band saws

[weldbay]

The best band saw I ever sold was the Ellis but they are pricey, the next has been a Jet because they are priced right and parts/blades are easy to get.

[Doughboyracer]

Has anyone else ever noticed the cup-shaped blade? And if so, has anyone figured out what causes it?

Heat...

[three turbos]

bandsaw

Thanks alot to all of you guys who had some CONSTRUCTIVE input on my situation here, some good info and pointers here to refer back to thats for sure. To whom ever it was that asked what model ellis i used cant realy tell ya it was a friend who does alot of pipe work and we were both welding on the same job. It was his but i can tell you what ever we put in there it cut it like it was nothing!!! Keep in mind this is how he makes his living I do not. The saw I will purchase will be used at home it will be cutting small tubing round, square and angle of course probably in the are of 1/8" on general. Thanks again Eric

[yuke]

band saws

I am a home shop welder type as you described. Just 2 weeks ago I picked up a HF 4x6 bandsaw for 200 bucks out the door with a 20% coupon. It did not cut straight out of the box. I put an Olson 14/18 vari-tooth, bi-metal blade on it, adjusted the guide rollers, cleaned up the gunk on the vise surface and now it cuts great! I am almost finished with a new stand for it out of 1 1/2 " x 1/8" angle and some locking casters. It is so much better than my noisy, dirty chop saw. Now I can cut in my shop until late at night and not wake the dead. I normally steer clear of bottom of the Harbor freight crap but this one is an exception. There is a lot of info out there on the net which is what helped me decide on purchasing it. For me it fits the bill.

[mikeswelding]

This question has come up frequently in the past, and the discussions usually included the Grizzly brand. Do yourself a hege favor and check out their saws. I have the modle G9742 that I have used daily for over 7 years without one single problem. I like this model because the head itself swivels for 45 degree cuts, which is a huge advantage in a small shop, as you do not have to move the material itself to get an angle cut.

I will stress that I have used this saw HARD and it still performs well.

Grizzly also has a model with a fixed head that is competitive in price with HF.

[three turbos]

Hey yuke, thanks for the input , I did pick up the HF saw along with the same coupon you speak of. I have not had time to assemble yet, however if all I have to do is what you did I can deal with that. I to tey to steer clear of most of the knock off stuff on the market so it seems alot of people have had good luck so I to hope to have the same luck. Probably going to pick up an USA blade right from the get go so we will have to see. Thanks guys.

[BD1]

threeturbos, do you have a farm and fleet out your way ? I got some blades there
for 9.00 and the hold up pretty good.USA made too ! I did use the big buck Starret , broke the last one, so tried farm and fleet.

[three turbos]

band saw

Yes BD1, its about 35 min. away i drive right past a menards on my way to work and I found a 18 tpi usa made blade there for 10-11$. The saw comes with a 14 tpi and 18 is as close as they had im figuring that will be fine for what I will be doing. Thinking on putting that on right from the get go. Whats your op on that? I dont want to get saw all set up with the cheap blade to have it break and half to start all over again with the tracking process of the blade.Thanks in advance

[kevin]

Hey monte, i agree with you on the drill bits but the grinders are not too bad, i pick them up when they go on sale for 9.99 for a 4.5 inch grinder, i have a pile of them, some with flap disc for steel, some with flap disc for alu, the same with various wire wheel for different materials, for ten bucks a pop and fitting them with various wheels and wires can save tons of time, even if you are just grinding steel for weld preps on the smaller stuff, they are light and easy on the carpul tunnel problems that we get

[BD1]

The factory shipped blade on my saw lasted about four cuts. At first it was cutting crooked and I tighten the tension. Next cut it broke in the weld.
The Farm and Fleet blade is USA made by R&D Systems in Appleton, Wisconsin. The 14 teeth METAL
is item 936414. They do have WOOD blades there too. Sometimes in stocking they just throw them in, so might be wise to make sure it is the metal.
I know HF has made in USA blades too but never tried them. I think they were
20.00.

http://www.farmandfleet.com/products/181740-r-and-d-systems-horizontal-band-saw-blade.html

[three turbos]

IM going to stop by Menards tonight on my way home to pick up blade, your scenario is exactly why I'm just putting the USA blade on from the beginning. The one on linesaid bi- metal however I will definitely be double checking to make sure it's not for wood, thanks for the heads up on that. I'm going to give it a go tonight hopefully after work so we will see how it does.

[surfside]

I got my bi metal blade with sawblade.com , this blade is not giving me any frustrations so far.

[three turbos]

band saw

Hey guys, sorry for the long delay but I work crazy hrs. during my work season and its hopefuly coming to an end here in the next week or two. Just wanted to let you know other than a few minor tweeks here and there my harbor freight saw does cut nice and straight. For what they cost for the hobbiest anyway you cant beat it! I scrounged up some 4" i channel from work (aluminum that is) they were scrapping, well guess what! that all went right in the back of my truck and im in the process of making a stand for it. Im 6' tall so the flimsy 23" stand that came with it went in the scrap pile. I will try to post a few picts. if i can figure out how since i never have. I just wanted to update you guys and so far so good with the saw. I did do some modifying but you will have to wait for the picts.

[cope]

My vote goes to Jet for a good 4"x6" saw. Grizzly makes good equipment also. I buy my bi-metal blades from Enco when they're on sale.

[bob_e95482]

I still have my HF bandsaw, and I made a little table and use it exclusively as a vertical. I bought a Wells bandsaw off a Craigslist ad for $200. It weighs about 500 lbs, and is a well made USA saw. I still have my Makita chop saw, too.