Band saw recommendations

[stvrowe]

Phred,
Check out the other FOG (Felder Owners Group) on Yahoo Groups.  There are a number of members there that own the FB600.  I just looked at it at IWF2010 and it looked like a really nice setup based on the ACM design.  This saw is not a rebadged ACM and is manufactured by Felder in Austria.  When I purchased an Aggazani B24 late last year, the FB600 was a real close competitor.  Cost was essentially the same for both.  The Agg B24 (new generation) gave me almost 2" more resaw height but the driving issue for me was the range of blade sizes the Agg would take.  The Felder would go as small as 3/8" while the Agg would go down to 1/4" with standard guide and 3/16" with the Carter guide.  Jesse told me some users were using blades as small as 1/8" and doing fine scroll work.

Contact Felder and their rep for your area will send you as many pictures as you want.  Both Felder and Jesse at Eagle tools were very good at answering questions. 

 

[nickao]

Sorry for you Grizzly troubles, but something from 15 years ago may not be a real good comparison.

Obviously you have not had any thing current(at least it does not seem you have) as its tough to even find a bad review about anything Grizzly has made in the last 5 years. I had 3 Kapex that were crap and a couple more Festools I sent back as well, but I would not call the entire line crap. You hear people on this forum talking about Festool quality issues as well.

Grizzly dust collectors, band saw, jointers are all great depending on each individual model.

I will put the Grizzly stuff up against anything that cost the same amount of money. Again, sorry for your troubles, but Grizzly is not Harbor Freight. Your experience is your experience and you can hold any opinion you like, but actually I have had such good luck and the best customer service ever I am just dismayed by your opinion. Kind of like my neighbor saying the Rotex is the worst sander he ever used, I don't get it. Then again I did not have your Grizzly tools that failed so I have no experience with that and have no reason to hold a grudge.

As far as Grizzly making to last, of course they last, I am not a hobbyist and beat the crap out of all three of my Grizzly tools, no break downs at all to date. For a hobbyist they should last a lifetime as long as you do your homework and get the right models. They make about 25 band saws!

Well, this is not  grizzly forum so I will let it alone and we will agree to disagree. I guess we both like Festools!

http://lumberjocks.com/topics/486

 

[Phred]

Thanks to all for the additional information.  Still haven't made a decision, but the links and advice are helping!
Phred

 

[ccmviking]

Phred,

I have the Aggi B20 and really like it.  I had the Laguna 18 which is a nice saw.  I like the Aggi overall much better but with a lot of subjectivity.  The Brake on the Aggi is much better than the Laguna as the Laguna takes much longer to stop and stinks when applied.  The Dust Collection is better on the B20.  The overall design and execution of the machine is a little nicer.  The only issue I had of concern with the B20 was that they use a narrow slot in the table.  I bought the nicer yellow miter gauge from Jesse at Eagle and it's been great and not an issue.  I like the internal tension gauge, table tilt and a lot of other little things better on the Agazzani.  Too me the Felder (most newer models) is almost a spittin image to the Laguna's.  Let me know if there's anything specific I can answer for you.

Chris...

John in particular but anyone else who cares to comment as well:

I'm also trying to decide between bandsaws and would appreciate this group's words of wisdom.  I have been leaning towards the Agazzani B20 and had a chance to visit Jesse at Eagle Tools last summer to see it.  It's easy to see why he has such a good reputation.

In the meantime, I have a Hammer A3 31 on order and saw their recent price reduction on the Felder FB 600 ( now $ 3,268--still higher than the intro but only a few hundred more than the B20 for a much heavier and slightly larger machine, and pretty equivalent to the B24).  If I order the Felder now and combine shipping with the A3 31, I'll also save several hundred, making it essentially a wash.

One of John's posts somewhere suggested he might lean towards the FB 600 if making his purchase today.  As I'm in Central Oregon  and it is not easy to find a FB 600 to look at, I'm curious how those with experience would compare these machines.  (While the Oliver and Tannewitz both look intriguing, I don't know that I have the ability to muscle the large beast up my driveway and into my shop in the first case or the additional budget for the second.)

More specifically on the Agi vs. Felder comparison:
1)  the guides look pretty similar--any noticeable differences in ease of adjustment, stability, or use?
2)  how do the blade tensioning assemblies compare--the B20 is very beefy but I haven't found a photo of the FB 600's.
3)  overall sense for quality of cut, especially in resawing?

My expected uses are:
1)  resawing
2)  cutting arcs and longer curves for furniture pieces (where the ability to share table extensions between the planer and bandsaw seems like a nice bonus)
3)  some milling of lumber (trees cut on our property)
4)  perhaps some bandsaw tenons (I don't have a table saw)

This would be my first bandsaw since shop class many moons ago, but I only want to buy once.  I hope to have a few decades left where I can build some furniture for personal and family use 

There has been a lot of great info in this thread--thanks in advance for any further observations.

Sincerely,
Phred

 

[WarnerConstCo.]

This one has some heft and mass....