Yet another "what to buy question". I've read the bandsaw posts, and
appreciate all I've learned. Rather than asking "what's the best 14
inch BS" or "What's the best 17 inch BS", I'd rather ask "what's the
best saw I can get with a $1000 budget.

I'm a novice, do mostly thin stuff now, but hope that my skills and
needs grow. I'd hope to anticipate resawing in the future, and hope not
to need another tool. I'll be replacing a 12" Craftsman. The thing I
dislike the most about it is the vibration (even after tuning it up),
but I also hope for more capacity and power. I've been watching for a
while, and haven't seen anything used come up close to home.

Here's a few that all come in about the same price:
Delta X5 with a riser - an old standby, but some have raised questions
about vibration.
Powermatic 14 with a riser - always favorably reviewed on the NG
Bridgewood 17WBS - looks nice, but have never seen one turned on.
Trunnions look a little weak, but otherwise seems well made. What about
parts in the future given only one supplier?
Shopfox 17 - looks the sturdiest and most heavy duty, but frame welding
looked a little sloppier than the others, making me question the overall
quality. Cast iron wheels are spoked rather than solid like the Bridgewood.

Any advice or personal experience with these saws (especially the last 2)?

Thanks in advance
David

David wrote:
Yet another "what to buy question". I've read the bandsaw posts, and
appreciate all I've learned. Rather than asking "what's the best 14
inch BS" or "What's the best 17 inch BS", I'd rather ask "what's the
best saw I can get with a $1000 budget.


I bought the Rikon 18" bandsaw back in February after Fine Woodworking Magazine
rated it as a best buy. It certainly falls into your budget although I'd wait
for the next 10% off sale before I'd buy if I were buying one now (it's
currently $999.99 at Woodcraft).

http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?familyid=5220

It's 2 speed, 2 HP, 220V horse of a machine; takes a 142" 1/4" to 1 1/2" blade,
and can resaw up to 12". Cast iron wheels, tension quick release... about the
only thing it seems to lack is a brake.

One of the things that really attracted me to it was it was one of two bandsaws
that FWW felt was easy to make blade changes... and the other was three times
the money (the Laguna... if I recall).

Would I buy one again? Hell, yes. I love the thing....



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN

VE

IMHO you might want to add the Jet 17" to your list. On sale it will
probably fit your price criteria. I have owned one for about 3 years an
love it. Mine has the old "European" friction guides that I planned to
replace after purchase. I got comfortable with them and they are still on
the machine. I believe the new Jets use rollers. The lower blade guides
are a little tricky to adjust but it becomes an acquired skill. The list on
my saw was around $1,099, but I picked it up during a combined store
sale/Jet promotion for around $920 including a mobile base.

As far as which provides the best utility (14" or 17"), it probably boils
down to your intended use. I personally bandsaw a lot of large curved
hardwood pieces. The bigger table helps considerably with balance and
control. However you can add an auxiliary top to a smaller table.

RonB

I can't provide any first-hand user experience with any of the saws you
mentioned, but I'll throw in my 2 cents worth anyway. Mark Duginske
states in his 'Bandsaw Handbook' that a 14" bandsaw should not be used
with anything greater than a 1/2" blade, as the wheels would put too
much strain on a thicker blade. I've read about and seen people using
3/4" (or larger?) blades on 14" saws, but it might be something to
consider. Overall, I guess my advice is to check out his book, if you
haven't already - very informative for a current bandsaw owner or
prospective buyer.

Andy wrote:
I can't provide any first-hand user experience with any of the saws you=

mentioned, but I'll throw in my 2 cents worth anyway. Mark Duginske
states in his 'Bandsaw Handbook' that a 14" bandsaw should not be used
with anything greater than a 1/2" blade, as the wheels would put too
much strain on a thicker blade. I've read about and seen people using
3/4" (or larger?) blades on 14" saws, but it might be something to
consider. Overall, I guess my advice is to check out his book, if you
haven't already - very informative for a current bandsaw owner or
prospective buyer.
=20


There is a 3/4 " blade specifically for us "small" bandsaw users.
http://www.tufftooth.com/

Look at the "new Swedish Silicone Blades"

Specifically this blade. I am sure that similar is available from many=20
suppliers.
http://www.tufftooth.com/silicon-new.html

--=20
Will R.
Jewel Boxes and Wood Art
http://woodwork.pmccl.com
The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those=20
who have not got it.=94 George Bernard Shaw

Suffolk Machinery low tension 3/4" blades work O.K. on the 14"
Rockwell in the garage.

On 9 Aug 2005 07:37:40 -0700, "Andy" wrote:

I can't provide any first-hand user experience with any of the saws you
mentioned, but I'll throw in my 2 cents worth anyway. Mark Duginske
states in his 'Bandsaw Handbook' that a 14" bandsaw should not be used
with anything greater than a 1/2" blade, as the wheels would put too
much strain on a thicker blade. I've read about and seen people using
3/4" (or larger?) blades on 14" saws, but it might be something to
consider. Overall, I guess my advice is to check out his book, if you
haven't already - very informative for a current bandsaw owner or
prospective buyer.

On Tue, 09 Aug 2005 01:08:55 -0400, David
wrote:

Shopfox 17 - looks the sturdiest and most heavy duty, but frame welding
looked a little sloppier than the others, making me question the overall
quality. Cast iron wheels are spoked rather than solid like the Bridgewood.

Never seen the Shopfox, but the Grizzly 17" is an awfully nice
machine. Good fit and finish, and the guy I know that has one uses it
to rough out really large turning blanks, and has nothing bad to say
about it.

Any advice or personal experience with these saws (especially the last 2)?

Thanks in advance
David

Prometheus wrote:
On Tue, 09 Aug 2005 01:08:55 -0400, David
wrote:


Shopfox 17 - looks the sturdiest and most heavy duty, but frame welding
looked a little sloppier than the others, making me question the overall
quality. Cast iron wheels are spoked rather than solid like the Bridgewood.


Never seen the Shopfox, but the Grizzly 17" is an awfully nice
machine. Good fit and finish, and the guy I know that has one uses it
to rough out really large turning blanks, and has nothing bad to say
about it.


Any advice or personal experience with these saws (especially the last 2)?

Thanks in advance
David


Seems like most people are steering you towards the 17" but I can tell
you that a 14" bandsaw is a very handy tool, and if you're into
resawing, you put a 6" riser on it and you can pretty much cut whatever
you need. I've got a Jet 14" JWBS-14X with the 1¼ HP motor, Itura
springs, wheel brush, cool blocks, and the 6" riser. I like this saw.
But here's something you may want to check out:

http://www.rd.com/americanwoodworker...T_Bandsaws.pdf

BTW, the Jet fit & finish is really nice, and this particular model is a
_big_ improvement over previous ones with better DC porting, a standard
lever-arm tension release, and more precise cast-iron wheels.

I used to have a Grizzly 15 in bandsaw. I later upgraded to the Grizzly
G0513 model which is 17in. I did have my eye on the jet 16in, but after
using the G0513 for over a year, I can saw I would purchase this again.

The Grizzly 15 in was not bad, but the mounting of the table to the saw
frame was not as sturdy as I would like. I also wanted a greater width of
cut. The fence system on the old saw was a pain to remove and resulted in
reducing the width of cut by a couple of inches.

The G0513 is configured for 220V operations, rated at 10A but can be changed
to 110V operation rated at 20A.

The G0513 comes with carter style bearings, a rack and pinion upper blade
support adjustment, a lever and spring based blade tension mechanism to
easily untension when not used, and a decent fence system with one hand
operation and instant removal for maximum cut width.

Other brands may be better quality, but this one does the job for my needs.

If I were having to decide between 15in and 17in and could afford the wider
depth of cut, I would get the wider depth.

Dave Paine.

"David" wrote in message
news
Yet another "what to buy question". I've read the bandsaw posts, and
appreciate all I've learned. Rather than asking "what's the best 14 inch
BS" or "What's the best 17 inch BS", I'd rather ask "what's the best saw I
can get with a $1000 budget.

I'm a novice, do mostly thin stuff now, but hope that my skills and needs
grow. I'd hope to anticipate resawing in the future, and hope not to need
another tool. I'll be replacing a 12" Craftsman. The thing I dislike the
most about it is the vibration (even after tuning it up), but I also hope
for more capacity and power. I've been watching for a while, and haven't
seen anything used come up close to home.

Here's a few that all come in about the same price:
Delta X5 with a riser - an old standby, but some have raised questions
about vibration.
Powermatic 14 with a riser - always favorably reviewed on the NG
Bridgewood 17WBS - looks nice, but have never seen one turned on.
Trunnions look a little weak, but otherwise seems well made. What about
parts in the future given only one supplier?
Shopfox 17 - looks the sturdiest and most heavy duty, but frame welding
looked a little sloppier than the others, making me question the overall
quality. Cast iron wheels are spoked rather than solid like the
Bridgewood.

Any advice or personal experience with these saws (especially the last 2)?

Thanks in advance
David