent purpleheart resaw thread.

I'm in a little bit of a quandry now because I was planning on getting the B-24, in part because of the 4.8 hp motor. But, since the 3hp B-20 did fine on 10.5" purpleheart, I'm not sure what more I would need it to do. My shop is wired with a 20 amp and 30 amp plug, but the B-24 would require 40 or 50 amp service, which would take time and or $$. The price difference is $400, not including the electrical work. My problem is that I cannot really find a reason that I need the B-24, other than the value of having larger everything, in case I should need it.

Anyone want to convince me why I should go big (or why I shouldn't)?

[Chuck Nickerson]

I and three other members of my woodworking club have B20s from Jesse. We all resaw, and none of us regret the B20 vs B24, but we're all hobbiests. If you have a later purchase planned that will require 50 amp service, that would smooth the cost out for the power upgrade.

[John Renzetti]

Hi Rich, I have the Adwood version of the B-24 coming at the end of March. This is the Rapide 600. Essentially the same machine except for a couple of features. Mine is the 3ph version.
I don't understand though why you would need a 50amp breaker for this 1ph machine. It's 4ph 1ph. The data plate should be about 21amps. The 4.8hp comes from the claim that at 60hz the motor is turning 20% faster so 20% more hp. I really don't buy that and as far as I'm concerning my Rapide 600 has a 4hp and not 4.8hp 3ph motor. There is probably a high amp draw on initial start, but in using the 50amp breaker you could be greatly overprotecting the circuit. This might not be allowed by the NEC. I'm not an expert on that so someone else will have to chime in.
You might be able to use your current 30amp circuit and use a time delay breaker or have a quick disconnect with time delay fuses.
take care,
John

[Jim Becker]

Both are great machines...tough choice, I know.

As to the amperage for the 4.8hp machine...I'm with John. I have two 4.8hp machines in my shop (MM FS350 J/P and MM S315 SW) and both require a 30 amp circuit. Check the specifications for the B24 more carefully.

[John Renzetti]

Hi Jim, Haven't been around much, as a lot going on getting ready for my vacation in a sunny dry part of the world in a few months.:) Congratulations on the new MM saw. Great machine. Let me know when you come by my way.
take care,
John

[Mark Singer]

Perple heart is a really hard and sticky wood that burns easily....so that was a good test. I have heard the best Aggazani's are from the 20 and up....so either fits that criteria. I cant think of a situation where my 20 was not capable of the task at hand. This includes angled cuts on 8ft long sofa backs in Paduak....Large size wenge resawing.....teak sizing for a large sofa posted not too long ago. The Trimaster survived the teak:rolleyes: just fine. A lot of it has to do with the blade...the Trimaster on the 20 is a terific combnation! On the small side of things, I have made tiny pieces for architectural models on this saw and it is a delite to cut precise on.
If you are setting it up as a resaw , sizing bandsaw and not a scrolling machine the 1" Trimaster is the blade. Some of the bimetals are really good also. Maloof just has a 3/8 " 4 tpi steel blade on his and it cut like a dream also....that was on his 36" and when he turns it off, the thing spins for 10 minutes before it stops! That is well balanced with a flexible blade.
I don't think I helped much , but either would be great. I think mine is on a 20 amp 220 breaker

[Roy Wall]

My 4.8 hp machine takes a 30 amp breaker..........maybe double check.

Was the difference in table size significant? The throat depth will give you another 3.5+

If your heart was set on the B24 first - and your current electrical will handle it - I"d stick with the B24. Not because of the additional HP, but more so of the table and throat depth.

If your current electrical isn't sufficient, then probably go with the B20.

[Jim Young]

The price difference is $400, not including the electrical work. I looked at the Eagle site and they show $600 difference.

I bought the B20 several years ago and have found it cuts everything I need. As a hobbyist this saw has plenty of power and capacity. If this were a professional shop I could see the upgrade to the B24. If you have any doubts about the smaller saw don't get it, you will only be mad later down the road if you bought too small (we've all been there).

[Rich Person]

The running amps are only about 21. But, Jesse said he had several people have start up problems with the B-24 running on a 30 amp breaker because the initial draw to get the wheels going runs up higher than 30. I would always try it out and see, and then if it has issues, swap out the breaker and wiring.

The prices I have from Jesse right not make it a $400 difference. I'm still debating, but appreciate all of your input. The fact that so many people have the B-20 and don't see any need to move up is valuable.

[Don Bullock]

The running amps are only about 21. But, Jesse said he had several people have start up problems with the B-24 running on a 30 amp breaker because the initial draw to get the wheels going runs up higher than 30. I would always try it out and see, and then if it has issues, swap out the breaker and wiring.

The prices I have from Jesse right not make it a $400 difference. I'm still debating, but appreciate all of your input. The fact that so many people have the B-20 and don't see any need to move up is valuable.

You might want to check out the price of wire. It's gone way up over the past few months. While the building in So. Cal. has slowed down some, much of the supplies scheduled to be delivered here have been diverted to Florida and the Gulf Coast. My electrician can't even finialize bids on large projects until the day he buys the wire. He had theives strip all the copper wire and pipes on a house he was working on recently just so they could sell the copper.

[Rich Person]

You might want to check out the price of wire. It's gone way up over the past few months. While the building in So. Cal. has slowed down some, much of the supplies scheduled to be delivered here have been diverted to Florida and the Gulf Coast. My electrician can't even finialize bids on large projects until the day he buys the wire. He had theives strip all the copper wire and pipes on a house he was working on recently just so they could sell the copper.

This isn't really a problem because my panel is in the wall directly behind my 220 plugs, so I only need a couple feet.

Still undecided, but will think about it more tomorrow.