Band Saw Recommendation / What size would you buy???

Fixedwing

Fixedwing

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I've been building my shop in my head and know that I will need a band saw for processing scale material. I have a lot of experience using equipment and tools and I know that generally speaking, you get what you pay for. I'm very skeptical of the "benchtop" size saws that many manufacturers offer and feel that they would be inadequate. Would you recommend a 1.75HP 14" saw for a knife shop, or is that too-much saw? Thank you!
 
Get what you may need for the future, not what would get you by right now. Buy once cry once.
Look a bill deshivs recent purchase
 
A freestanding 14" saw is a good size for a shop. I like the Rikon 14" saw.

One of the best benchtop bandsaws for the money I have used is the Ryobi 10" BS1001 series with Silent Vac. It has a built in vac that sends the sawdust out a port to a waste bin or shop-vac collector. It has a 10" throat and a 4" thickness capacity, which is plenty for most all knife handle tasks. They are regularly on eBay for cheap. The switch is often bad, which can be replaced for $8.
 
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DanF said:
Get what you may need for the future, not what would get you by right now. Buy once cry once.
Look a bill deshivs recent purchase
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That is part of my question; I don't know what I "need " for a knife shop. I did see Bill's thread but I believe that was for processing metal.
 
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Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
A freestanding 14" saw is a good size for a shop. I like the Rikon 14" saw.

One of the best benchtop for the money I have used for smaller work is the Ryobi 10" BS100 series with Silent Vac. It has a built in vac that sends the sawdust out a port to a waste bin or shop-vac collector.
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Will the benchtop sizes process hardwoods and micarta without bogging down?
 
I used to have a cheap central machinery one that worked alright but did bog down sometimes- the biggest problem was prob that there was no fence.
Now I have a Laguna 14|12 that I really like! They're not cheap but I know it will last me forever and I got a really good deal on it!
 
Linus Knives said:
I used to have a cheap central machinery one that worked alright but did bog down sometimes- the biggest problem was prob that there was no fence.
Now I have a Laguna 14|12 that I really like! They're not cheap but I know it will last me forever and I got a really good deal on it!
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Hey Linus, What horse power is your Laguna and has it ever felt under powered when working handle materials? Thanks
 
I mention the Ryobi benchtop because I have one. They are not a current model. I see them in eBay at a very low price. The switch apparently broke easily, but can be replaced for almost nothing.

A good benchtop will cut micarta and hardwoods fine. BUT, the low-price units are not very powerful, with 1/5HP to 1/4HP motors. The $750 Dayton 9" only has a .333HP motor and draws 3.4 amps. Many of the others are 2.5 amps. My Ryobi BS1001sv draws 8 amps. I can't seem to find its HP rating, but it looks like 3/4 by the size and amp draw.

You can get a Chinese benchtop on Amazon with a 1/2HP motor for around $500. A Jet brand with 1/2HP runs $750. From there the price rises.

If you can find one, the old Craftsman 12" 113 series benchtop bandsaws were a good deal. Two-speed, 1/2HP, and versatile for many tasks. Look for them online in the auction sites.

In doing some checking on wood cutting benchtops, I came across an Amazon listing for a $300 benchtop metal cutting saw. It is built like a portaband on a SWAG table. They have fixed the blade change issues with many SWAG tables to front loading. Search - KFMK 10A Variable Speed Metal Band Saw. Can't say if it is good or bad, just affordable.


For the ultimate versatility in a knife shop bandsaw it is hard to beat the old Mod. 103 series 12" Sears Craftsman bandsaws. I ran one for 40+ years. They had a 1HP motor and V-belt drive. Changing the motor to 3PhVFD was simple, or you could just change the pulley to get a slower speed for metal cutting. I put a 1HP 3Ph and a VFD on mine. I was very sad the day it broke unrepairably.
Here is a photo of a pristine one on eBay eBay has dozens around $100). If it was within a day's drive of me, I would go get it tomorrow:
1768496846640.webp
 
I got a 14" grizzly saw for the sole purpose of splitting scales ten years ago. Turns out it's one of the most versatile tools I own. I've used it for cutting wood, plywood, plastic, foam, micarta, G10, and all kinds of random stuff. I use it to make jigs, prototypes, and even for fixing stuff around the house.

51d9SY0brML._AC_SL1000_.jpg


Funny story. I went to Home Depot to get a benchtop Ryobi bandsaw. I brought it home, assembled it, and the base was so warped that I couldn't get it to stand up without wobbling. So I dissembled it, put it back in the box, and took it to Home Depot for a replacement. Came back home with the new one, assembled it, and the bottom wheel was completely seized. I couldn't believe I got two duds in a row. Took it right back to Home Depot, and now they are looking at me funny and wanting to inspect it to make sure I'm not stealing parts or something. Came back home and ordered that Grizzly.
 
SirSpice said:
I got a 14" grizzly saw for the sole purpose of splitting scales ten years ago. Turns out it's one of the most versatile tools I own. I've used it for cutting wood, plywood, plastic, foam, micarta, G10, and all kinds of random stuff. I use it to make jigs, prototypes, and even for fixing stuff around the house.

51d9SY0brML._AC_SL1000_.jpg


Funny story. I went to Home Depot to get a benchtop Ryobi bandsaw. I brought it home, assembled it, and the base was so warped that I couldn't get it to stand up without wobbling. So I dissembled it, put it back in the box, and took it to Home Depot for a replacement. Came back home with the new one, assembled it, and the bottom wheel was completely seized. I couldn't believe I got two duds in a row. Took it right back to Home Depot, and now they are looking at me funny and wanting to inspect it to make sure I'm not stealing parts or something. Came back home and ordered that Grizzly.
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This is what I’ve been considering… 😎
 

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if I’m not mistaken, Stacy, in the other thread, Bill had started mentioned getting a metal cutting blade and a wood cutting blade for a dual purpose saw? Two saws one footprint maybe
 
The new Grizzly that I have will cut wood pretty accurately, plus cut metal.
Cutting wood or Micarta, it's almost silent. It's loud when cutting metal. It's very much like SirSpice's saw, except it cuts metal.
The main reason I bought it is because my 4 X 6 bandsaw will not make accurate cuts in thick handle material, and it also cuts metal. The original plan was to replace the old 4 X 6 saw, but I'm keeping both.
I recommend it, if you are only going to have one saw.
If you are going to process a lot of handle material, you might want to get a different blade-but the 14-18 tooth blade it comes with works pretty well.
I bought a cheap benchtop bandsaw for cutting handle materials. It was so inaccurate that I gave it away.
 
I have two band saws one for metal and one for everything else. I also have a tile saw for g10, carbon fiber, and other nasty blade destroying materials.

I have a 93 inch blade on both saws to give some perspective of size. The metal saw runs a fine tooth blade at a slow speed and I can cut 100-150 blanks on one bandsaw blade. When you go with smaller saws you’ll be switching blades more often and have less blade options.
 
I use the 14" Grizzly with a carbide toothed blade to cut wood and handle materials. I use a Dewalt Portaband on a Swag table with a foot pedal for metal. I tried using a metal cutting blade on the Grizzly but it died on the first cut. It was too fast for it I think. Honestly, switching the blades on the bandsaw for different materials would be a headache anyway. It's not like the belt grinder where you can switch a belt in 15 seconds. The bandsaw blade needs to be adjusted to have correct tension and the guides need to be changed for different blade widths. I've considered changing out the single phase 1hp motor on the Grizzly with a 2hp three phase motor with a VFD, but I don't know what benefit that would really give me.
 
I've got two portabands, one of which is tiny (33" blade or so) and another at kind of the other end of the spectrum. Still a portaband and pretty small.
both have variable speed and are corded. For small scale knife making, I find them adequate. Would I love a proper bandsaw? Hell yeah! Do I have the space? Hell no!
 
I'm going to second or third or whatever getting the grizzly saw. I have had one for over 20 years. I think the only maintenance I have ever done is to replace the tires a couple of times. It is a great product to do exactly what you are asking about. Way back then I considered a bench top model also. Glad I went with this instead. That's not discounting what some of the guys above said. They are straight shooters who know their stuff. Just my experience.
 
If you're ever going to cut any ferrous metals (e.g. blade blanks) on this bandsaw, then be sure it runs slow enough. Most general-purpose "wood" oriented bandsaws (like the Grizzly G0555 above) run way too fast for cutting steel, even with a metal cutting blade installed. It'll destroy the blade in very quick order. Bandsaws that cut steel/iron run several times slower - which is why a portaband is good because they typically are variable speed and can be run at slow speeds. If you've ever seen a dedicated horizontal metal cutting bandsaw, it's very obvious how slow that blade moves - you can practically read the writing on the blade as it runs. Of course, there are floor standing bandsaws that will cut metal well, but they have a speed control, which makes them typically much more expensive. (Grizzly's metal/wood combo saw retails for close to $2k).

I think this is why the portaband is a popular option - it can run slow enough to cut steel, is relatively less expensive, but can still cut wood, composites, etc... No problem cutting wood with a slower blade - it just takes more time, but generally doesn't hurt anything.

I'm lucky enough to have a floor-standing bandsaw that has a gearbox to run steel cutting blades slowly, and then switch to run fast to cut wood. I don't mind changing blades as I'm not in a production environment.
 
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