Scroll or Band saw.

JTknives

JTknives

Joined
Jun 11, 2006
Messages
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Well i went to the pawn shop the other day and i found so tools i would like. first up i found a bunch of scroll saws, most of them where cheep junk. but in the back i found one that seemes older and made like a tank very smoth movement. then i found 2 bandsaws 1 is a skil brand and the other is an ace hardwhere brand. both say there 10" saws. thay dont seam very hevy duty in the sence that there coverings are plastic. now my question what should i get, the scroll or the band saw.
 
Probably neither....save your sheckels and get a good steel cutting band saw and a few bi-metal blades.

Buying for a good price usually gets you what you pay for.....buying for what you need also gets you what you are willing to pay for......Get the best quality you can afford........and then stretch and go to the next level of quality....after 59 years, I have proven this to myself too often....

No more philosophy stuff....but get the best you can afford to do the job right! Good Buys are too often Good-bys!
:)
 
can i get metal cutting blades for a scroll saw. see i dont do much metal cutting but i would like to profile my handle meterial.
 
Scroll saws are OK for precision cutting of fancy guards and Spanish notch choils.They are not any use for cutting out a blade in 1/8" steel.You can fit them with metal blades from #12 to #6/0. I use mine for knives maybe once a year.It is a huge old commercial beast with an 18" throat. Most of the ones available in a pawn shop would not be worth buying unless you wanted to take up intrasia for handles.The band saws you saw were most likely cheaper wood cutting saws and of no use on metal.Save up and get a metal cutting band saw at HF.
I know budget is a big constraint to many people,but John is right.Buy beyond what you think need now and you will have what you need for a long time.I have gone from hack saw to high tension hacksaw,to saber saw,to cheap wood/metal band saw,- portaband - HF band saw - now I have a 12" cut hydraulic feed 93" band saw and I think it will do all I want for a very long time.More important than the level of saw you start at is to purchase Lenox bi-metal blades (or the equivalent).Forget the cheap blades that come from HF and other places.There is no replacement for bi-metal blades , especially if you are cutting stainless.
 
If you try using wood working power tools for metal you generally cause several times the wear on the machine. If you're planning on using it for wood (or similay) principally a scroll saw allows for tighter curves and cutting a pattern on the interior without a cut to the edge. a band saw does better on long straight or gentle curves.

Metal cutting blades do exist for scroll saws but not all scroll saws can handle the metal filings neither can all band saws.

For handles, I think a band saw would be a better choice. And if you can afford on that will handle metal cutting you'll probably be happier in the long run.

ron
 
I use my scroll saw when I want to cut very thin wood with very complex patterns. The band saw for heavier thicker work. With a metal working tool generally you can cut wood, the flip side is often not true.

You have the right idea about the wood tools, buy the older, solid metal, heaviest model you can find. The well made tools from the fifties and early sixties will be around long after the Chinese junk is rusted away or thrown in the garbage. And these can still be found sometimes for a song, parts are readily available and if you can't repair it you shouldn't be using it. So look for the good solid frame as bearings and other easily replaceable parts are expected to wear. Same goes for metal working tools. Buy the biggest, heaviest, good old American built machine you can find.
 
Nope on the cheap plastic bandsaws. They are going for what, $80 new?
A solid, well built scroll saw would be nice, but not much good on metals except light-weight sheet metal.
Get a metal-cutting bandaw you can use vertically, with a table.
You can cut wood in a metal saw, but not metal in a fast speed wood saw, as he wood saw will just remove the saw teeth from the blade...
 
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