Bandsaw

[oscars]

Hello!

My name is Oscar and I am from Norway. I have been thinking to get myself a Bandsaw. I have been looking on some different models, but I have a few questions. What I have been looking for is 10" saws.
Do it matter if the table is made of aluminium or cast iron?
All the motors are from 250 w to 420w. Is 250w too small for a 10" bandsaw?

 

[Phil Pascoe]

What do you intend to do with it? 250w is very small.

 

[oscars]

On most, resawing 10 cm planks, but my primary use for it is to saw briar blanks to make pipes

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Two very different uses there. A little three wheel job with a decent blade would probably be perfectly adequate for pipe blanks but for ripping 10cm boards 420w is small enough.

 

[oscars]

I have been looking at different saws. Record Power premium 14" and the Makita lb1200f , but I can not defend the price tag that comes with those two. 750£ for the Makita one and nearly 1000£ for the Record power.
I can afford it, but it is alot a money for a tool. A very nice tool though =P~
The other 10" is from 220£ to 300£

 

[MikeJhn]

oscars, I have a Record Power 350 and it handles 100mm oak with ease, would not hesitate to recommend it, I use Tuffsaw blades, but that is on the advice of some very knowledgable people on here, I have to say they do everything they all say.

Mike

 

[oscars]

Yes I know the bigger the better, but it is the wallet that is the boss :lol: But what is it with aluminium table everyone is so against? It seems everyone is in favor of cast iron table. Is it because it makes the saw more stable?

 

[Alexam]

Record Bandsaws have a great reputation as does the service and 5 year warranty offered by Record. If you buy at a sale/promotion you can often get a discount, but I doubt you would get the free delivery with you in Norway.

There are lots of reports and reviews of various bandsaws on this site, so nlook through ad find one you like, but often people regret not getting the larger one when they could have aforded it as it usually cuts deeper and is more solid. Cast iron tables are best as weight does help in stability and with Tuffsaw blades you are set.

Malcolm

 

[Beau]

Yes I know the bigger the better, but it is the wallet that is the boss :lol: But what is it with aluminium table everyone is so against? It seems everyone is in favor of cast iron table. Is it because it makes the saw more stable?

Nothing wrong with an aluminium table per say but it is often an indication of a lightly built machine. Had a Kity 613 for years with an aly table and was as excellent machine. It's still going strong now but in a friends workshop.

 

[Bodgers]

I have been looking at different saws. Record Power premium 14" and the Makita lb1200f , but I can not defend the price tag that comes with those two. 750£ for the Makita one and nearly 1000£ for the Record power.
I can afford it, but it is alot a money for a tool. A very nice tool though =P~
The other 10" is from 220£ to 300£

I have the Makita and you can get it for a lot less than that - I paid £470 back in May.

Good things about the Makita are the powerful motor (900W) and large cast iron table.

If you are resawing what you state you are avoid a lower power 10" saw.

Down sides on the Makita are QA issues on some units where excessive vibration is present. Make sure you have a Makita dealer near you.

Metabo have a virtually identical model in everyway (must be made in the same place) although the table and fence look slightly different. I think it is the Metabo 305 or something.




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[Steve Maskery]

A 10" saw is too small for resawing 100mm stock. Not only will it be a small table, and light in weight, but the motor will not have enough oomph (English technical term) to do the job. You will very quickly realise why most saws are bigger than that.

Personally I think you should consider investing £750 rather than wasting £250.

Of course, your best bet would be to find a good second-hand machine. They are quite simple machines and not much can go wrong. If the castings are all good and the electrics work, things like bearing and guides can easily be sorted if they are worn.

One thing that does set one machine apart from another, though, is the quality of the fence. On cheap machines the fence is often flimsy and crude. You can buy aftermarket fences that are a bit better, much much better to build your own. But all that pushes the price up to the point where you would have been better spending money on a better machine in the first place!

But good luck with your search and tell us what you end up with.

 

[heimlaga]

The total cost of buying my 24" E.V.Beronius and rebuilding the 100 years old saw to modern industrial standards and as new condition turned out equal to the cost of a new 14" Record. I converted it from line shaft driven to motor driven with a secondhand 3kW motor and made new gualds and new blade guides plus some minor jobs here and there.
Of cause I needed a lot of time and some metalworking skills for the rebuild so this route isn't the best for everyone.

You are very likely to have 3 phase power in Norway so you can pick from the whole spectrum of secondhand if you want. Just one of many options worth considering.

 

[Bodgers]

Not to mention the space needed for a 100 year old 24" Bandsaw. My workshop would be all Bandsaw with that!


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[YorkieT]

I can't advise re the bandsaws your considering but I thoroughly recommend tuffsaw blades, after years of struggling with cheap blades I recently treat myself to a couple of their blades and what a transformation, it's an absolute pleasure to use the bandsaw now.

 

[Keithie]

With apologies for possible thread theft, I'm still strugglong with bandsaw choice.

I've probably dealt (subject to the machine working as described etc) on an Elektra Beckum bas450 but am working on a plan b just in case.

A second hand higher quality machine seems like it might turn out to be a better choice than even a new record 400. I found a Wadkin bzb 20" (2hp) second hand for the same price as a new Record 400 ..except its 3 phase and my workshop (garage) only has one-phase. I'm trying to understand inverters so I can run it on one phase but know so little about electronics its a bit of a struggle. The key issues I've identfied but cant answer :
1. what type of inverter
2. what current peak at start up ...can my modern house's consumer box cope? options if not?
3. what loss of power will inverter result in .... 2hp sounds good but the bzb 20" looks like a reasonably big machine and if there's a big power loss then will it still be able to re-saw 6x6 oak easily enough ?
4. approx costs of establishing effective 3ph to 1ph equipment for this spec

no doubt there will be lots of other questions I've not thought of (not least relating to the bandsaw itself) but any advice / signposting to resources for specifying & obtaining inverters etc would be very welcome
cheers
Keith

 

[TFrench]

There's lots of info on here about using digital inverters if you search around a bit Keith. For a 2hp motor you'll need a 1.5kw inverter. Start up current will be fairly low if you use a speed controller or have soft start on it - most inverters have this. As far as I know you won't lose much power through using an inverter as it's effectively giving it "proper" 3 phase.

I've bought one of these for my union graduate I'm restoring (this is larger to suit your saw) The faceplate is detachable so you can mount it wherever is convenient and keep the inverter out of the way where it can't get dust in it. So long as the existing motor is suitable, that is the major expense.
https://inverterdrive.com/group/AC-Inve ... P2-MDA-7P/

 

[Keithie]

Thanks ... hopefully my first choice machine (Elektra Beckum 1ph) will turn out to be ok ... but good to know the 3 phase - single phase isnt prohibitively complicated or expensive ...lots of epic looking 3ph old bandsaws out there!

 

[TFrench]

I know, I keep thinking about selling my kity for something more substantial! Get the lathe finished first though!