Bandsaw

[Hungry Horse]

  I own two Delta Homecraft 10” bandsaws. They are bench top units, but I built a free standing stand for them. They aren’t deep enough in the thought for some stock styles, without some multi cuts. But, they are a good little saw, and you can get them for almost nothing. I have no idea how old they are, but they are definitely old.

  Hungry Horse

[ddoyle]

If you are buying a band saw just for a few plank builds I say do not bother. Make a panel saw or draw out your profile and cross cut down to the line every 1/4 inch or so with any hand saw preferabley a coarse buck saw. knock off the pieces and clean up to the line with a plane.  ALOT easier and quicker then it sounds.  Too muck frigging around? a Diston Rip saw- sharpened and waxed- will do the straight lines with ease. You might even find your one of the guys who can rough out a blank with a sharp hatchet.

Still need more ease? Find a cabinet maker with a real bandsaw and lots of experience using it. Pay him to cut out the profile. He can run one side on his joiner so that your profile is cut 90 degrees to the blank.
 His saw will cut straighter then a toy one.

Or buy a electric saw, but remember our ancestors would not have cause it is not smart: construction cost these days is likely 200 dollars a sq ft. It costs 800 dollars to house a floor tool ! add the saw cost and the financing cost for the whole works (mortgage) and you will be paying 10  bucks a month for 7-10 years to cut out a couple ALR stocks LOL. Buy a Diston and hang it on a stud.

[Clark Badgett]

Buy a Diston and hang it on a stud.

Or in my case about 5 Distons. Never sharpened then because they still work. Even added a modern Linx or Pax. Even I managed to cut a long cut fairly straight. Much straighter than the disaster I had with a nice curly piece of maple with the bandsaw (which is now gone).

[Sawfiler]

On the subject of hand saws - y'all should check out Bad Axe tool works. These saws will cut faster than a bandsaw. Most people have never used a truly sharp handsaw. Like any other well tuned hand tool they are a joy to use. These are more for woodworking than rifle building, but still neat to see quality tools are being produced.

[Mauser06]

Thanx all!! 

The seller hasn't replied yet so that's no good.



Ddoyle, it wouldn't just be for a couple blanks....I'm sure it'd be used for other projects.  I know good ones are more expensive and probably worth it for the accuracy and ease of use.

[whitebear]

Check out your local pawn shops.  It is surprising what people will buy for good money then pawn or sell it to a pawn shop and never reclaim it.  I have seen drill presses for $100.00 and band saws for $75.00 both in like new condition.

[44-henry]

Some years back I ended up with a Shopsmith Mark V and a bunch of attachments, most of which I rarely use. The bandsaw, disk sander, and drill press funtions however are very good and I use them a lot and the variable speed drive is handy. If you want to make powder horns at some point the wood lathe feature would also be handy. Craigslist in my area has these Shopsmiths for sale all the time, often with the bandsaw, and one in good condition might interest you and they don't take much more floor space than a conventional wood lathe.

Bandsaws can be tricky to use and many blaim the machine for what is basically user error. Whatever you get make sure to properly adjust it and purchase the best blades you can find. I buy timberwolf blades for my saw and for thick stock I like a blade that is 1/2" wide with 4 teeth per inch. They last a long time and are fast cutting.

[David R. Pennington]

I had a little table top craftsman band saw that I ruined a lot of wood on, I got so frustrated with it I threw it out. I would get a good one. Hand saws need to be properly filed and set. (This is something that can be learned with a couple good books on the subject and some cheap used saws from junk stores to practice on.) A rip tooth saw is used for the long cuts with the grain. The teeth are shaped differently from crosscut saw. My grandfather used to tell me, "you are standing in the wrong place to saw that board square". He showed me that you need your shoulder lined up with the saw and cutting straight then is more natural.

[Nordnecker]

This discussion made me curious if I could saw out a blank with a handsaw. I have only used my bandsaw for this. So, yesterday evening I got out 2 ripsaws, one 5 pt and the other 5 1/2. I didn't have a piece of maple handy so just practiced cutting a line on a piece of pine.
I was at the Vogler gunshop one day this fall when Blake was sawing along the barrel of a blank with a rip saw. He had the blank sticking up out of the vice about 2 feet. He was merrily sawing away in spite of me and other visitors coming and going, asking questions and such. I don't think he even had a line to follow, he confidently just eyeballed while he cut down beside the barrel channel. I was impressed.
My practice piece wasn't very long. The 5 pt saw seemed a little aggressive but it cut nice and straight. The 5 1/2 wanted to cut to the right a little bit everytime, despite my efforts to keep it tracking straight. I know there is a lot of finesse to sharpening and setting a saw- using one, too.

[n stephenson]

Keep an eye on Craigslist , I`ve seen tons of well built , older bandsaws , for sale. Many of these are barely used. they sat around more than any thing.  I bought a Rockwell 14 inch with cast iron frame for $100 . It still had the owner`s manual with it. I replaced the tires , and added a set of roller guides. I only have a little over $200 in it , and it does all I need it to do. I had a new Delta before this one , but it had a LOT of die cast zinc or whatever material , parts on it. Overall it just felt flimsy to me.  If you plan on buying a bandsaw , find someone that has experience with them , and get them to help you find a good one , and set it up correctly. Having your saw set up correctly is probably the most important part.        Nate

[Jerry V Lape]

I simply do not have room for a band saw so I bought a good sabre saw which gets the job done.  But I found a neighbor with a good band saw and he is willing to help me so I am covered two ways. 

[Greg Pennell]

My bandsaw is probably the most used power tool I own...I find myself walking over to it several times a day, and sure wouldn’t want to be without it. It’s a 14” Grizzly, 1 HP, and is used for everything. Like the others have said, good blades and good setup are a must...lots of good setup/tuning videos on YouTube.

Greg

[ddoyle]

Or in my case about 5 Distons. Never sharpened then because they still work.

Oh boy are you ever gonna be smiling when you get around to sharpening them and getting all the teeth on the same plane! If you need a saw set or want a proper (not needed) saw vise let me know. There was a diston vise and a bronze english diston set for sale locally for the price of a coffee and danish.

Or I think Taylor might offer saw service- Get him to do all your saws and it will set a standard for you.

[Mauser06]

Thanx all!! 


That was about the only one I found on Craigslist. I didn't search extensively yet.


I will keep looking...the seller never replied. 

[Clark Badgett]

Or in my case about 5 Distons. Never sharpened then because they still work.

If you need a saw set or want a proper (not needed) saw vise let me know. There was a diston vise and a bronze english diston set for sale locally for the price of a coffee and danish.

Believe it or not. I can find croos cut saws all day long, usuallybin great shape, but rip saws and sets seem to but nonexistant around here. Send me a pm with price and I'll see if I can get the General to open the purse strings.

[Clint]

I have a nice old 14 inch bandsaw with a 2 horse motor and it will cut anything, BUT I also have a couple of old Henry Disston rip saws that I learned to sharpen (simple) the hand saws are amazingly agressive and accurate I ripped two inch thick white oak sixteen feet long for a boat last summer and it went quickly and square. I also ripped a quarter of an inch of wood off the bottom of a ramrod channel after the groove was cut because I didn't trust my hand with the band saw.

[Mauser06]

A few mentioned bearing blade guides.   Where do you find them??


I think I'm going to go with a 12" 3/4hp Craftsman.  I'd be open to some upgrades if it'll improve it's cuts and  not cost as much as the saw lol. 

[DHS]

My bandsaw is probably the most used power tool I own...I find myself walking over to it several times a day, and sure wouldn’t want to be without it. It’s a 14” Grizzly, 1 HP, and is used for everything. Like the others have said, good blades and good setup are a must...lots of good setup/tuning videos on YouTube.

Greg

I have a Tennessee built 14 inch Powermatic.  Everything else goes before it goes.  Good ball bearing guides are a must as well as proper set-up and blades.   

[Jim Kibler]

For smaller and somewhat undersized band saws, a highland hardware wood slicer blade helps. 

Before I had a bandsaw I used a rip saw.  It works, but not too speedy.

 I use a 36" Tannewitz saw that weighs somewhere around 3000 pounds.  It was made in the 1940's and is still a fantastic saw today.  For stock blank sized wood, it will cut as fast as you want to push the wood.

Sometimes when cutting large boards we'll use a big reciprocating saw to make a few cuts when the bandsaw won't work well.  I think it's a big Bosch saw.  With a coarse blade, it works amazingly well.  This could certainly be used to cut out a stock.

Jim