Thoughts on SCM Minimax S45N band saw?

[Kev]

Hi All,

Does anyone have any experience with the S45N they can share please?

Kev.

 

[ScotF]

Hi Kev,

This is a saw I believe made by Meber back in the day -- it is not as robust a machine as the other SCM models or Minimax models (in the USA).  Lighter duty steel frame saw with less horsepower motor.  I believe it still gets decent reviews and might be a perfect saw for hobbiest/light professional use.  If the price were right I would not hesitate to pick one up.  Personally I would opt for a heavier frame if doing any resawing, but this is not to saw that the S45 is a bad saw in any way.

Hope this helps.

Scot

 

[Kev]

Thanks Scot,

They guys selling it locally are doing a "special deal" ... the story is the normal price is $3,800, but if you take it in a crate and set in up yourself it'll be $2,198. My feeling was that it's an artificial discount as it seemed similar to other $2K machines in specification.

My inclination is still towards a Hammer or maybe a Laguna [wink]

 

[ScotF]

I think that the Hammer would be a better machine -- heavier, better motor, similar to Italian ACM, but made in Austria by Felder.  Laguna's ACM line of bandsaw are great -- I have owned an LT18 since 2001 and it has been a great machine.  You might also look at the Felder FB610 or the smaller one FB500 -- not much more than the Hammer (at least here in the US), but beefier all the way around and more capacity.  I think that the FB610 has the best features/price of just about anything in the market right now and would seriously consider looking at them.  And, it even has green accents that would go well with your many other green tools.  [big grin]

Scot

 

[Kev]

I think that the Hammer would be a better machine -- heavier, better motor, similar to Italian ACM, but made in Austria by Felder.  Laguna's ACM line of bandsaw are great -- I have owned an LT18 since 2001 and it has been a great machine.  You might also look at the Felder FB610 or the smaller one FB500 -- not much more than the Hammer (at least here in the US), but beefier all the way around and more capacity.  I think that the FB610 has the best features/price of just about anything in the market right now and would seriously consider looking at them.  And, it even has green accents that would go well with your many other green tools.  [big grin]

Scot

For some strange reason the Felder is two and a half times the cost of the Hammer in Oz ... sadly putting it out of consideration (the most expensive in class).

I think it's going to be Hammer ... figuring out how I'm going to deal with 100mm DC in a small(ish) space is my issue now - none of the compact extractors seem to have the CFM rating necessary and everything is LOUD [unsure]

 

[ScotF]

I have a Felder AF22 and it is quite strong.  They sell some smaller units with a little less CFM but still adequate for a band saw, jointer, planer, etc...  Hooking up to each machine should be OK and you have options on the hose. I use 160mm main trunk and reduce to 120mm for my tool ports.

Scot

 

[PeterGee]

Does anyone have any experience with the S45N they can share please?

Yes, I do have experience of the MiniMax S45N bandsaw.

It is made in Italy by Centauro - arguably the best manufacturer of bandsaws in the world - specially for MiniMax. MiniMax are better known in the USA for their MM series bandsaws.

It is not a cheap version of the MiniMax, it IS a MiniMax. Bear in mind that the Hammer N44500 is also made in Italy (yes, really!) by ACM - who also make the Laguna "Italian" series of bandsaws - who are, arguably, also the best manufacturers of bandsaws in the world! You will come across Meber made saws in the USA as well, as they used to manufacture bandsaws for Laguna as well, in the past. Agazzani are not so visible these days as they had a few problems which led to their being bought out by Hokubema, best known in the bandsaw world for manufacturing the Panhans brand of saws.

As far as your original question is concerned, though, the S45N is a robust saw, with a good motor and excellent table, with a cut height of about 300mm (near enough 12" for you Americans). It is considerably better than any of the far eastern machines sold as just about everything else. A tip; if the fence is attached to an extruded alloy bar (looks neat, it has to be said) it is a far eastern machine.

Dust extraction on the MiniMax is good as well, so take it seriously in your calculations. Personally, even though I already have one of them, I would look only to MiniMax of Hammer as the choices in this size range - the rest are noticeably poor in comparison.

Good luck and, no, I'm not employed by any of these companies.