record Bandsaw BS350X

[Anonymous]

Haven't posted much since I joined but I do read every day. I bought the bandsaw 3 weeks ago now, and today is the first day I can say that it has run anything like accurately.

When it was delivered the top wheel door was broken, no blades were enclosed, and some parts neccessary for the enhanced rip fence were not there.

In all fairness to Record they have sent replacement parts overnight most times, and so the day after a new door arrived. Blades were out of stock and were to follow 10 days later.

I could not get the guides to set up properly - a problem I note others have had. Record sent me a whole bearing assembly and this together with a bit of tweaking put that right.

The enhanced rip fence on the X model is a beefed up cast iron/aluminium version, but the fence was 24 thou bowed in the vertical plane. Record said to either ship it back or have it milled and they would give me some free blades. I fixed it by gluing a hardwood face on and planing it true.

The spare blades when received were awful. 2 of them had welds that were 1mm out of alignment, so these were replaced with new ones.

I now have what I consider to be an excellent bandsaw. Tracks and runs smoothly and accurately. I have fitted DureEdge blades who were a pleasure to do business with.

At the price of £498 this is excellent value for money, but initially the whole buying process was marred by what can only be poor quality control. As I say Record have been great and tried to remedy things asap, as I have found them to be with previous matters.

I would still recommend this saw to others, mine came with the free blades and a wheel kit, and really looks the business.

 

[Newbie_Neil]

Hi WM

Glad that you are enjoying your bandsaw.

It must cost a fortune for Record to do their quality control after the event. I congratulate them on sending things out overnight to you, but surely a bandsaw that works almost first time with a little fettling would be better?

Cheers
Neil

 

[DaveL]

I must agree with Neil, glad you have it sorted to your satisfaction but it would have been so much better if it worked out of the box.

 

[Lord Nibbo]

I bought the bandsaw 3 weeks ago now, and today is the first day I can say that it has run anything like accurately.

When it was delivered the top wheel door was broken, no blades were enclosed, and some parts neccessary for the enhanced rip fence were not there.

I bought the same machine about three weeks ago too.

It came complete as advertised, 5 extra blades plus wheel kit. No problems assembleing it untill I got to the wheel kit, no holes in the base plate for the axle on the rear wheels I did think about ringing Record but it was easier to drill it myself.

What surprised me is that the machine was delivered with two fences, the upgraded one and the older alluminium. I might use parts from the alloy one to machine a better fence/bracket on my Record PT260 planer thicknesser.

Did you get both fences?

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Lord Nibbo,

Sorry for the delay - just been to see the latest Harry Potter.

Yes, mine came with both fences, and I'm planning on using the old one on another tool aswell.

Is the face of your improved one flat and vertical?

I also contacted Record about the axle holes in the base - they sent me a paper template to put the holes in the right place !!?
Who has a 16mm metal drill bit I ask - most chucks won't go up to that. In the end I had to drill to 13mm and file the rest - took ages.

Do you like yours?

 

[Alf]

Who has a 16mm metal drill bit I ask

Evidentally not Record, it seems... :lol:

Gotta say, for nearly £500, I'm with Neil and Dave; glad you got it sorted, but you're much more forgiving than I.

Cheers, Alf

 

[gidon]

Glad you'll all sorted now - does sound quite an ordeal.
I also had some initial problems with the same bandsaw (well not the X model). Record were pretty helpful getting it sorted too (although their enthusiasm dwindled as the phonecalls increased!)
Watch the tensioning screw - easy to rip the thread unless they've sorted this. I've replaced mine with a stainless steel stud and my own tensioning wheel - much better. But why they use mild steel for such a key component I don't understand.
Really need Tony to buy one of these . He may able to work out some better upper guides!
But after the first two weeks I've had no problems with the machine and it does everything I ask.
Cheers
Gidon

 

[Lord Nibbo]

Hi Lord Nibbo,


Is the face of your improved one flat and vertical?

I also contacted Record about the axle holes in the base - they sent me a paper template to put the holes in the right place !!?
Who has a 16mm metal drill bit I ask - most chucks won't go up to that. In the end I had to drill to 13mm and file the rest - took ages.

Do you like yours?

For the 16mm holes I drilled out 1/2" holes and used a reamer it's much easier than using a file.

I'm not sure what you mean with the question about the new design fence, but the new one I have is much taller than the old model and can be turned to make it lower for use near the blade if cutting very thin wood.

 

[Anonymous]

Yes mine can be turned aswell, but the vertical tall side bowed outwards in the middle.

 

[Anonymous]

Just thought I'd post a picture of the bandsaw in all its glory, with the fence adaptation.

 

[Anonymous]

Almost $900 dollars & you had to do all that to get a saw that works.

What is the re-saw height & max width that saw will cut.

I have a 14" older model Grizzly machine that will re-saw to 12" & width almost 14". I paid around $300 for it & I just put the riser block on & set the top wheel assembly on finished by installing the blade & it was ready to go about 30 minutes.

I later replaced the 3/4 hp motor with a 1 1/2 hp motor I had in the shop at no extra cost. With a Timberwolf low tension high silicon blade it cuts through 12" material just great.

 

[SVB]

Original-Bart,

Don't get me going on US vs UK machine prices. As is the case with most things, we pay through our noses for living on this little Isle.

I looked into getting a Jet 18" shipped from the US. It is around $999 compared to £1200 in the Axminster book. Even allowing for shipping and tax, there still has to be some change. Gave up as could not get any decent advice on motor compatability (I did not know about this forum then) so got an 14" jet from ebay and a 6" riser kit when I was in the States as they do not sell them here!

..........fume!!! :evil: :evil: :evil:

 

[Anonymous]

Well Simon

I don't know if your open to it but you welcome to live here.

 

[devonwoody]

Very interesting thread

My experience of this an some other industries is that they chuck the stuff out and let the customer find whats not of serviceable quality. Perhaps its cheaper that way. (I returned my BS350 earlier this year even the sales literature was incorrect and misleading)

Woodmaster, your workshop layout made my eyes water, could you come down and sort me out.

 

[Jarviser]

Funny how many people create a better rip or or mitre fence out of a bit of wood or MDF than the one the manufacturers provide. I just about have mine to hold square with the addition of a G cramp. My next job is to make a new fence completely out of MDF and do a decent job. But then most of these are re-badged offerings from third world manufacturers (and I include some low wage European countries among them). I can just imagine all the supplier samples were perfrect, and 6 months down the line all the rubbish creeps in unnoticed til we buy them. That's what you get for off-shoring to cheap places and stuffing our own UK manufacturing industry.

 

[devonwoody]

If I was making my own fence for a bandsaw I would copy the principle used on my present RSBS12 where there is a knob that winds the fence away from its bracket, I think the same effect could be done to a wooden fence attachment.

As regards quality control from overseas, when I was a young man our office that I worked in sent inspectors and engineers to factories all over the world to inspect goods before they were despatched to their erection site.(oil refineries), being a young man I only got the British factories.

 

[Jarviser]

I expect people from these firms who apply their company paint colours and badges to virtually identical global-clone products, take all precautions, including all expenses visits to these far-flung sweat shops, before contracts are awarded. However they can't afford to inspect every tool that comes over here before despatch to us.
But I just wonder if they even make truly random inspections at all? Are there are any mechanical engineers left in our UK machine tool "Industry" who would know what a micrometer or a surface table is? Is there anyone still working who has enough engineering savvy to notice that the instruction manual bears little resemblance to the item they pretend to manufacture?
When I was an engineer we used to say that the most expensive faults in the long term are the ones that the customer finds.

 

[devonwoody]

There is no reason why The British suppliers cannot appoint agents (as inspectors) to visit goods before despatch in those foreign countries. Eventually foreign suppliers would then get their production upto scratch if they were saddled with rejects.

Perhaps some British suppliers might see this forum thread and start using their noddle.

 

[Freetochat]

A little while back, I used to operate some trucks carrying containers. How about delivering a 40' container full of team shirts for a Premier League football team's shop, only to find the team's name had been spelt incorrectly. That load was returned to the manufacturers in Morocco.

 

[Anonymous]

Just wondering if anyone who has a Record BS350 can tell me how much lateral (side to side) play they have in the top blade wheel, mine has about 1" play side to side. Also everytime I try and cut something the blade always tries turning toward the fence!

I have had mine around a year now, but it has had very little use as I have had nowhere to put it, during the summer the garage was built and now I have just moved it in there. Whilst it was in the house (It's a ruin about to be renovated) I was using it occasionally for the odd small job, but about two months ago the blade suddenly started wandering and I could not get a straight cut, I presumed this was the blade going dull, so I ordered three new ones off Dure-edge a couple of months ago. Today I have just found time to put the new 1/2" Dure-edge blade on, but it has made no difference. I have gone through the manual over and over trying to set it up right and seem to have everything exactly as the manual says, but the bloody thing still won't cut true!

Inspecting the machine today I cannot see anything seriously wrong, except the inch lateral play in the top wheel that the blade runs on. So I just wanted to know from others who posses such a machine if theirs is the same?

Thanks.

P.S. I do not go much on Records blade tensioning mechanism, so anyone familiar with bandsaws know the rule of thumb method to tension the blades for these machines?

Thanks.