Bandsaw, now or later?
- Thread starter Runhard
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WarnerConstCo.
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Northfield would be a company like festool however, their smallest be (20") starts at about 10k, made in Northfield MN.
I prefer to find vintage American iron, give it some love and enjoy them for the rest of my life.
Have you considered an older 20" delta, powermatic, crescent or Northfield?
I know where there is a pretty nice 20" Northfield for a good price.
Depending where you are at in northern IN, you are free to stop by and have a look at my stuff.
I prefer to find vintage American iron, give it some love and enjoy them for the rest of my life.
Have you considered an older 20" delta, powermatic, crescent or Northfield?
I know where there is a pretty nice 20" Northfield for a good price.
Depending where you are at in northern IN, you are free to stop by and have a look at my stuff.
Northfield would be nice, but its out of my price range. I would consider vintage, but I do not have enough time to do much woodworking as it is and fixing up an older machine is not practical for me. I will get something figured out one of these days.WarnerConstCo. said:
Thanks for the offer, I'm in South Bend.
Daniel
Runhard said:
Hi Daniel! I bought a bandsaw as one of my first tools too, even before I had a table saw. It was a good move, but it will really depend on the types of projects you do. Since you have a TS75 you've got straight lines pretty well whipped. The bandsaw will definitely help you with resawing, ripping, and curves. With an 18" unit you can process thick stuff too. With the right blade and precise set-up it will be a great help. I also agree with the dust collection concern - it's amazing how much dust these things spew! Peace with the family = proper dust collection.
You're definitely not the only one who has contemplated the same brand thing - Originally I wanted to equip my shop with all the same brand tools too, but later I found out features were waaaaaaay more important. I spent too much extra money replacing things I bought from the same manufacturer only to discover they didn't do exactly what I wanted. Nowadays I don't care what color it is. I'd advise getting what you want feature-wise instead....Just my two cents. Good luck with whatever you decide!
You are right about the features being more important. The dust collection has really got me thinking if I should just wait until I can move into a proper shop. It will also give me time to study machines/brands and save more money for other purchases. My wants and needs could change, but you know how it is when you want to buy a new tool, it is hard to wait. [big grin]TinyTiger said:Runhard said:
Hi Daniel! I bought a bandsaw as one of my first tools too, even before I had a table saw. It was a good move, but it will really depend on the types of projects you do. Since you have a TS75 you've got straight lines pretty well whipped. The bandsaw will definitely help you with resawing, ripping, and curves. With an 18" unit you can process thick stuff too. With the right blade and precise set-up it will be a great help. I also agree with the dust collection concern - it's amazing how much dust these things spew! Peace with the family = proper dust collection.
You're definitely not the only one who has contemplated the same brand thing - Originally I wanted to equip my shop with all the same brand tools too, but later I found out features were waaaaaaay more important. I spent too much extra money replacing things I bought from the same manufacturer only to discover they didn't do exactly what I wanted. Nowadays I don't care what color it is. I'd advise getting what you want feature-wise instead....Just my two cents. Good luck with whatever you decide!
You are right about the features being more important. The dust collection has really got me thinking if I should just wait until I can move into a proper shop. It will also give me time to study machines/brands and save more money for other purchases. My wants and needs could change, but you know how it is when you want to buy a new tool, it is hard to wait. [big grin]
[/quote]
Nah, you can do what you want to do now. Lots of people have their shops in the basement permanently, and good dust collectors and air cleaners are relatively inexpensive and easy to find (compared to an 18" bandsaw!). Your craft awaits. Get yourself a dust collector with a remote control and a cartridge filter or cyclone, a few good floor mats so you don't track dust, and an air cleaner (if you want one) and you're in business. You'll want that stuff for any shop you go into. Why wait? It's tough fighting the "tool jones". Resistance is futile....you will be assimilated! [thumbs up]
Studying machines and brands, however, is definitely the place to start. The "bonehead buys" [doh] I made were when I didn't do as much homework as I should have. Your wants and needs will change over time, but that's half the fun. ;D
[/quote]
Nah, you can do what you want to do now. Lots of people have their shops in the basement permanently, and good dust collectors and air cleaners are relatively inexpensive and easy to find (compared to an 18" bandsaw!). Your craft awaits. Get yourself a dust collector with a remote control and a cartridge filter or cyclone, a few good floor mats so you don't track dust, and an air cleaner (if you want one) and you're in business. You'll want that stuff for any shop you go into. Why wait? It's tough fighting the "tool jones". Resistance is futile....you will be assimilated! [thumbs up]
Studying machines and brands, however, is definitely the place to start. The "bonehead buys" [doh] I made were when I didn't do as much homework as I should have. Your wants and needs will change over time, but that's half the fun. ;D
Kev
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TinyTiger said:
Nah, you can do what you want to do now. Lots of people have their shops in the basement permanently, and good dust collectors and air cleaners are relatively inexpensive and easy to find (compared to an 18" bandsaw!). Your craft awaits. Get yourself a dust collector with a remote control and a cartridge filter or cyclone, a few good floor mats so you don't track dust, and an air cleaner (if you want one) and you're in business. You'll want that stuff for any shop you go into. Why wait? It's tough fighting the "tool jones". Resistance is futile....you will be assimilated! [thumbs up]
Studying machines and brands, however, is definitely the place to start. The "bonehead buys" [doh] I made were when I didn't do as much homework as I should have. Your wants and needs will change over time, but that's half the fun. ;D
[/quote]
I suppose the only counterpoint that makes sense here is if you are collecting and don't have hobby time - then Festools in easy to manage systainers make good sense [big grin]
I suppose the only counterpoint that makes sense here is if you are collecting and don't have hobby time - then Festools in easy to manage systainers make good sense [big grin]Kev said:
Unfortunately I'm just collecting at the moment because I am working too much. I have almost all the Festools that I would ever need, but I'm always looking for reasons to get more [big grin]
I wasn't sure what I was going to use a bandsaw for.
Then I got one.
The little Makita LB1200F.
Now I don't know how I lived without it.
It is just so quick, easy and convenient for so many things.
And I suddenly find myself making things I wouldn't have dreamed of making.
Then I got one.
The little Makita LB1200F.
Now I don't know how I lived without it.
It is just so quick, easy and convenient for so many things.
And I suddenly find myself making things I wouldn't have dreamed of making.
Elill said:
I am a proud owner of a Laguna 14 SUV bandsaw. It is one heck of a good saw. I just did the four cut test on it and it is within a thousanth of being perfect! It is great for ripping hardwoods. Handy as the devil to cut up something small too! I think you will be very pleased with your selection of the Laguna 14 inches. Make sure you get the SUV as it has a larger motor, the footbrake with power kill and doors with dust seals on them.
Well, for now anyway, I have decided to wait and buy a bandsaw when I move and have a better shop. I was a little disappointed in Laguna because I called and asked if they could send me some information on the Italian 16, 18 and 20 bandsaws as well as the 16" jointer/planer, but I never received anything yet ???
Runhard said:
I would really think about a Jointer/Planer combination machine. The way I work in my shop, the jointer gives me my reference surfaces and the planer gives me dimensioned stock but, wood moves and I need to adjust as I go and switching a multiple purposed machine doesn't seem like good work flow considering set-up calibration and such. By that I mean that each switch to the other function might not be exactly calibrated to give you the result desired. As you can see, I am biased to separate function machines that can be set up and calibrated.
Jack
My bandsaw (Hammer N4400) would be the last stationary powertool I would part with. If I were outfitting a new shop, I'd start with the bandsaw, add a good lunchbox planer, Festool tracksaw & vac plus some well tuned hand planes and hand saws. That covers just about everything you need. After that it is mostly just luxuries.
Don't know if the OP or anyone else is still looking, but i just spotted that Woodcraft has their Rikon sale on til April 26th.
I had a similar post as the OP about a year ago and have been saving up for the Laguna 14SUV (had it, but then dropped my funds on the CMS a month ago). The sale price on these Rikons very well may tip me to purchasing a Rikon because I don't want to wait another year. I'm eyeing up the 14" 10-325 that many people review well and like for what you get for the price: http://www.woodcraft.com/product/2020041/18855/rikon-14-deluxe-bandsaw-model-10325.aspx, but the 18" 10-345 with a bit larger 2.5 HP motor, drift fence of sorts, 2 dust ports, and larger table is very tempting and nearly 1/3 off its regular price: http://www.woodcraft.com/product/2005220/17458/rikon-18-25-hp-bandsaw.aspx.
Only reason I would get the 14" is because it's 110V so I wouldn't have to start messing with wiring for 220V and I don't have any definite plans for what I'll use the bandsaw for (curves, resawing, etc) so this purchase was going to be an experiment where in the future I'd keep the "experiment" saw with narrower blade always on it and work my way towards a larger, higher quality, secondary bandsaw. Maybe this thinking is backwards though - maybe more people would prefer the bit larger saw for the 1/3 off price offered?
Any thoughts between these two Rikons? Don't need any advice on other brands at this point as I can't yet afford the Laguna or Felder or Agazanni, but don't want to wait any longer so that I can start working with a bandsaw to figure out what features I would want in my future dream bandsaw... several years out likely.
Thanks.
I had a similar post as the OP about a year ago and have been saving up for the Laguna 14SUV (had it, but then dropped my funds on the CMS a month ago). The sale price on these Rikons very well may tip me to purchasing a Rikon because I don't want to wait another year. I'm eyeing up the 14" 10-325 that many people review well and like for what you get for the price: http://www.woodcraft.com/product/2020041/18855/rikon-14-deluxe-bandsaw-model-10325.aspx, but the 18" 10-345 with a bit larger 2.5 HP motor, drift fence of sorts, 2 dust ports, and larger table is very tempting and nearly 1/3 off its regular price: http://www.woodcraft.com/product/2005220/17458/rikon-18-25-hp-bandsaw.aspx.
Only reason I would get the 14" is because it's 110V so I wouldn't have to start messing with wiring for 220V and I don't have any definite plans for what I'll use the bandsaw for (curves, resawing, etc) so this purchase was going to be an experiment where in the future I'd keep the "experiment" saw with narrower blade always on it and work my way towards a larger, higher quality, secondary bandsaw. Maybe this thinking is backwards though - maybe more people would prefer the bit larger saw for the 1/3 off price offered?
Any thoughts between these two Rikons? Don't need any advice on other brands at this point as I can't yet afford the Laguna or Felder or Agazanni, but don't want to wait any longer so that I can start working with a bandsaw to figure out what features I would want in my future dream bandsaw... several years out likely.
Thanks.
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