Check this out:

http://www.joewoodworker.com/tools_and_accessories.htm

Read the section regarding the Laguna. Apparently they are not known for
great customer service.

also:
http://www.songofthegreatlakes.com/laguna.htm

--
Stout
http://www.garagewoodworks.com
(Featuring a NEW look)

Leon,

You might also enjoy this if you have not read it:

http://www.woodcentral.com/cgi-bin/r...cles_206.shtml

--
Stoutman
http://www.garagewoodworks.com
(Featuring a NEW look)

"stoutman" .@. wrote in message
...
Leon,

You might also enjoy this if you have not read it:

http://www.woodcentral.com/cgi-bin/r...cles_206.shtml


Yeah I saw that. While I am not sold on either saw yet, that review was
quite biased. He points out several differences but none of them mean
better, just different, IMHO. All of the Laguna's come with Baldor motors
now. This may be an old review.

I have the Laguna 16HD, and have been happy with it. I don't think much
of the fence, but it does work. I was having problems with the saw not
cutting as well (fast) as I thought it should. It would bog down
easily. I found out that it was just the belt tension on the motor,
which was easily fixed. I can't imagion it having trouble with a 4
quarter piece of bubinga, whether cutting the 1 inch way, or the 12
inch way. I have cut osage orange, black locust, honey locust, myrtle,
big leaf maple, and others. Having the proper blade helps. I cut mostly
green wood for bowl turning, but also do some resawing for the
furniture I make. I haven't had the opportunity to work with the MM,
but it is probably a good saw also.
Laguna did tell me that they had changed shipping companies because
they were having damage problems. Mine arrived with minor damage. It
was just bolted to a pallet. The saw was tied off around the throat,
and this, with the bumps and swaying of the truck totally ripped off
one of the boards that it was bolted to, and half way ripped off the
other. The cardboard cover keeps some dings away, but they need a
surround crate, and not just a pallet.
robo hippy

"robo hippy" wrote in message
oups.com...
I have the Laguna 16HD, and have been happy with it. I don't think much
of the fence, but it does work. I was having problems with the saw not
cutting as well (fast) as I thought it should. It would bog down
easily. I found out that it was just the belt tension on the motor,
which was easily fixed. I can't imagion it having trouble with a 4
quarter piece of bubinga, whether cutting the 1 inch way, or the 12
inch way. I have cut osage orange, black locust, honey locust, myrtle,
big leaf maple, and others. Having the proper blade helps. I cut mostly
green wood for bowl turning, but also do some resawing for the
furniture I make. I haven't had the opportunity to work with the MM,
but it is probably a good saw also.
Laguna did tell me that they had changed shipping companies because
they were having damage problems. Mine arrived with minor damage. It
was just bolted to a pallet. The saw was tied off around the throat,
and this, with the bumps and swaying of the truck totally ripped off
one of the boards that it was bolted to, and half way ripped off the
other. The cardboard cover keeps some dings away, but they need a
surround crate, and not just a pallet.
robo hippy

Thank you sir. For 2 weeks I had the latest model of the Rikon 18" band
saw. I returned it as it was not up to what I expected. I will have to say
however that the band saw was completely housed inside a 5/8" thick plywood
crate that along with the shrink wrap inside would keep the saw dry had it
been left out in the rain. I often suspect the packaging as much as the
shipping company.
Concerning you belt tension I wonder if the link belts would help. Does
your model have the Baldor motor?
And while I am on this 20 questions roll, Is you fence the aluminum one that
is 5+ inches tall? What specifically are you not impress with concerning
the fence? I know the MniMax has a shorter cast iron fence. What do you
think of the ceramic guides, providing you have a newer 16HD saw.

Thank you again.

I probably will make my comments on the process and performance of which
ever I get. I did make some comments about the 18" Rikon that I owned for a
couple of weeks. It is the primary reason that I am stepping up a few
notches and hundreds of $'s more.
The Rikon was an excellent saw for the price but not what I was looking for.
No fault of the Rikon but I am totally unimpressed by roller bearing guides
on the side of the blade. IMHO they make the blade get dirtier more quickly
with that steam roller effect. ;~)


wrote in message
ups.com...
Leon:

I sincerely hope you let us know what you wind up with as it seems like
you are doing all the right research. Sometimes we have time to
shop/look/research, and sometimes we don't.

It would nice to have your comments on the saw you keep in the
archives, for those of us that will going down this road... say...
about 8 - 9 months from now. ; )

Robert

My saw does have the Baldor motor. It also has the 5 inch high aluminum
fence. It has been hard for me to get it tightened to the bracket it is
on so that it doesn't flex or move as I slide something along it. If I
am resawing, I have a high fence that I made. It is clamped down on
both sides.I use the aluminum fence for a general guide in cutting bowl
blanks. With the carbide blade (a Lennox ) I can see that it will cut
as well or better than my table saw. Being a former concrete man, I
like things over built rather than under built, and it isn't over
built. Also, you can't remove the fence without taking the blade off,
or unbolting it.
I haven't tried the link belt on the saw yet. I do have some links, but
haven't had any slipping or vibration, or lack of power since I last
tightened the belt.
One modification I made is to the dust collection port. It is a 4 inch
port, and has a metal cross hair type of bracket in it. I rip log
sections for bowls with them standing on end. This produces long thread
like shavings, which instantly colg up on the cross hairs. Laguna said
that this was to prevent someone from sticking their hand inside the
saw. Well I cut that out, and it works better. I think the next step is
to remove the 4 inch port, and put on a 5 inch port. I have an 3 hp
Oneida dust collector, and it doesn't pull out all of the dust. I think
that having the port in a different place might help. It also could be
that the openings in the saw may be too small to allow that much air to
move through it. I have thought about removing the throat plate to see
if that helps, or making another plate with more open space.
The ceramic guides seem to work really well. I haven't had any previous
experience with them. It is kind of freaky to see those orange sparks
coming off into the saw dust, but like someone said in an earlier post,
they (sparks) aren't hot. My other bandsaw is a Powermatic industrial
14 x 6 inch with a 1 hp motor, and cast iron frame. It has the roller
guides. It is much noisier.
Having a good blade can make all the difference in the world. I am
fortunate to have a guy locally who will make up what ever I need. I
just went to him, he asked me what I did on the saw, and he said that I
needed these certain blades (no, I don't know tpi, set, thickness, or
other details) and the blades he sold me work fine. He is also handy,
because the PM uses a 96 inch blade where most 14 inch saws use a 93. I
did loose one carbide blade because the lower thrust bearing slipped
and wasn't supporting the blade. Add to that I wasn't always lowering
the guide to height of the material. That cost about $175, but I won't
make that mistake again. I do love the way that the carbide blade cuts,
very smooth, with almost no saw marks. My blade man said to only use
the carbide blade (can't be resharpened) for resawing and veneer
making, and use a bimetal blade can be sharpened) for my turning
blanks.
robo hippy

wrote:
Leon:

I sincerely hope you let us know what you wind up with as it seems like
you are doing all the right research. Sometimes we have time to
shop/look/research, and sometimes we don't.

It would nice to have your comments on the saw you keep in the
archives, for those of us that will going down this road... say...
about 8 - 9 months from now. ; )

You're kidding, right? He's making my own decision much harder!

Before I was okay with just a "ultimate 14in." from Grizzly, but now I'm
checking out those with cast iron body, cast iron fence, motor in base,
cast trunnions and runners(?)...

er
--
email not valid

Thank you !!!

Concerning not being able to remove the fence with out removing the blade, I
noticed that also but assumed that you could lift the fence so that it was
pointed up and down and slide it off of one end. Perhaps the rail mounts
get in the way then.
I was considering getting the Laguna Resaw King. It can be resharpened 5 to
10 times IIRC. Apparently it falls between high speed steel and carbide.

"robo hippy" wrote in message
oups.com...
My saw does have the Baldor motor. It also has the 5 inch high aluminum
fence. It has been hard for me to get it tightened to the bracket it is
on so that it doesn't flex or move as I slide something along it. If I
am resawing, I have a high fence that I made. It is clamped down on
both sides.I use the aluminum fence for a general guide in cutting bowl
blanks. With the carbide blade (a Lennox ) I can see that it will cut
as well or better than my table saw. Being a former concrete man, I
like things over built rather than under built, and it isn't over
built. Also, you can't remove the fence without taking the blade off,
or unbolting it.
I haven't tried the link belt on the saw yet. I do have some links, but
haven't had any slipping or vibration, or lack of power since I last
tightened the belt.
One modification I made is to the dust collection port. It is a 4 inch
port, and has a metal cross hair type of bracket in it. I rip log
sections for bowls with them standing on end. This produces long thread
like shavings, which instantly colg up on the cross hairs. Laguna said
that this was to prevent someone from sticking their hand inside the
saw. Well I cut that out, and it works better. I think the next step is
to remove the 4 inch port, and put on a 5 inch port. I have an 3 hp
Oneida dust collector, and it doesn't pull out all of the dust. I think
that having the port in a different place might help. It also could be
that the openings in the saw may be too small to allow that much air to
move through it. I have thought about removing the throat plate to see
if that helps, or making another plate with more open space.
The ceramic guides seem to work really well. I haven't had any previous
experience with them. It is kind of freaky to see those orange sparks
coming off into the saw dust, but like someone said in an earlier post,
they (sparks) aren't hot. My other bandsaw is a Powermatic industrial
14 x 6 inch with a 1 hp motor, and cast iron frame. It has the roller
guides. It is much noisier.
Having a good blade can make all the difference in the world. I am
fortunate to have a guy locally who will make up what ever I need. I
just went to him, he asked me what I did on the saw, and he said that I
needed these certain blades (no, I don't know tpi, set, thickness, or
other details) and the blades he sold me work fine. He is also handy,
because the PM uses a 96 inch blade where most 14 inch saws use a 93. I
did loose one carbide blade because the lower thrust bearing slipped
and wasn't supporting the blade. Add to that I wasn't always lowering
the guide to height of the material. That cost about $175, but I won't
make that mistake again. I do love the way that the carbide blade cuts,
very smooth, with almost no saw marks. My blade man said to only use
the carbide blade (can't be resharpened) for resawing and veneer
making, and use a bimetal blade can be sharpened) for my turning
blanks.
robo hippy

On Tue, 28 Feb 2006 00:02:37 GMT, "Leon"
wrote:

Concerning not being able to remove the fence with out removing the blade, I
noticed that also but assumed that you could lift the fence so that it was
pointed up and down and slide it off of one end. Perhaps the rail mounts
get in the way then.

Fence comes off just like that on my LT18? Deflection has not been a
real problem as you don't need to put much force in that direction,
but if I do force it it does flex a bit. Also my dust collection is
not bad, there's usually only some small amounts settling in the
corners. They could come up with another pickup below the table with
some better shrouding as some dust does get pinched on the lower
wheel. I have found it worse with green wood though.

I was considering getting the Laguna Resaw King. It can be resharpened 5 to
10 times IIRC. Apparently it falls between high speed steel and carbide.

AFAIK it is carbide? Wouldn't count on that many resharpenings however
if only because it may not last that long I have one but haven't
tried it yet, been mostly resawing softer woods or rough
cutting....maybe next year.

I have also slipped my drive belt, badly, smelly bad, but you try and
cut a log into quarters freehand with a chainsaw and hand feed it,
binds the blade pretty easily. Hope someone has a suggestion about
the link belt or ?



--------------------
Steve Jensen
Abbotsford B.C.
chopping out the mortise.
BBS'ing since 1982 at 300 bps.
Surfing along at 19200 bps since 95.
WW'ing since 1985
LV Cust #4114

Nothing catchy to say, well maybe.....
WAKE UP - There are no GODs you fools!

I tried to move the fence up, and it does rotate, but the housing for
the blade tention meter is in the way by about 1/4 inch, or the bolt
that holds the rail on is in the way.
I swept up a bunch of the shavings from cutting bowl blanks while they
are standing on end, and it reminded me of the 'Trouble With Tribles"
episode of Star Trek. When I do cut dry wood, there is a lot less dust
left inside the saw.
robo hippy

"Scorp" wrote in message
news
On Tue, 28 Feb 2006 00:02:37 GMT, "Leon"
wrote:

Fence comes off just like that on my LT18?

You can lift the fence up and slide it off?


Deflection has not been a
real problem as you don't need to put much force in that direction,
but if I do force it it does flex a bit. Also my dust collection is
not bad, there's usually only some small amounts settling in the
corners. They could come up with another pickup below the table with
some better shrouding as some dust does get pinched on the lower
wheel. I have found it worse with green wood though.

Well so far I let the dust fall wher it will and I clean up afterwards.

I was considering getting the Laguna Resaw King. It can be resharpened 5
to
10 times IIRC. Apparently it falls between high speed steel and carbide.

AFAIK it is carbide? Wouldn't count on that many resharpenings however
if only because it may not last that long I have one but haven't
tried it yet, been mostly resawing softer woods or rough
cutting....maybe next year.

According to Torben and his DVD video the ResawKing is not carbide. He says
that it is a "softer" material so that it will not explode if you hit a hard
knot or nail. His estimation is that it can be resharpened 5 to 10 times.
I suspect that if it is a softer material it will have to/can be be
resharpened more often and probably before the band wears out.


I have also slipped my drive belt, badly, smelly bad, but you try and
cut a log into quarters freehand with a chainsaw and hand feed it,
binds the blade pretty easily. Hope someone has a suggestion about
the link belt or ?

Well, belts stretch when they are used. I suspect that untill the belt gets
broken in it may need to be retensioned a few times. I will have to mention
that at the ww show later this month when I visit the Laguna booth.

Thank you Steve.





--------------------
Steve Jensen
Abbotsford B.C.
chopping out the mortise.
BBS'ing since 1982 at 300 bps.
Surfing along at 19200 bps since 95.
WW'ing since 1985
LV Cust #4114

Nothing catchy to say, well maybe.....
WAKE UP - There are no GODs you fools!

"robo hippy" wrote in message
oups.com...
I tried to move the fence up, and it does rotate, but the housing for
the blade tention meter is in the way by about 1/4 inch, or the bolt
that holds the rail on is in the way.


Wellllll it was worth a try. :~)

On Wed, 01 Mar 2006 15:48:07 GMT, "Leon"
wrote:

Fence comes off just like that on my LT18?

You can lift the fence up and slide it off?

Yes, robo's 16 must just be that much smaller than mine

According to Torben and his DVD video the ResawKing is not carbide. He says
that it is a "softer" material so that it will not explode if you hit a hard
knot or nail. His estimation is that it can be resharpened 5 to 10 times.
I suspect that if it is a softer material it will have to/can be be
resharpened more often and probably before the band wears out.

Didn't know that.

I have also slipped my drive belt, badly, smelly bad, but you try and
cut a log into quarters freehand with a chainsaw and hand feed it,
binds the blade pretty easily. Hope someone has a suggestion about
the link belt or ?

Well, belts stretch when they are used. I suspect that untill the belt gets
broken in it may need to be retensioned a few times. I will have to mention
that at the ww show later this month when I visit the Laguna booth.

Yes I had to retension the new belt a couple times, only reason it was
burning was the stock feeding through at varying angles and binding
it...still works though I suppose that's one plus for buying
heavier duty equipment, you can beat on it without worry
Besides, cutting up a few hundred bucks worth of maple is worth a new
belt. I have to get a chainsaw mill though to avoid this.

Couple notes about the ceramic guides, some books recommend rounding
the back of the blade, I did run a stone on the back of the blade, but
didn't purposely round it as I figure more surface contact means less
wear on the ceramic backing disc. The side guides are a bit finicky
to set but seem to work well, when I've accidentaly left the DC off,
they don't seem to be affected by particles coming around on the
blade. I also made SURE the welds were well dressed as the ceramic
can be damaged. If you get a blade made locally, maybe lightly dress
with a stone behind the gullets just to make sure there are no high
spots.

The Laguna website forums have lots of good information, and they
don't censor the negative comments, which is good on them. There are
a couple things I don't like about the saw, none of which are major.

--------------------
Steve Jensen
Abbotsford B.C.
chopping out the mortise.
BBS'ing since 1982 at 300 bps.
Surfing along at 19200 bps since 95.
WW'ing since 1985
LV Cust #4114

Nothing catchy to say, well maybe.....
WAKE UP - There are no GODs you fools!

Softer than carbide blades? I wonder if it is what my bandsaw guy calls
bi-metal. It is a lot harder than carbon steel, and can be resharpened.
As for rounding the back of the blades, when I asked him, he looked
horrified, and said no, not under any circumstances, it would void the
guarentee.
robo hippy

"robo hippy" wrote in message
ups.com...
Softer than carbide blades? I wonder if it is what my bandsaw guy calls
bi-metal. It is a lot harder than carbon steel, and can be resharpened.
As for rounding the back of the blades, when I asked him, he looked
horrified, and said no, not under any circumstances, it would void the
guarentee.
robo hippy


From what I understand , bi-metal is typically 2 metals. The regular metal
for attaching to a machine, and a harder metal on the cutting tips.
Commonly found on hack saw blades, jig saw blades, band saw blades ect.
IIRC the Resaw King blade had something like C7 or something for the cutting
tips. I'll have to take another look and see if I can better understand the
pronunciation.

"robo hippy" wrote in message
ups.com...
Softer than carbide blades? I wonder if it is what my bandsaw guy calls
bi-metal. It is a lot harder than carbon steel, and can be resharpened.
As for rounding the back of the blades, when I asked him, he looked
horrified, and said no, not under any circumstances, it would void the
guarentee.
robo hippy


Ok here is the deal, taken from the Laguna site

This Resaw King bandsaw blade cuts so smoothly that it greatly reduces
sanding time and saves material. We weld small pieces of tough C-8 steel
onto high quality bands. Then with diamond grinders, we shape thin-kerf
teeth. Innovated into the design of the Resaw king blade is small raised
notch at "polishes" the wood and adds an anti-kickback feature to the
performance. This patent-pending design innovation limits the cutting depth
of the teeth and produces a smooth finish.