Help buying my first bandsaw(s)

[Mike Kees]

Bill just not sure where you get the idea the OP lives in the Czech Republic from. He did not state that in his post. Not noted in his location.,

[Carroll Courtney]

Bill just not sure where you get the idea the OP lives in the Czech Republic from. He did not state that in his post. Not noted in his location.,

Just thinking out loud,I think that is Bills point. When I first join here,a member had ask about my location so I filled out more information

[Randall J Cox]

After 30 years of hobby woodworking, I ended up with an 18" minimax and an old 10" delta that i rebuilt. I have a 1/2" blade on the Minimax and a 1/4" blade on the Delta. I had an older 14" Delta that I had totally rebuilt and foolishly sold it. Anyway, what I have now works for me. By the way, I buy all my stuff used and rebuild if I need to. I can buy a lot more stuff that way. Randy

[Todd Sebek]

Thank you all again. Definitely good context clues on the Czech name (most names that end in the letters EK are usually Czech or Polish). I’m proud of my grandfather and his 12 brothers and sisters that came over and farmed in Texas, where I now live.
I have researched and continuously heard good things about the Minimax line. I even think there may be a dealer in Texas somewhere towards Houston. From my understanding a 12” resaw is a good minimum, and that can be aided by a riser block on the smaller machines. I could also picture myself buying a bigger one first then adding a smaller one later. I really do appreciate y’all’s input. I’m constantly watching CL to see if I can find a gem.

[Tom Trees]

Hello
Just thought I'd add to your options
If your looking at craigslist, then don't be put off by 3 phase machines, as a VFD/inverter is easy to hook up and costs about 100 quid.
Saves you needing a 16 amp socket wired up if you don't have already,will run off the domestic easily so you could subtract that if your on a budget.
I would be looking for 20" to 24" machines, ,
The older Italian saws Laguna, Aggazani,Felder,Griggio, ACM,and apart from the stout slightly different looking Centauro's all look the pretty much the same, were made in the same country
and share parts like the GL 234 guides and such.
You will get an eye for them, especially if you search the archives for a well known bandsaw guru here called Van Husky.

20" machines are probably more sought after, as more commonly found 24" saws and larger coming from factories selling up or upgrading, so may be got for
about a quarter the cost, frequently three phase are half the price of single phase, and used being half the price of new as a rough guide.
Nothing needed on a bigger saw made in the last 40 years, apart from maybe new tires needed, and suitable glue.
some top of the line bearings for both wheels prob 20 quid,
All you need is a thrust guide for a stout 3/4" blade as a blade that size will not really need side rollers.

One thing to research is what a dual voltage three phase motor is,
Hopefully most of the motors on those Italian saws will have dual voltage three phase motors over there.
Dual voltage means it can be run from your household supply, without needing a posh VFD/inverter.
If you spot a machine and you can see the motor nameplate, not the machine tag,
then look for 220/440, it may also have a triangle symbol, hopefully so.

I bought my machine for 500 Euros, so you could get a nice machine if you've got funds for two.
VFD cost another hundred, and about 15 quid for everything else.
I made a protective enclosure ..dust and impact resistance, from a bit of sheet metal and an old exit sign I had lying around.

Can't get a proper photo of the saw without computer faffery,
A basic Italian 24" machine from 1997 with shop made fence of an evidently silly design Bandsaw fence antics - Copy.JPG

[Jim Becker]

I have researched and continuously heard good things about the Minimax line. I even think there may be a dealer in Texas somewhere towards Houston.

The person you want to speak to is Sam Blasco. He's physically near Austin, but is "THE" guru for SCM/Minimax. He's also the star of many of their videos, an amazing maker and artist and one of the nicest guys on the planet.

Sam Blasco
Minimax Product Line Manager
sam.blasco@scmgroup.com
512-931-1962 (shop)
512-796-3036 (mobile)
866-216-2166 (main office/parts/tech services)
www.minimax-usa.com

[Matthew Hills]

The person you want to speak to is Sam Blasco. He's physically near Austin, but is "THE" guru for SCM/Minimax. He's also the star of many of their videos, an amazing maker and artist and one of the nicest guys on the planet.

Out of curiosity, does anyone know the woodworker who shows up in most of the Felder/Hammer demo project videos?

Matt

[Jim Becker]

Out of curiosity, does anyone know the woodworker who shows up in most of the Felder/Hammer demo project videos?

Matt

Maybe Erik does or can find out...he's also a Texan, BTW, and not far from Sam.

[Bill Dufour]

Just thinking out loud,I think that is Bills point. When I first join here,a member had ask about my location so I filled out more information

I was joking but he did not say and still has not updated his profile to include Texas. I understand he has more important stuff to do then update that profile. It would be easy to miss the one post that includes that information.
I also understand sometimes the profile location gets lost. It happened to mine and i was glad someone mentioned it so I could update it. location really makes a difference when talking about heating and cooling the shop or the local market for used tools.
On a metal working site I frequent there is one poster from Guinea Bissau ,he always lists his location. Even so people will tell him you are wasting your time fixing that item just go to the local hardware store or have it mailed to you. There is no home delivery or city electricity. He runs his whole shop and school for trades people on solar and a generator. I think he does this as a religious misson kind of thing. He grew up and maybe retired? not sure of his age, in the USA. People get together and ship him a cargo container full of stuff about once per year.

Bil lD

[Todd Sebek]

I spoke to Sam and boy was he helpful. I may keep saving my pennies. Would you say that having more than 12” of resawing is a strong long-term play?

[Jim Becker]

There is no such thing as "too much" and the extra height, even if you don't use it, provides much better visibility which can, in turn, make using the tool more comfortable.

[Mick Simon]

I bought a S500P (MM20) on Sam's recommendation and can say I have not for one minute regretted it. I have 20" of resaw capacity which is about 4" more than I've needed so far. That said, I strongly believe that excess capacity almost always translates into better results at any needed capacity. With a Lenox CT Woodmaster it gives excellent results.

[Alex Zeller]

Extra capacity isn't usually a bad thing. But it normally will cost you more because the blades are longer. A longer blade mans more teeth so it should take longer to wear so it balances out. Of course if it break or kinks prematurely then it doesn't work out so well. Where it matters to me is in the quality of the saw. A taller resaw capacity means the spline needs to be stronger to property tension it. If you look at Laguna's BX18 with 16" of resaw vs Grizzly's G0514X saws they both weigh about the same. The blade is only 2" longer so it's only tensioning very little extra blade. But if you look at the Rikon 10-342 it's in the middle for resaw capacity, it weighs almost 100 lbs less (some could be due to a 2hp motor vs 3hp) and has an extra 8" of blade to tension.

These were the 3 saws I was looking at so I can't offer an opinion about the MM. But I would expect the MM to be more of an industrial unit comparable to Laguna's LT line up than the saws I listed above. If I was getting into that price range I would start looking at the blade width the mfg says the saw can properly tension. The small shop models I listed above are rated for 1 1/4" (which I figure they can do a 1" blade) where as the Laguna LT18 (I almost got a used one at a good price) can tension a 2" blade. If I'm spending $5k on a saw I want to be able to put a nice wide resaw blade on it. It may not be needed but like others have said, more height isn't a bad thing, well neither is blade width capacity.

[Todd Sebek]

I think I threw an assist to another member of the forum on a quality used Laguna LT18 in Texas. I probably should have jumped on that but I am learning.

I am all over the place on my focus. On one hand, I’m hoping to find a $500 deal on CL, on the other hand, I’m hoping Woodcraft or Rockler has a great sale tomorrow. Then, after talking to Sam Blasco, I should save my money forever and get the biggest Minimax saw I can afford at the time (which is seasoned advise).

I obviously still need a lot of help. Thanks to all of you. Ideally I would love to find a used gem like most of y’all have found. The right deal will show itself.

[Todd Sebek]

I saw someone above mention an Inca 20” bandsaw. One of these popped up on CL for $950 the other day. It is a very curious looking saw to me that I am interested in getting for information on. What’s your opinion on it?