Band saw help

Fish30114

Fish30114

Joined
Jan 5, 2014
Messages
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I've been looking for a band saw that will cut both metal and wood. The only ones I seem to be finding that represent themselves as being capable of both are from Grizzly. I've been told that Grizzly stuff is all cheap Chinese stuff. So my search is ongoing--would appreciate any leads/feedback.

RangerBob, what kind of bandsaw did you end up going with?

Thanks folks--Don
 
Grizzly resells products from a lot of manufacturers.

JET makes a wood/metal band saw that is variable speed. It may also be of Chinese origin. I don't want to start a big China discussion but there's a lot of great stuff that comes out of there these days.
 
Grizzly stuff is pretty good, I have a couple Grizzly band saws, drill presses & exhaust systems that work fine. I also have a Wilton band saw that will do wood or steel, but I find it a pain in the ass to change over, so it's stays set up for metal & have a Grizzly for wood/handle material.
 
if you have the space i would get 2 saws. as much as i hate getting parts for my 14 inch crapsman saw for the price its not bad. i had 3 of the little 4x6 things but i had he geers go out of one an dthe casting go on another i now have a roll in saw. i cut alot of sheet steel for blades so im hard on a saw. the roll in was spendy even used but i dont think i will ever need to replace it. one of these days i ll get a nice heavy wood saw but till then my crapsmen will work
 
I got the Jet that was in my thread (Here). It has been a good saw so far; I've had it about four months. I do not switch between speed ranges though, I leave it set at 140fpm for steel, titanium, G10, and carbon fiber and I cut wood, micarta and aluminum on my wood cutting bandsaw. I put a light on it and a riser block on the table and I still really need to add a blower to keep the chips off the line. I put a high quality blade on it from day one and it is still in great shape after cutting out probably thirty blades. I would have replaced the blade a few times by now on the old porta-band.

Bob
 
You do not want to cut metal and wood on the same band saw. It's just bad practice. I know it sucks and is expensive, but you will be majorly pissed when you run a piece of expensive exotic burl over a piece of steel left behind. JMHO.
 
I use a DeWalt porta-band mounted on a SWAGOFFROAD.COM table for cutting metals.....works VERY well and is compact. I just ordered a RIKON 10" bandsaw to handle the wood & micarta. This set up yields great results and is flexible :)
 
Good feedback folks, I didn't catch the last post in your thread Bob, so I appreciate the link back to your thread.

I think I will study on the Grizzly a little more.
 
Harbor Freight's Portaband knock off worked great for me for years. Just use finer teeth for metal and coarse for wood. As long as you keep it clean I really don't see how there would be a problem using it for both. They're under $100 last time I checked. A stand can be easily made from angle iron.
 
JG Custom Metal Works said:
Harbor Freight's Portaband knock off worked great for me for years. Just use finer teeth for metal and coarse for wood. As long as you keep it clean I really don't see how there would be a problem using it for both. They're under $100 last time I checked. A stand can be easily made from angle iron.
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I use this for metal as well. Made a wall bracket for it and use it often to profile blades. My 14" jet is set up just for wood. Changing blades back and forth is horrible.
 
I'm not a knife maker but I've been reading and reading on this forum for a while now. I've done a ton of fabricating over the last 20 years and plan to start dabbling in knives once I get my belt grinder built. What I don't understand is why I rarely ever hear of anyone using a plasma cutter to rough out blanks. I have a horizontal/vertical bandsaw for metal, vertical bandsaw for wood, portaband for metal, cut off wheels, shears and other tools, but nothing compares to plasma. I have a hypertherm that is great and a little speedy, but for the cost of a saw, or cheaper, you could have a plasma cutter. The import models have come a long way. I've read great things about Lotos and others that sell for around $400. It's one of the most used and versatile tools in my shop. Just a thought...
 
One big downside to plasma is the heat. It will cause major decarb/oxidation that will have to be ground away.
 
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