Bandsaw Advice

[Brendon_t]

On 4/14/2016 at 8:33 PM, wdwerker said:

There is an engine loose in his shop as well. My guess is a dead car in his shop.

That's not an engine,  it's only one bank.  It's clearly missing 4 cylinders.

[Chestnut]

There is an engine loose in his shop as well. My guess is a dead car in his shop.

That's not an engine,  it's only one bank.  It's clearly missing 4 cylinders.

Dem's fighting words.

Pardon the spelling sent from my phone.

[Brendon_t]

Fight away.  It won't get you any more displacement * )

[Chestnut]

Well i got the saw running and ran some oak through it and everything works awesome. I don't like the fence one bit so in the future i might fit it for something different but for now this will do.

I don't know what some people's opinions are of the ceramic guides but a local guy i talked to was so opposed to them he couldn't believe i bought the saw. I think they work great. I haven't fully set up the fence, I probably should adjust for drift and make sure it's square. I honestly don't remember what blade is in there, i just bought the first 115 blade that was 3tpi on amazon i found. 

1 hour ago, Brendon_t said:

Fight away.  It won't get you any more displacement * )

I was kinda hoping that you'd have another argument, while this one is true the V8 crowed tend to under utilize their displacement. I can't count how many times in the last 3 years I've had that yelled at me from some redneck in an old pickup that burns more oil then gas. With the increases in efficiency and direct injection an N/A 2.0L 4cyl easily can be in the 200 hp range. Add turbo 350 bhp is easily possible, in a car any more than that becomes unusable.

[cjtboy]

What is it you don't like about the fence? I think it works great - nice and tall and can flip down so you can use it under the guide if you need to.

Can't imagine someone being so against the ceramic guides, they're super easy to set (no tools needed) and work great, what's not to like?

[shaneymack]

Ceramic guides are the bomb diggity. Not sure what there is not to like either.

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk

[Chestnut]

@cjtboy I guess I'm spoiled by my Powermatic fence. The knob to lock it down is fiddly and I often can't tell if it's loose or tight and it binds when trying to slide it. I'm probably going to fit it with a t-style fence at some point. I love the ceramic guides the tool free adjustment makes blade changes pretty easy.

[Eric.]

Yep, I dig the ceramics.  Aside from Carter bearing guides they're my top choice.  Carter guides are pretty sweet.

[cjtboy]

8 minutes ago, Chestnut said:

@cjtboy I guess I'm spoiled by my Powermatic fence. The knob to lock it down is fiddly and I often can't tell if it's loose or tight and it binds when trying to slide it. I'm probably going to fit it with a t-style fence at some point. I love the ceramic guides the tool free adjustment makes blade changes pretty easy.

I can see that.  When I first got the saw, I thought the knob was weird too - I was just used to the clamp down/t-style ones you usually see.  After a few days, I didn't even notice it anymore and no longer an issue for me.  

Binding is odd though - maybe try moving it from a different point of contact? 

Not sure if recommended, but I did add a touch of paste wax to the front rail the fence slides on - and just on the top of the rail.  I didn't want to cause any slipping where the locking knob comes into contact with that rail. It slides super smooth now and no issues locking the fence down either.

Have fun, I am sure you'll be loving that saw!

[Brendon_t]

1 hour ago, Chestnut said:

 

I was kinda hoping that you'd have another argument, while this one is true the V8 crowed tend to under utilize their displacement. I can't count how many times in the last 3 years I've had that yelled at me from some redneck in an old pickup that burns more oil then gas. With the increases in efficiency and direct injection an N/A 2.0L 4cyl easily can be in the 200 hp range. Add turbo 350 bhp is easily possible, in a car any more than that becomes unusable.

I have plenty of arguments. Most are invalid and erroneous. I was poking fun for fun.  I'm a big fan of the Impreza and have much respect for what a decent tuner can do with the platform. With that said,  upside IS limited. Dollar for dollar, you can get higher % gains in a small platform but there is only so much they can handle. You say it's 350, I say that's low but ballpark. Whereas,  a standard chromium block 350 can make more hp,with the same mods as you trick the 4 banger with.  It's a dumb chant of every cletus but it's true.  More displacement makes more power all things equal. 

Now I'm going back to my jolly Rodger flying pickup burning 10-30..

[chashint]

Hi Chestnut,

After living with your saw for a good while, what do you think of it now?     Any regrets about not getting the bigger one?

[Hugh Howard]

Not Chestnut, but I actually bought the same saw at about the same time or perhaps just before and I love it.  I had a cheap Delta before it and so this feels like a super luxury saw to me and now I try to use it any chance I get instead of avoiding it like I did the Delta.  I haven't taxed it close to its full potential so far (but I haven't, for example, tried to resaw a 10" wide board so I can't speak to how it would do if I really tried to push it --  I think it would be fine, but I don't know). 

One thing I would never want to give up now is the foot brake.  It doesn't mean your projects look any better than a saw without one, but it is so nice to be able to stop the blade and not have to wait - both a time saver and it feels like a nice safety feature.

I doubt I'll ever want more power or more resaw capacity, but there have been one or two times when I thought having 18" or 24" and a bigger table/ more distance available to the left of the blade would be nice, but not many and not enough that I'd change my purchase.  I still smile every time I walk into the shop and see it.

I'll only ever have one saw, but for my use patterns I'd take this and a second, cheaper 14" saw any day before a single 18" saw since then I could have one for curves and one for resaw and not have to switch blades.

Oh, also on the mobility stand.  I like it, but you have to be careful to push or pull on the bottom half of the saw.  I always worry about tipping it over if I grab it up high and push or pull.  Not a big deal, but something to note. 

[Chestnut]

45 minutes ago, chashint said:

Hi Chestnut,

After living with your saw for a good while, what do you think of it now?     Any regrets about not getting the bigger one?

So I've had the saw for 2  good years now and so far so good. The only thing that i really don't like about the saw is the fence and many many times I've thought about getting the drift master fence i just keep telling myself it's not worth it. I like the T style fences but the screw vs the cam action lever is really the breaker. It seems like it takes me a min or to to be able to perfectly split a board in half while resawing. It's a petty argument but it's the only one i have.

I love the foot brake as well it helps when sawing 1 of a kind sized objects and changing measurements often but it's a luxury and not necessary. The nicest part of the brake is the off switch that is attached to it.

I run a 3/4" resaw king in it basically full time and honestly can't see a reason to get a bigger saw. I'd love to have another 14" similar to it for curve work but I'll probably never do it.

[Chestnut]

21 minutes ago, Hugh Howard said:

I doubt I'll ever want more power or more resaw capacity, but there have been one or two times when I thought having 18" or 24" and a bigger table/ more distance available to the left of the blade would be nice, but not many and not enough that I'd change my purchase.  I still smile every time I walk into the shop and see it.

Woodknight or something on youtube made extension tables for his 1412 and it's something that I've thought about doing just for a larger table. One thing I've learned is just because a tool comes with something a specific way doesn't mean it can't be changed.

 

[chashint]

Thanks to both of y'all for the follow ups.

I have the entry level Jet 14" open stand bandsaw that has been in production forever.  It is what I could afford when I bought it and it has served me well over the years.   It's 3/4 hp and has 6" resawing clearance.

As time has passed I have made some upgrades on an as needed basis.    When the rubber tires failed I replaced them with urethane tires, I also replaced the cool block style guides with roller bearings, and at some point I added a Kreg fence.  

The Kreg fence works well and has held the initial alignments since it was installed but it uses a screw knob vs a cam to lock it into position and it drives me crazy too.  

The 6" resawing clearance has recently become a limiting factor for the projects I like to do.   3/4 hp is also noticeable when resawing hardwood but it's mostly manageable if the feed rate is kept in check.

The problem I am debating with myself is whether to continue to put money into this saw by adding a riser block kit or be extravagant and buy a new saw.    

If extravagance wins out do I go for broke and jump into something like an 18bx?

 

[bleedinblue]

I don't think a riser block woukd do well on a 3/4 HP saw. 

A Rikon 10-326 or Laguna 14-12 is 1 3/4 HP and both have 12-13" of resaw capacity...of course a 18bx is a step up from there. 

[Chestnut]

46 minutes ago, chashint said:

Thanks to both of y'all for the follow ups.

I have the entry level Jet 14" open stand bandsaw that has been in production forever.  It is what I could afford when I bought it and it has served me well over the years.   It's 3/4 hp and has 6" resawing clearance.

As time has passed I have made some upgrades on an as needed basis.    When the rubber tires failed I replaced them with urethane tires, I also replaced the cool block style guides with roller bearings, and at some point I added a Kreg fence.  

The Kreg fence works well and has held the initial alignments since it was installed but it uses a screw knob vs a cam to lock it into position and it drives me crazy too.  

The 6" resawing clearance has recently become a limiting factor for the projects I like to do.   3/4 hp is also noticeable when resawing hardwood but it's mostly manageable if the feed rate is kept in check.

The problem I am debating with myself is whether to continue to put money into this saw by adding a riser block kit or be extravagant and buy a new saw.    

If extravagance wins out do I go for broke and jump into something like an 18bx?

 

Get a new saw. The riser blocks will get you capacity at the cost of the frame not being as rigid and the cut quality not being as potentially good as the current 14" models. I also think that for how much you could probably sell your saw if need be the upgrade cost might not be terrible.

an 18bx would be an awesome saw no doubt about that.

[wdwerker]

My 14" Delta/Rockwell has the old heavyweight castings and the riser block didn't affect the rigidity but the 3/4hp wasn't cutting it. Priced a 1 hp and when I went to pick it up it was out of stock so they gave me a 1 1/2 hp for the same price. But I think Chestnut's right I would step up to a bigger machine rather than put too much in your current saw.

[chashint]

Thanks again.