On Tue, 09 Oct 2007 13:06:47 -0700, eekamouse wrote:


Ridgid is alright but if I wa not in a hurry or dire need I wuld look
for some good old american iron being sold from an out of business
shop or old wood workers estate. The biggest problems with the Ridgid
BS is the lightweight castings used onthe upper end, its easy to
spring out of shape by trying to tension the blade sufficiently, and
then the motor is working hard too as its over rated for what it
actually is in horsepower..........Put an amp meter on it when cutting
something like 1" pine and its maxing out the amperage draw rating of
the motor as its basically border line in its application. Even the
blade guides leave a lot to be desired. I would save or hold on to my $
$$$ and start looking for that long lost piece of american iron.
However if yur satisfied with a 1/4" wide blade and cutting thin
materials I suppose it will do just fine. At a minimum I wuld buy a
JET and even then its not really near as good as an old American made
piece that you may find. I picked up an Oliver 24" bandsaw w/3 phase
motor which I replaced with a single phase 220 motor, and had right at
$400 in it counting the motor I used and new tires ( i installed
polyurethane tires in place of rubber).............All 110% castiron
and made to run 24/7

Ridgid works for me.. especially since at the time of purchase, my wife had
gotten me a HD credit card with 10% off 1st purchase and 1 year no interest or
payments on purchase over $300.. ;-]

After trying blades from 1/4" to 3/4", I've found that a 3/8" blade works best
for me and what I do..

Sure, it's not a Luguna, but it was only $325...
I cut bowl blanks out of green wood up to 10" thick, so I doubt that 1" pine is
a problem....
I was cutting goblet blanks out of 12" sections of 3" thick mahogany last week
and was happy with the cuts... just can't be in a hurry..

I'm trying to picture where I'd fit a 24" BS in my shop... probably have to put
it outside and that would be a pita... lol


mac

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