Buying my first bandsaw

[Niel]

I am a newbie in here - and have never had a bandsaw - I have a small workshop - and is doing boxes - cutting boards - jewllery boxes - small furniture and so on.
so - i now want to buy me a bandsaw.
have read revievs and been looking on you tube - and visited lokal dealers.
I have been looking at 12 inch saws - like record and axminster models. But they all have ceramic blade guides - is that a problem vs ball bearings ?
please excuse my bad english - I am Norwegian

 

[Jameshow]

No idea about 12" bandsaws but I have two 10" babdsaws and they work but ithey are not the most powerful tools. I think a 12" would be simalar whereas a 14/16" would be a far more useful tool???

Cheers James

 

[Sandyn]

I have the Record BS 350, with ceramic side guides, and bearing on the back guide. Once set up correctly, they seem to work perfectly well, however from everything I have read/watched bearings would do the job better for most users.
I have more issues with the how the guides are adjusted on the Record. It's all a bit crude and sloppy. It can be difficult to get the side guides parallel to the blades and get everything clamped up tight. If the side guides happen to slacken off, they can clamp the blade.
There are upgrades to bearings available, but I have never thought it necessary for the type of work I do. My saw cuts pretty straight with a good blade and set up correctly.
My band saw is my most used tool. If you have doubts and think it's important for the type of work you do, go for a saw with bearings, or at least capable of upgrading at a later time if necessary.
There will be others on here who have used both and be able to give you a better comparison. Please excuse my bad english- I an Scottish

 

[robgul]

. . . as suggested buy a bandsaw with bigger capacity than you think you need - I bought one las year and immediately regretted not getting a larger model.

 

[Doug B]

I’ve heard folks say about problems with ceramic bearings but when I replaced the bearings on my bandsaw recently the only option the manufacturer offered were ceramic & so far 3 months on they have been fine, in fact if anything slightly better than the steel originals. I ought to point out these were the thrust bearings.

 

[Niel]

Thanx all for informative replies.
i have got 4 offers from a lokal dealer
1. Luna BBS 350.
2. Axminster Trade At 2552 B
3. Axminster Craft Ac2606B.
4. Record Power BS300E
Price - the AxTrade is the most expensive
The Luna and the Ax craft is equal price

Anyone please share experience with those bandsaws ?
I strugle to decide which one to buy.

 

[moosepig]

Have a look at the Record Power Sabre series. I have the Sabre 350 and it is excellent. There's a Sabre 250 available now if the 350 is too big. The Sabre series have roller bearing guides with tool-free adjustment.

 

[shed9]

As others have already said, buy the best and most powerful you can, if that means waiting a little longer because of funds or availability then I would still recommend that route.

Of the list of four up there, I would only seriously be considering the Axi Trade 2552, it looks to have the strongest spine of the four and is closer to a more useable saw in my opinion. If you spend less you will almost certainly be throwing more money at a cheaper machine in the short term to try to make it work like a higher priced / higher specced model.
As noted above, the Sabre series from Record seem to be getting very good reviews lately and I have yet to see any buyer remorse from any reviews I have seen. I would be looking at the 350 model as a bare minimum though.

One more thing to be aware of, factor in dust extraction within your setup. Apart from the cleaner and sensible approach to working if you intend to use it for the likes of boxes, cutting boards, jewellery boxes and small furniture then I also suspect you may possibly be using a more exotic range of woods. Machined dust is very different to dust produced from hand tools. Obvious statement I know but reaction to wood can be accelerated in those conditions and could impact your susceptibility to it, and your overall health.

 

[Niel]

I have made my choice - and bought an Axminster Trade AT2552. I will get it delivered end of next week.
thanx for all helpful replyes.
I will definitlly use a dust collector - i have that on my router and table saw.

 

[Sandyn]

Enjoy your new toy You will soon be wondering "How did I manage without one??"

 

[Niel]

Enjoy your new toy You will soon be wondering "How did I manage without one??"

Thanx - i hope so too.
So now the next is too learn about bandsawblades
I guess that is a complicated profession

 

[Sandyn]

Yes, very important to get a good quality blade which is correct for the type of work you will do. There are many threads on here discussing bandsaw blades with lots of good advice.

 

[pgrbff]

Thanx - i hope so too.
So now the next is too learn about bandsawblades
I guess that is a complicated profession

Look on the tuffsaws website, it has comprehensive useful information. Unfortunately they no longer send blades out of the UK but it will be a useful read. You need to keep checking the site, it is often closed.

 

[TRITON]

Won't be long till you hit dilemma A#1
Buy a 10" and within a year you'll be thinking, " Maybe I should have bought a 12". Buy a 12" and within a year you'll be thinking, " Maybe I should have bought a 14", buy a 14" and within a year you'll be thinking " Maybe I should have bought a 16".
It's just one of those things you can be sure about in life - Death, taxes, and I need a bigger bandsaw

 

[Niel]

Look on the tuffsaws website, it has comprehensive useful information. Unfortunately they no longer send blades out of the UK but it will be a useful read. You need to keep checking the site, it is often closed.

Thanx for your information.
I followed your advice and looked on Tuffsaw. Great site - very usefull and good information.
maybe they will start sending blades out of the UK when the Pandemi is over

 

[heimlaga]

Kan du finne ein brukt Luna? Dei gamla Luna sagerne fra Lini/Ejca i Värnamo er noko annat en kinasagene dei sell nå.

 

[MikeK]

Thanx for your information.
I followed your advice and looked on Tuffsaw. Great site - very usefull and good information.
maybe they will start sending blades out of the UK when the Pandemi is over

Based on my email conversations with Ian at Tuffsaws, he stopped supporting EU customers because of the additional burden to him due to BREXIT. I placed a large order with him last year, and I think mine was the last. Unless he changes his mind, or you can find someone in the UK to forward the blades, you will have to look for European sources.

In the post below, Bart from Belgium, found a suitable source in Germany. I've never used this vendor.

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/threads/resaw-blade-advice.128795/#post-1444461

 

[pgrbff]

Thanx for your information.
I followed your advice and looked on Tuffsaw. Great site - very usefull and good information.
maybe they will start sending blades out of the UK when the Pandemi is over

When I spoke to them before Christmas Covid wasn't the issue. I suspect Brexit will have made it even more difficult so from what I was told they will not resume selling outside the UK. It's a great shame.

 

[Terrytpot]

I bookmarked the following post myself recently...may be a useful read for you
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/threads/tuff-saw-alternative.129118/post-1449544

 

[Popey]

Have a look at the Record Power Sabre series. I have the Sabre 350 and it is excellent. There's a Sabre 250 available now if the 350 is too big. The Sabre series have roller bearing guides with tool-free adjustment.

Won't be long till you hit dilemma A#1
Buy a 10" and within a year you'll be thinking, " Maybe I should have bought a 12". Buy a 12" and within a year you'll be thinking, " Maybe I should have bought a 14", buy a 14" and within a year you'll be thinking " Maybe I should have bought a 16".
It's just one of those things you can be sure about in life - Death, taxes, and I need a bigger bandsaw

I started with a Record BS250 and whilst it's an excellent machine, it didn't take me very long to out grow it, so do take heed of @TRITON 's advice . Like @moosepig I now have a Record Sabre 350 which is a lot of bandsaw for the money.