Hello, Everyone.

I am considering the purchase of a bench top band saw. I have done a
fair amount of research from the archives of this newsgroup (and other
related groups) on band saws in general and bench top band saws in
particular.

With this posting, I am trying to get a sense of what it like to own the
Grizzly G1052 9" Heavy-Duty Bench Top Band saw from the perspective of
an owner of this band saw.

Although I am aware of the benefits of owning a 14" (or larger) band
saw, there is no way that I can fit one in my (microscopic) apartment
(living room) workshop. At present, I have no plans to do any major
resawing operations (I buy most of lumber at lumber yards and the Home
Depot).

I have looked at the 9, 10, and 12 inch Sears and Delta bench top band
saws at Sears and Lowe's. Unfortunately, the 12 inch is too large and I
wonder about blade availability for the 10 inch saw. I am not at all
impressed with the build quality of the Delta Shopmaster Band saw
series. I picked up the 9" Ryobi at the local Home Depot and found it to
be amazingly light.

I have read some good reviews of the Ryobi 9" bandsaw and I am
considering it as well as the Grizzly.

However, from what I have read thus far, the Grizzly G1052 has "that
'big saw feel' in a package that fits in the smallest of shops!"

My questions are as follows:

1) If you own a G1052, what has been your experience with the saw thus
far?

2) Do/did you consider the G1052 worth the price?

3) Have you had difficulty finding aftermarket blades and/or accessories
for the G1052?

4) If you had to do it all over again, would you buy this saw?

Please send your replies to me directly as well as to this newsgroup.

Thanks.

On Jan 10, 1:03 pm, Edward Lomax wrote:
Hello, Everyone.

I am considering the purchase of a bench top band saw.

I don't own the 9" Grizzly, but I did have the 10" Ryobi for a couple
years. It actually worked pretty well with a decent blade - I resawed
quite a bit of 2" thick white oak, and although the feed rate was
pretty slow, it did just fine. The dust collection (via shopvac),
roller guides, and quick blade release were nice. The biggest drawback
for me was the flex in the table, or rather the lack of table support.
The table itself was a thin piece of steel that just wasn't ridgidly
connected to the body of the saw. I thought about keeping it with a
1/4" blade for scrolling type work, but ended up selling it after
buying a real (16" Griz) BS. This 10" Ryobi is probably a little big
for true portable use - it comes with a stand, but if you needed to
have it more portable, you could probably bolt it to a piece of 3/4"
ply.
I think you mentioned the Sears 10" - their model 21400 (on sale now
for $130) looks like a good deal, with a cast iron table and roller
guides. (It also looks extremely similar to the 10" Rikon, available
at Woodcraft). You could buy yourself a selection of good blades, AND
a nice LN or LV block plane to remove saw marks, compared to the $300
(shipped) price on the Griz 9"er.

...I wonder about blade availability for the 10 inch saw.

Don't worry about that. You'll want to order better blades no matter
which saw you buy, and the better blades are generally available
custom-welded to any size you specify. Timberwolf is one common
recommendation here, and I've been happy with a couple of their blades,
but there have been gripes about their QC recently. Personally, I'd
strongly recommend you call Iturra Designs (866-883-8064) and request a
catalog - they have a variety of blades, BS accessories, and other
bandsaw info.
Also, get a bandsaw book (i.e. Mark Duginske).
Have fun,
Andy
(PS - no affiliations with any of these companies, other than as a
satisfied customer)

Andy wrote:

I think you mentioned the Sears 10" - their model 21400 (on sale now
for $130) looks like a good deal, with a cast iron table and roller
guides.*

I considered that one, since it has an 8" resaw capability. But decided I
needed something bigger. But if I was working in an apartment it'd be my
first choice.

--
It's turtles, all the way down

"Edward Lomax" wrote in message
...
Although I am aware of the benefits of owning a 14" (or larger) band
saw, there is no way that I can fit one in my (microscopic) apartment
(living room) workshop. At present, I have no plans to do any major
resawing operations (I buy most of lumber at lumber yards and the Home
Depot).

Did you consider using a Scroll saw instead? Would seem to be a bit more
apartment friendly.

As a general question to the group is there any inherent advantages of a
baby bandsaw over a decent scroll saw? Leastwise ignoring speed and depth of
cut and maybe limited resawing? Rod








I have looked at the 9, 10, and 12 inch Sears and Delta bench top band
saws at Sears and Lowe's. Unfortunately, the 12 inch is too large and I
wonder about blade availability for the 10 inch saw. I am not at all
impressed with the build quality of the Delta Shopmaster Band saw
series. I picked up the 9" Ryobi at the local Home Depot and found it to
be amazingly light.

I have read some good reviews of the Ryobi 9" bandsaw and I am
considering it as well as the Grizzly.

However, from what I have read thus far, the Grizzly G1052 has "that
'big saw feel' in a package that fits in the smallest of shops!"

My questions are as follows:

1) If you own a G1052, what has been your experience with the saw thus
far?

2) Do/did you consider the G1052 worth the price?

3) Have you had difficulty finding aftermarket blades and/or accessories
for the G1052?

4) If you had to do it all over again, would you buy this saw?

Please send your replies to me directly as well as to this newsgroup.

Thanks.

In article ,
Edward Lomax wrote:

It is highly likely that I will purchase the Sears 10" bandsaw this
weekend.

Thanks to everyone for your feedback.

--
Ed Lomax (edlomax at earthlink.net)

Let us know what you think of it!
Andy


Edward Lomax wrote:
In article ,
Edward Lomax wrote:

It is highly likely that I will purchase the Sears 10" bandsaw this
weekend.

Thanks to everyone for your feedback.

--
Ed Lomax (edlomax at earthlink.net)

On Fri, 12 Jan 2007 16:22:02 -0800, "Rod & Betty Jo"
wrote:


"Edward Lomax" wrote in message
...
Although I am aware of the benefits of owning a 14" (or larger) band
saw, there is no way that I can fit one in my (microscopic) apartment
(living room) workshop. At present, I have no plans to do any major
resawing operations (I buy most of lumber at lumber yards and the Home
Depot).

Did you consider using a Scroll saw instead? Would seem to be a bit more
apartment friendly.

As a general question to the group is there any inherent advantages of a
baby bandsaw over a decent scroll saw? Leastwise ignoring speed and depth of
cut and maybe limited resawing? Rod

Even a really large scroll saw blade is small compared to a typical
band saw blade. This allows greater turning ability, but it can be
hard to cut a straight line and the blade will bow backwards on thick
cuts unless you go at a snails pace. You'll also be going through
blades like they are candy.

Another benefit of a band saw is the blade is always moving down
through the stock, pushing it into the table. A scroll saw blade goes
up and down through the stock requiring you to keep some pressure on
the stock to keep it from bouncing. especially with a reverse tooth
blade. Certain cuts at the edge of a small piece are near impossible
on a scroll saw but no problem at all on a band saw.

Depends on your application which would be better.



-Leuf

In article . com,
"Andy" wrote:

Let us know what you think of it!
Andy


Will do.

As I write this message, it is sitting in my living room waiting to be
unpacked. ;-)


Edward Lomax wrote:
In article ,
Edward Lomax wrote:

It is highly likely that I will purchase the Sears 10" bandsaw this
weekend.

Thanks to everyone for your feedback.

--
Ed Lomax (edlomax at earthlink.net)

--
Ed Lomax (edlomax at earthlink.net)

"Edward Lomax" wrote in message

As I write this message, it is sitting in my living room waiting to be
unpacked. ;-)

So, what the hell you waitin' for? ... shake a leg, bubba!

--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 1/06/07