14" Bandsaws

[W Grabow]

I plan to buy a bandsaw mainly to be used for resawing planks to approx. 1/8"-1/4" thickness plus cutting some curves on thick pieces. Right now my top candidates are from Grizzly and SteelCity Tools. I've never owned a bandsaw before. Any advice or recommendations?

[Woxbox]

Resawing on a smaller, cheaper bandsaw is a pain. What I've found is you need a saw with a heavy frame that will take a wide blade with a lot of tension in it. Others may disagree, but if there's a way to get good results from a saw like either of those, I'd like to hear it, too. It sounds to me like you need a much more substantial tool, which will be a lot heavier and, unfortunately, more expensive than these models.

[Gold Rock]

Resawing to the dimensions you indicate isn't practically accomplished on a small bandsaw. You could rough to size with a bandsaw and then run them through a thickness planer, or.. since the average 14" bandsaw only has a max 'height' capacity of about 6 inches, you could opt to use a 10" table saw with a good ripping blade (assuming the saw is accurate with a good fence) and get your veneers in two passes. A small bandsaw is an essential tool for any well appointed wood shop, but getting out accurate veneers isn't it's strong suit. I have the good fortune to work in a shop equipped with mostly very high quality tools. We do have one stationary tool made by Grizzly. I find it's inferior performance regularly infuriating. Tools are one of life's prime examples of getting what you pay for.

[TerryLL]

I plan to buy a bandsaw mainly to be used for resawing planks to approx. 1/8"-1/4" thickness plus cutting some curves on thick pieces. Right now my top candidates are from Grizzly and SteelCity Tools. I've never owned a bandsaw before. Any advice or recommendations?

You didn't specify the overall thickness (height) of the planks you plan to resaw. A 14" Delta with a six-inch height riser will let you resaw up to 12", but the saw itself really isn't up to the task. Unless you're resawing really soft wood, and no more that 3-4 inches, you'll be unhappy with any of the smaller saws, like the 14" Delta. They won't carry a wide, heavy blade under high tension, as Woxbox mentioned above.

You really need two saws, a small one like the 14", and a big heavy one with lots of power for resawing.

[StevenBauer]

I've resawn 12" cedar with a friend's 14" Delta. But by the time you buy the 6" riser blocks and a more powerful motor you've spent as much as if you'd just bought a larger saw. I have a 16" Jet that was relatively inexpensive ($800) and has worked out well. I'm not sure they still sell that one though.

Steven

[TerryLL]

Yup, I've done 12' WRC on my 14" Delta, yellow cedar too. But cherry, walnut, maple, ash, etc, only about 4-5", and then very slowly, with a lot of blade drift. The double pass on the table saw and then the band saw to cut through what's left is my usual route. Then the planer to clean up the cut. I don't resaw often, but if I did I'd have a dedicated resaw machine.

[Gezzunder]

A standard bandsaw blade is designed to facilitate curved cuts. For resawing, you want as deep a blade as you can fit on your wheels so let that be a prime consideration when you select your saw.

When you do get your saw, run a few cuts through freehand to find the 'set' of your blade and construct a fence to suit, very few blades will cut at 90° to the standard fence. Then put that blade aside and never cut curves with it.

If you are going to do a lot of resawing, google plans for self feeders and make one - it'll save a lot of blades and sweat.

Oh yeah, get a metal detector... you wouldn't believe how much metal is in some timber.

[Mrleft8]

There's a lot of myths and misunderstanding concerning bandsaws, especialy smaller bandsaws like the delta/rockwell 14". It may take a day, but properly tuning your saw will make a world of difference. I used a 14" Delta with the 6"riser for over 15 years to do everything from cutting 12" thick Mahogany, both thin sawn veneers and tight curves, to milling branches of interesting understory trees into micro lumber. I never had anything other than the stock1/2hp motor on it. Yes, I popped the reset button a few times, but that's what it's there for.
The myth that you need a big honkin' wide blade to resaw is nonsense. A wider blade is generally a thcker blade. A thicker blade requires more power to drive through the wood, and builds more heat which both tends to cause the wood to distort, and dulls the blade faster (which exacerbates the problem by building yet more heat....). On a properly tuned 14" saw, even with a 6" riser, A 1/2" 4tpi blade is all you need for most woods.
The idea of "adjusting for drift" is like saying "I always have to drive with the steering wheel cranked over to 2 O'clock so I can drive straight." If your saw isn't tracking parallel to the guide slot in the table something is out of whack.
So..... In short, If you were me, you'd be looking for a used Delta/Rockwell 14" saw, preferably with the enclosed base and 3/4hp motor. With shops closing down left and right, you should be able to find one at a reasonable price.

[SMARTINSEN]

I have a Grizzly 555x with a 6" cast iron riser block. The fit and finish of the machine are generally good, and all of the 14" saws these days are made in either China or Taiwan*. I am satisfied with it and I think a good choice for a small shop.

With a 1.75hp motor and a sharp 1/2" 3tpi hook blade it is very comfortable re-sawing 10" white pine. Oak of that width is slower going, but abiding by Mrleft8's recommendations above will make your life a whole lot easier: it can be done.

*Except for the top of the line 14" Delta, which is $$$$$

[Ron Williamson]

It's fairly simple to have lumber resawn on a bandmill if your other equipment isn't up to it.
R

[Brian Palmer]

Buy "The Bandsaw Book" by Lonnie Bird, or a similar reference.

Or check it our from the library.

Lots of good information if you've never bought a bandsaw before. A great reference for later on how to set up and tune a bandsaw and select the correct blades, etc.

Brian

[W Grabow]

Thank you all for the wealth of information. You have given me many details to consider. I was planning to resaw nothing wider than 6" and was looking at their 1 1/2 hp model saws. The Grizzly weighs about 260 lb. and the Steel City is 290 lb.

[Lew Barrett]

I resaw up to just shy of 6 inch stock with my relatively cheesy 14" Ridgid.

I don't suffer any blade wander as long as my saw is properly in tune, which I make sure it always is. I don't resaw to make veneer as a rule, just to get the thickness I need for working stock, thus to avoid waste at the planer. With that as a mission, I just take my time and work slowly through whatever it is I have to slice, leaving enough thickness to allow a pass or two through the planer to clean everything up.

Lordy how I'd love a bigger, more powerful saw, but honestly, I really don't need one.

[Darren McClelland]

I just bought a 17 " King Industrial bandsaw the throat or depth of cut is 12" but I like the fact that it takes up to a 1" blade for resawing material, I had a 12" craftsman and found that it was too small for any type of resawiing.
I think if you plan to resaw you need to have alarge blade capability

Darren

[Brumenschenkel]

There are lots of 16" deltas kicking around that with a little tuning will work just fine. Or you might even find an old classic if your lucky.I would also highly recommend the "wood slicer" blade From Highland Hardware. they are down Atlanta way. These blades are relatively inexpensive compared to some of the pricey wide re-saw blades. They are only 1/2" wide but I think you will be amazed at the results. As mentioned the Bandsaw book is a great resource to bring your machine up to snuff. Enjoy!

[Ron Carter]

I would also highly recommend the "wood slicer" blade From Highland Hardware. they are down Atlanta way. These blades are relatively inexpensive compared to some of the pricey wide re-saw blades. They are only 1/2" wide but I think you will be amazed at the results.

I just ordered my 3rd of these blades. They really do work. Unfortunately the first died against a drywalll screw that the operator forgot to take out of the sub assembly. The second is in the saw now and is getting a bit dull after almost 2 years of service. On it's second boat. Highly endorse the recommendation. Also agree that a 14" Jet can be tuned to work well with a bit of patience.

[Bill Yonescu]

Take a look at Sears 14"

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00922401000P

It has an 8 1/2" throat and cast iron wheels...

Bill

[ChaseKenyon]

There's a lot of myths and misunderstanding concerning bandsaws, especially smaller band saws like the delta/rockwell 14". It may take a day, but properly tuning your saw will make a world of difference. I used a 14" Delta with the 6"riser for over 15 years to do everything from cutting 12" thick Mahogany, both thin sawn veneers and tight curves, to milling branches of interesting understory trees into micro lumber. I never had anything other than the stock1/2hp motor on it. Yes, I popped the reset button a few times, but that's what it's there for.
The myth that you need a big honkin' wide blade to resaw is nonsense.
I agree with Lefty.

It's a normal thing to want bigger and more powerful tools. But, ya gotta ask what do you really need.

I have an ancient Delta 14 inch mounted on a custom made Heavy duty hardwood low bench base. It is probably from the very early 1950s maybe older.

set up carefully ripped nice < 1/8" 4 inch veneers for the ChrisCraft Cavalier restoration.

Got it with the four post thickness planer and 7 inch jointer and misc. other tools for $200 the full pickup load. Since they had been outside under a tarp for a couple of years have restored each tool, and gone ex engineer crazy on each one's set up.
The 1949 or 50 Craftsman professional ten inch table saw came from my grandfather's boat cabinetry shop in Apanaug, RI.

With a little care all these old tools work great. Like the table saw with its four inch metal hand wheel left tilt arbor assembly.

THe bigger and newer your shop tools the more they seem to cost to keep them running. In my case repairs never are an assembly, always just a single part like the replaceable Timkin arbor bearings on the table saw. Ordered the bearing (outer only) when strapped for cash with two babies in the house 27 years ago. $3 or so picked up at the nearest Sears store IIRC.

Prowl Craigs LIst and the barn Yard sale adds in local weekly papers. Put some elbow grease and time into an older tool and you save money and get a better tool. Plastic fence latch levers on a table saws drive me crazy. I am used to the four inch metal one with the ball knob on the end. big leverage and the fence never never never moves.

Chase
:D
P.S. I admit I do have a penchant for tool restoration. goes with my nich as more of a boat restorer than builder.;)

[Benchdog]

As others have said, a bigger saw is not always necessarily better. I would argue that a big bargain saw is indeed worse.

In the past I used to have a 14" Reliant that I was pretty happy with. I did a lot of tuning on it and used good blades.
Sold it to a freind, and bought an 18" Rikon. I've used the Rikon for a few years but have never really been happy with it.
A few months ago I bought an older (American Made) 14" Delta. Great machine. You can't even compare the two.

I use good blades. For most cutting I use a 3/8 3TPI Viking blade. For very accurate resawing (bent laminations and such) I use the "Wood Slicer" that is mentioned in Brumenschenkel's post.
Tuning is everything! I've replaced the spring and done other things.

In the end my 18" Rikon is now relegated to Sawing logs for bowl turning where as my 14" Delta is my main shop bandsaw. I forget what the max height on my 14 is but since I'm not a "Veneer guy" I never need it.

-You may want to look around for an older 14" Delta/Rockwell , Powermatic, or General. There are a ton of them out there. I found mine on Craig's list (I am not a Craigs list expert, this is the 1st time I ever tried it).

Good luck.

[Lew Barrett]

I'm sorry to hear about your experience with the Rikon. Just looking at them in the store, I had high hopes for them, as they have a 14" model with a relatively powerful motor (as advertised) and good re-saw capability, and a reasonably priced range going up from there. I thought maybe they should be on my short list "if-when." Oh well.

[Mrleft8]

Friend of mine, a professional woodworker has a Rikon and he hates it. Hates it so much that when he has major bandsaw jobs, he farms that part out to me.

[bob easton]

Like Lew Barrett, I have a 14" Rigid, bottom of the line, entry level saw. With a couple of hours tuning and a good WoodSlicer blade, I easily resaw cedar up to 6 inches. No qualms at all about 1/4" or 1/8" slices. So, you don't necessarily need bigger and heavier.

Yet, for larger stock I was not willing to invest more in riser blocks and more horsepower. So, I'm resawing wider plank material by hand, with a frame saw as suggested earlier in this thread.

For any Neander galoot interested in this approach, see my blog article Resawing Long Lumber (http://www.bob-easton.com/blog/?p=475).

[Benchdog]

I'm sorry to hear about your experience with the Rikon. Just looking at them in the store, I had high hopes for them, as they have a 14" model with a relatively powerful motor (as advertised) and good re-saw capability, and a reasonably priced range going up from there. I thought maybe they should be on my short list "if-when." Oh well.

Maybe they are better now but mine is junk. I got my Rikon around 4 years ago.

- Due to a poorly designed quick release mechanism in the upper wheel assembly, there is a lot of play. I actually put little wooden wedges in there to minimize the upper wheel vibration. You can move the top wheel around in the frame!
- Burned out the motor last year. (While cutting cedar shingles!!!)
- Impossible to tension a 1" blade. (why bother geting a big saw?). I tension a 1/2 at about the 1" tension mark.
- I had to shim the table to get it in proper alignment with the blade.
- I'm sure there are other problems that I'm not thinking of right now.

It's the only machine in my shop that I had a "cheap attack" when I bought it. I wish I just held on to the money and eventually got something else. As I said before, It's OK for cutting logs or roughing stock but it is not an accurate machine. Live and Learn. Buy good machines, they hold their value.

[Lew Barrett]

I should say about my Ridgid that I looked carefully at the other saws in it's category (in other words, the basic 3/4 HP Delta, and the Jet) and couldn't really see much difference, so I just bit my lip and bought it. In retrospect, I can't say that I feel any worse about the situation than had I purchased the others, I believe it's as good as I paid for, maybe just a bit better. The worst aspect of it on a relative basis is the stand, which is a bit flimsy, but the machine itself actually seems a bit better made than the equivalent Delta that costs about the same. So, for a budget machine, the Ridgid hasn't disappointed me. Like Benchdog, as a rule, I buy a bit higher end, but I don't feel I didn't at least get my money's worth. If I had iot to do again, I'd probably shoot for more resaw capacity, but then I wouldn't be looking at a 14" saw. And on the other side, I'm not shopping for a new saw now. I hope you're all not thoroughly confused by this!

I wanted to say that least my "relatively Cheesy" comment (and it is nonetheless true...this is not a luxury machine!) be misunderstood.

[bloggs68]

Another vote for the woodslicer blade.

I use a 3/4" woodslicer on my 24" saw and it is a great re-saw blade for softwood. One job recently saw around 900 board foot of 6-8" wide boards through on the one blade. Very thin kerf and very smooth finish.

For you guys who can run a 1" blade, there is something even better than the woodslicer. Lennox Woodmaster CT - 1" carbide tipped smoother finish than the woodslicer. Double the kerf (around 1.5/32") but much better finish. Lasts for a long time too.

I ran a 1/2" woodslicer on my Jet14 with riser block and it too could re-saw (albeit a lot slower than the big one) with no problem.

AD

[Paul Pless]

Friend of mine, a professional woodworker has a Rikon and he hates it. Hates it so much that when he has major bandsaw jobs, he farms that part out to me.Safe to assume that you're quite fond of that brand then...;)
There's a lot of myths and misunderstanding concerning bandsaws, especialy smaller bandsaws like the delta/rockwell 14". It may take a day, but properly tuning your saw will make a world of difference. I used a 14" Delta with the 6"riser for over 15 years to do everything from cutting 12" thick Mahogany, both thin sawn veneers and tight curves, to milling branches of interesting understory trees into micro lumber. I never had anything other than the stock1/2hp motor on it. Yes, I popped the reset button a few times, but that's what it's there for.
The myth that you need a big honkin' wide blade to resaw is nonsense. A wider blade is generally a thcker blade. A thicker blade requires more power to drive through the wood, and builds more heat which both tends to cause the wood to distort, and dulls the blade faster (which exacerbates the problem by building yet more heat....). On a properly tuned 14" saw, even with a 6" riser, A 1/2" 4tpi blade is all you need for most woods.
The idea of "adjusting for drift" is like saying "I always have to drive with the steering wheel cranked over to 2 O'clock so I can drive straight." If your saw isn't tracking parallel to the guide slot in the table something is out of whack.
So..... In short, If you were me, you'd be looking for a used Delta/Rockwell 14" saw, preferably with the enclosed base and 3/4hp motor. With shops closing down left and right, you should be able to find one at a reasonable price.Might it be possible for you to add a tutorial up in B&R on how you would tune such a saw up, including how you set up guides and blade choice and tension and fence type and such?

[Mrleft8]

Who do I look like?.......Bob Smalser?! :D ;)

[Paul Girouard]

Who do I look like?.......Bob Smalser?!




Well your avatar makes you look like a small cannon.

[Lew Barrett]

Safe to assume that you're quite fond of that brand then...;)Might it be possible for you to add a tutorial up in B&R on how you would tune such a saw up, including how you set up guides and blade choice and tension and fence type and such?\

There's a lot of info on tuning saws. Most of the 14 inch saws of the Delta/Jet pattern are about the same with the main difference being in the type of guides. Here's how I do mine, and I learned from reading woodworking magazines:o I'm entirely self taught. It will be interesting to see who says I am an idiot on this one! :D

Getting to blade choice first, I generally use a generic 1/2 inch skip tooth blade that I buy from a local supplier who welds them to order. They're fine; I can get whatever tooth style, count or set I want and they're reasonably priced. That blade works pretty well for everything I do, and means I am not constantly swapping blades for different tasks. If I really need to do very tight turns on the saw, I will sometimes go to a 1/4 blade, but I really don't find myself doing that very often. The 1/2 suits my needs, which don't include slicing veneer, almost without fail. Some people prefer a hook tooth pattern and to be honest, I can use either interchangeably. I don't care so much how they cut arcs and curves as I do how they cut a straight line. For me, if I can cut straight and true, the rest seems to take care of itself.

After mounting the blade and putting some tension on it, make sure the tool's table is flat. level and at 90 degrees to the blade. There's no easy way to set the wheels of my saw co-lateral. If there's an adjustment for that, I haven't found it. Which is just as well, because my saw seems to be fine in that respect. I'm assuming the tires on your saw are in good condition, as mine are.

With the blade carrying reasonable tension, adjust the top wheel so that the blade is centered on the tire. Actually, the tire on most saws will have a crown, so you may wish to experiment with your saw and blade combination to decide exactly what "centered" means. With my saw, I find I get the best control with the teeth of the saw centered on the wheel, but equally, within a small range of movement, it doesn't seem critical to me just where I center the blade on the tire.

Now it's time to adjust the guides. There's nothing fancy about my saw. I run cool blocks in the stock guide set up, which is micrometer adjustable in my saw (not the blocks themselves, you understand). I first reassure myself (again) that my blade is running true and without wobble as a result of my prior centering efforts. Working from the top down, I run the rear roller guide right up to the blade. I will turn the saw by hand and see if there's any odd run-out. I adjust this by looking for the roller to just miss the rear of the blade, and barely turn when the saw is running without feeding stock through. I set the blocks to control the lateral blade motion by running the assmbley to just aft of the gullet of the blades. This gives the most lateral control without interfering or chewing up the guides. I then adjust the cool blocks to be just off the sides of the blade. That is, I set the distance the blocks themselves ride off of the of the blade; their clearance. The standard metric for this is "the thickness of a dollar bill" and when I'm fussy, as when i've just replaced the blade, I will use the dollar bill as a feeler gauge. You set the lower guides up exactly the same way. On my saw, they are harder to reach so can be a bit more time consuming. My saw's settings all require some fiddling, as they are not the most precise. You know; I lock the setting down and it shifts a bit.
So there's a bit of back and forth until I'm happy with everything. But it's not too bad; I can usually get through a blade change in 15 minutes or so. Running the saw through a test cut or two tells me everything I need to know and if I got it all properly adjusted to go ahead and let her rip.

As equally important as any of these settings is getting the height of the upper guide assembly as low as possibly to the work piece when you cut. That's an important setting too.

Lefty suggested taking "a day" to set up the saw, and that would maybe be the case if you got a new saw in bits, as they are typically delivered. But in routine use, I find I can check for proper blade mounting, flat table and guide location in 15 or twenty minutes if I have my tools at hand. If I were going to shim the wheels, that might be another story, but my saw seems to run true without a lot of effort in that respect. And, I think, that's about it. No big deal. Did I miss anything, fellas?

[Paul Pless]

Thank you Lew, I brought a 14" Delta with me to Michigan that was used by my maintenance guys for metal work, primarily cutting 1/4" aluminum plate. Its been relatively lightly used and is in really good shape. Shouldn't take much to clean the alumimun bits out of it.

[essaunders]

I've got a Grizzly 555 that seems good, but really, I haven't done much with it. I'll be marking this thread so I can reference it for when I get back to the garage after things warm up a bit. Thanks Lew, Lefty, and everyone else!