Bandsaw upgrade options?

[Rattie]

I'm getting to the point of buying a new bandsaw to replace our Elektra Beckum BAS316G, which although fairly capable has a very simple fence and I've never got on with the bearing guides. I'm ideally looking for somthing with:

• around 30cm depth of cut
  side slot for blade changing
  "US Style" bearing guides rather than "Euro Style" guides
  blade tension gauge and quick release
  rack and pinion angle adjustment on the table
  tension adjuster under the wheel case

Looks like the best fit is the Axminster Plus AP4300-T3. Have I missed anything better? Also, does anyone have the T3?

Cheers,
Martyn

 

[OPJ]

I'm pretty sure the Jet JWBS-18 MkII has most of these features, including side slot for removing/refitting the blade.

If you look here, Axminster provide a video for the smaller, 16in. saw. They both look very similar.

Might be worth keeping an eye on eBay as I've seen these large Jet saws appear on there, fairly frequently. :wink:

 

[John. B]

If you can find an SBW 4300 I can heartily reccommend it.
i've had one (used) for a few months and it's the best i've ever had.
It has shrugged off everything I've thrown at it.
(and I paid under £400.00 for it)


John.b

 

[Rattie]

@OPJ, the Jet is a close contender, but has the Euro guides rather than the US style, which makes more sense to me on wide blades - less squealing.

@John, sweet deal! We'll have to pay a touch more than that I fear, but Axy are quoting a 4 week lead time, so at least we can keep looking for used stock until then.

What is the angle adjustment like? In the pics it looks like a rack/pinion, but I can't make out where the adjustment is controlled from. Or is the rack just to control the rate/parallelism of the adjustment?

Ta

 

[Mr Ed]

I have the 5300 and although not tested to extremes, I find it excellent. Its well built and accurate - I assume the 4300 is of the same build quality.

Having struggled with a Basato 3 for years this is like a breath of fresh air.

Ed

 

[jhwbigley]

what about a startrite?

http://www.dm-tools.co.uk/product.php/s ... sn/STE352E

John-Henry

 

[OPJ]

Only problem with the 352 model is that the depth of cut is less than 300mm. The next Startrite model up seems to be the 502e, which will take 350mm under the guides and cost a bit extra!

 

[Rattie]

Yeah, the 502E looks like it'll fit the bill. The pictures are little unclear, but the guides look like the US style roller bearings.

Does anyone have one of these? I believe some of the startrites use a tungsten bar as the rear guide - does the 502E? Also, does the tensioning system have a quick release? I always forget to slacken off the blade once I'm done, so that is one of my requirements. "A man's got to know his limitations" as Dirty Harry once said.

Oh! 20 degree tilt, that's a showstopper right there. Grr, it was looking good up to that point. Having chamfered some 2m 75x75mm posts last week I know how usefull a full 45 degree tilt can be.

 

[OPJ]

If your posts are only 75mm² then, could you not get away with making a 45° jig, so you don't need to move the table away from 90°?

 

[Rattie]

Hmmm, maybe. What sort of jig are you thinking of? I'm finding hard to imagine a shop made jig as stable as the rip fence and table at 45 degrees, so I'm interested to see what you mean.

It does seem odd to me, not being able to tip a bandsaw table beyond 20 degrees. I mean the really big ones I can see to some extent, but it seems quite a limitation for these midsize machines.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not putting large chamfers on 75mm posts every week. It was just an example of the usefulness of flexibility. I would have been frustrated to have to make a jig to cut a few posts.

 

[OPJ]

Scratch the jig idea... :shock:

I've just looked again at the link I provided previously and this image clearly shows that the table is capable of tilting to 45°:

If you're still in doubt, give D&M a call or e-mail in the morning. I've always found them to be helpful, knowledgeable and efficient in dealing with all enquiries. If I had to guess, I'd say that 20° stated in the spec. refers to the table tilting the other way; inwards, towards the saw frame. That can be useful for cutting dovetails, where it could save you the hassle of making another jig.

 

[Rattie]

I reckon you're right. That's much more like it. From the looks of the details in the photos I'd say that image is of their 502E. I'll check with startrite or D&M.

Cheers

Martyn

 

[FatFreddysCat]

If I had to guess, I'd say that 20° stated in the spec. refers to the table tilting the other way; inwards, towards the saw frame.

Or could it be the CE spec? I seem to recall that quite a few larger CE-spec bandsaws come with a blocking pin around the 20° mark

 

[Rattie]

Got the response back from Lee at Startrite and the answer was yes it's CE regs to go to +/- 20 degrees. And yes, the pin can be removed to go to 45.

The trunions are rack and pinion which is nice.

On the downside there's no quick tension release and the guides are Euro style.

I think my choice is boiling down to the Startrite 502E or the Axminster AP4300-T3.

Does anybody know if the Axminster fence rail will take Scheppach fences? The extrusion section looks amazingly similar. Also, does anybody know what width can be cut with the fence on the right of the blade? For cutting over 20 degree chamfers I'd be wanting to run the piece along that side.

Cheers