Bandsaw bites the dust

[Bobby Hatfield]

My lilttle 12" bandsaw bites the dust after all these years of heavy use, seems to be drive wheel bearing freeze up, the little Sears must be 20 years old, its the one I use the most and have overloaded it terrible, I hate the old Griz 18" so have relegated it to only cutting logs or large stumps.
OK, which new one do I want ? I didn't pay any attention when you were all buying bandsaws. I only need a 14" so Grizzly is quickest and Delta is highest cost, right ? I don't need more than 6" cutting height or the 13-1/4" width, but do need blade control at the cutting point, how are the guides on the Griz, Jet, Delta and others.

[Wolf Kiessling]

My lilttle 12" bandsaw bites the dust after all these years of heavy use, seems to be drive wheel bearing freeze up, the little Sears must be 20 years old, its the one I use the most and have overloaded it terrible, I hate the old Griz 18" so have relegated it to only cutting logs or large stumps.
OK, which new one do I want ? I didn't pay any attention when you were all buying bandsaws. I only need a 14" so Grizzly is quickest and Delta is highest cost, right ? I don't need more than 6" cutting height or the 13-1/4" width, but do need blade control at the cutting point, how are the guides on the Griz, Jet, Delta and others.

I have the 14" Delta. The blades I use the most are a 1/2" for cutting bowl blanks and the 3/4" for resawing. The Delta will tension the 3/4" blade just fine. I have heard that the Jet will not and don't know about the Griz. The guides I use are the metal blocks that came with it, I adjust for the .003 clearance between the blade and the block on each side and have no control probs.

[David Rose]

Hey Grouchy!

My only experience is with the Delta 14". In that size I couldn't be happier. I did make some modifications, but LOML says I would have done that with anything. She's probably right.

The guide adjustments are good. The lower ones are pretty close to the table and have extensions to make adjustments easier. The saw comes with steel blocks. Cool Blocks are... cooler. They are more forgiving of getting teeth in the wrong place too. They will hold blade lube for a while too. Wooden blocks work also, but CBs are pretty cheap.

The little Chinese Delta 14 saw is relatively inexpensive. I don't know how it differs from my "made in America" one, but it looks the same without close examination. That is with the exception of better looking DC port(s) and a quick release tension handle.

The top blade guide assembly bar on mine is very true when you raise or lower it. I would want to check that on any smaller saw before I bought it.

David


My lilttle 12" bandsaw bites the dust after all these years of heavy use, seems to be drive wheel bearing freeze up, the little Sears must be 20 years old, its the one I use the most and have overloaded it terrible, I hate the old Griz 18" so have relegated it to only cutting logs or large stumps.
OK, which new one do I want ? I didn't pay any attention when you were all buying bandsaws. I only need a 14" so Grizzly is quickest and Delta is highest cost, right ? I don't need more than 6" cutting height or the 13-1/4" width, but do need blade control at the cutting point, how are the guides on the Griz, Jet, Delta and others.

[Steven Wilson]

Bobby,

Before you decide give Minimax a call and have them send out info on their new 14" bandsaw (S14). It has 1.5hp motor, 1" blade capacity, 8" resaw, 4" dust port, quick release tension, and ball bearing guides. It looks like it will be a great saw with a lot of features for the price.

[Rob Bourgeois]

Another option is the powermatic 14. It has cast iron wheels, 1.5 HP motor, 15 in table, carter Quick release. Runs about 750 to 800 depending on where you get it.

Jet also came out with a 14 deluxe, that is very similar to the powermatic except is has a 1 1/4 HP motor and it only says cast wheels. I think it runs about 550

Just a few others options. I purchase the powermatic and it should be here this week or Monday.

[Dominic Greco]

Bobby,
I have a Jet 14" which I have used for the last 5 - 6 years. I've added roller guides, an Iturra Designs Tension Spring, a set of Iturra Designs wheel brushes, and a riser block.

Notice the accessories I added (or felt I needed to add). The $450.99 (blue colored bandsaw on closeout sale at Woodcraft) price tag was augmented by some serious dollars.

The 1 Hp motor lacks the power to handle bigger resaw jobs. Even with a brand new Timberwolf blade installed, I could bog the saw down easily. And I could never understand enclosing a TEFC motor in a metal cabinet with no source of air holes for circulation. No wonder the motor would get very hot during big resaw jobs.

(BTW, I'm in the process of completing the new enclosed base for this bandsaw. A new, and larger enclosed base was needed to accommodate a 220V 2HP motor, filtered cooling fan, and filtered exhaust. A detailed post with pictures will follow as soon as I complete the project) ;)

From what I see, you have a couple of directions to go here.

1.) If I understand correctly, you just need a bandsaw for general use. If economics is an issue, I would recommend buying the 14" Grizzly. It is as nice as the 14" Jet and has some added features. It is also very competitively priced. I believe the Grizzly catalog lists then for $375.00.

2.) If you have more cash at your disposal, and want a bandsaw that will do more than that, I recommend getting the Powermatic 14". If this is the same saw I saw at a local wood working show in 2003, it is VERY well built. I dare say, better than the Delta. A side by side compression of the features may be in order.

3.) Then there is the 18" saw crowd. When Woodworker's Warehouse took a trip to Davey Jone's locker, I managed to sneak a brand new 18" Jet nadsaw into my shop. ;) So far, I am very happy with the power, the lower table height, and the larger table size. I've just started using it to resaw and am very happy with it. Getting it for just under $900 was also nice. :D

Don't get me wrong, there are a couple of things I'd change. The lower blade guide adjustment could be a lot more ergonomic. You have to tilt the table out of the way to adjust this. And there should be a dust port in the lower wheel cabinet. When resawing, sawdust just builds up here like you wouldn't believe.

That being said, I'd take a look at the new Delta 18". It has all the good features of the Jet plus an additional 4" dia dust port in the lower cabinet, a foot brake (I believe), and a 2Hp motor for almost the same as the normal asking price for the Jet 18".

Just my take on the matter.

[Wes Bischel]

Bobby,

Just food for thought - you could replace the bearings in the old saw which would give you extra time to research a new saw. Then when you get the new saw the old Sears unit would be good for resale.

Naturally this assumes you want another project to add to your list. :rolleyes:

Good luck and happy hunting,
Wes