Bandsaw, new or old

Based on my experience i'd like to emphasize:

1) guides - roller guides are ok, but do clog when working with pitchy wood. What happens then is that the blade starts wobbling around a bit and you can get heat build up - blades and bearings don't like that. I have one saw with roller bearings and one with steel guide blocks with a roller thrust bearing behind the blade. For smoother more consistent results, especially resawing pitchy wood, i use the saw with the steel guide block bearings.

2) I'm a big advocate of buying used machinery, provided you can get what you need at a reasonable price. You have to do a little homework to know what you want and what you're looking at, but i've often found that i get much higher quality for my dollar when buying used. It helps if you don't mind replacing wear items like tires, power cords, and bearings. Be aware of cracked/broken castings, missing obscure parts, 3 phase motors, and former "home" repairs.

3) Motors - there's no substitute for power. I find that 1hp can bog down on a 12" resaw cut and am upgrading that motor to 2hp. For 6" resaw, though, the 1hp works just fine.

4) There's little appreciable difference in the general makeup of the two saws you're considering. They're probably very comparable UNLESS you find a used older 14" saw that's already been set up for resawing.

5) On the used market, i'd widen my net to include other brands. I've got a 1930's 20" Crescent that's a complete beast for what i need. It was quite cheap because the previous owner had no use for it and it was a hassle to move. Another $75 replaced the tires, electric cord/plug, and wheel bearings. My other saw is a late 1800's off brand C-frame. It was a fun little project bringing it back from a pile of rust. There are no parts for it anywhere, so the few missing bits were made, one-off. It works great as well.

6) Don't assume the new Grizzley fixes all of the issues with an older Delta - some improvements, sure, but it's basically the same saw.

paulh

I just picked this up yesterday
http://www.ebay.com/itm/16063662352...AX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649#ht_500wt_1257

I think it should saw very nicely and resaw quite well too. I have to replace the tires, and at least the thrust bearings. I will tear it down and paint it replace bearing if needed and probably make a matching base for it from MDF.
 
Dave - now you're talking. And for the money, if you take decent care of it, you'll do well if you ever decide it's not the saw for you and decide to sell it. That's the other benefit of buying used - you don't eat that built in depreciation of getting a new tool. Assuming the saw is in decent condition, you've all but eliminated any financial risk.

If you haven't already, i'd check out vintagemachinery.com. It's a good source for manuals and parts diagrams for old tools. There's a good section on Walker Turner there. They also have good general information on bandsaws, from tire replacement/crowning to tuning the machine, to full rebuild. Also, www.owwm.org is a great list serve site where you can post specific questions you might have regarding your saw. The community there has several members familiar with your saw who would be willing to help if they're able.

Walker Turner has a bit of a cult following. My drill press is a WT. It didn't need a rebuild, so i have done very little to it other than put it to work. I did have a WT 24" scroll saw that i completely rebuilt and gave to my Dad. Both are very well built machines. WT did use some odd sized bearings - i don't know if your band saw will have that issue, but it won't take long to sort out. Even if it does, others at OWWM have dealt with it and will have good advice.

And, of course, what a cool looking saw. Love the Deco lines - nobody makes anything that sweet these days. Have fun with it.

paulh
 
Way to go Dave. Now you got quality. Should be a great rebuild thread this. :D Looking forward to seeing the outcome.

What a deal. You gonna try do it to spec color and all.?
 
I have found OWWM both .org and .com ( which I think is kinda weird since they are sister sites or whatever). I am going to pick up paint in a few minutes, I think I am going to use rustoleum hammered dark bronze maybe with some black accents, I will have to see what strikes me when I am at the store. I actually made out well with this deal because I bought the walker turner saw for less than I sold the delta for. Even with the bearings and paint and making a base I should still make a few bucks on the deal.
 
The P-Line is just a marketing thing, same products and at a cheaper price in white. If you look at the manuals for most of the products, the Polar Bear products just have a attachment that has different part #'s for the frames and covers that are a different color. Not sure about the bandsaw in particular, I haven't looked through it, but the website also says it's identical tot he G0555.
 
well done dave that saw is made well!!! as for resaw i dont know if you can get riser but the saw is one well built saw..:D:thumb::thumb:

I cant do a riser, the frame is a very impressive 1 piece casting, the wheels are cast iron, the doors are CI, the guide block holders are CI, even the air around it is cast iron.
 
...the frame is a very impressive 1 piece casting, the wheels are cast iron, the doors are CI, the guide block holders are CI, even the air around it is cast iron.

You should probably get a cast iron respirator...breathing that cast iron air can't be good for you. A cast iron dust collector might also be a good idea, just to handle all the cast iron dust that bad boy is gonna generate. :D

Congrats on the new (old) saw. :thumb:
 
Hi,

I spent over a half hour working up a message for you. It has totally vanished into Lala Land.

Basically I said congratulations. I hope you really enjoy your “new” bandsaw. It looks like it is built to outlast a tank (military tank that is).

Attached should be 4 items. One is a message I sent to Steve a couple years ago giving the rational that I used in designing and building my BS stand for the Delta. The Delta was a retirement present to my dad after age 65. (telephone company)

The saw has had loving care and is like new. When I got into woodworking (not just building something when I needed or wanted it) I added Carter wheeled blade guides. I also purchased three Carter BS blades: ¼, 3/8 and ½. I have been happily using the ½ in blade.

When I got the new 17 in I put on a ¾ in WoodSlicer and then put the ¼ Carter on the Delta. It cut wood fine. Until---I tried to cut a piece of PVC pipe. The pipe EXPLODED. If anyone ever needed a lesson this was it. I WAS WEARING MY SAFETY GLASSES!
If I had not been, I might not be able to see to type this without errors.

Some people say a BS is a safe tool. No tool that moves sharp things under power is a safe tool.

Later, I started to saw Plastic pipe again. I was ultra cautious. The pipe was firmly on the table. The feed was extremely gentle. I could hear a “tick” with each revolution. I could also feel a grab with each revolution. I hit the emergency cut off switch. I had already been there and done that. The Carter ½ worked fine, the Carter ¼ was downright dangerous. I hate throwing away an unused blade, but I’m not using it again.

Moral of story: Wear your safety glasses. If a BS saw blade says, “tick, tick” get rid of it.

Attachments: You can see how good the saw looks, this baby has not been abused. The BS table Glenn and I designed and built works great. The true statement is, “The BS table Glenn and I built.”

¾ in Baltic Birch. Pocket hole and glue joints, full extension drawers, motor on top so could have the drawers, moves using a Johnson Bar.

The stuff in the drawers has all been replaced with BS stuff and BS books. I really do like the table to use.

The letter to Steve basically said what I have already put in this post.

Enjoy,
Jim
 
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Hi,

I found the old "Steve" document. I will attach. It really wasn't worth the effort I put into finding it however.

Steve,

Here is my set-up. It is all threeQ Baltic Birch. It is as stable as the rock of Gilbrater.

I made one big mistake. I thought I could put two wheels at the back and move it “wheelbarrow” style. Little ole me couldn’t even raise the front the thickness of a piece of paper---and those handles extend out two-feet for leverage. I should have used the Johnson Bar approach. If I ever need to move it, I will add the Johnson Bar (JB moves my lathe, my bench and my sanding center.) If you have questions on this, see my thread on my workbench or let me know and I will post pics.

All of the drawers are full extension. The motor was placed at the rear instead of under the BS so I could have these drawers. The open space under the motor is still open for whatever. I will probably end up with more drawers opening towards the woodworker.

My WorkSharp 3000 sits nicely under the BS table. The small three-drawer cabinet has the WS glass discs, abrasives, etc. It is too dark under there to use the see through disk. However, I have not used the see through so it does not matter.

Overall I am more than pleased with the unit. It is the correct height for me, has a large table, is stable, has a pretty fair amount of storage space and my home made knee switch is very handy.


Enjoy,
Jim
 
I was thinking of a base something like this for mine
http://www.vintagemachinery.org/photoindex/detail.aspx?ID=5562

I don't really need a bunch of storage so I think I will stick with more of a factory style base.

I had the same experience trying to cut pvc pipe. The blade I was using was a 1/4" with 4 or 5 TPI. Some time later I tried again with a 1/4" blade with 13 TPI and if cut just fine. I would like to see your johnson bar system if you have pictures.
 
My saw is a wood and metal model and therefore has the gear reduction unit on it as well as a step pulley. There is not a step pulley on the motor though, I am assuming that it was removed at some point because the pulley that is on is not old enough. Is there a point in getting a step pulley for it, would I want to change speeds on it for any reason. The gear box is just a reduction on or off to put the saw into metal cutting mode. Any thoughts?
 
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