searching portaband-Mr. Kelley?

marekz

marekz

Joined
Jun 16, 2008
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hello everyone- on an earlier thread i was told to ask STEVE KELLEY for advice on constructing / mounting a frame for a portaband. ive searched through the forums but i cannot find Mr. Kelley--or was it Mr. Kelly. can anyone help me with either finding him or how to secure a portaband. thank you for your help
 
There is a guy selling porta band stands now on Ebay. Sells them based upon which unit you have. They are all...like 70 bucks or so.
 
for those of you who do use a portaband, ive been told they are far superior to the ver/hor bandsaws--if you mount them. can anyone vouch for that? thanks
 
They are less likely to pop off a band, and more rigid due to the shorter throat.Blades are cheaper. The problem comes when trying to cut long or wide items. I have one mounted on the bench for little trimming jobs (like cutting the corners off on guards), but almost never use it.
Stacy
 
Can't say as to weather or not they are superior, I think if they were far superior that everyone would have them. Bob Warner said he has one and he usually just goes for the angle grinder instead.

Everyone I know who has a 4x6 H/V loves it, most everyone I know who has a portaband on a stand loves it also. If space is a concern, the choice is obvious, but other than that, I don't know how clear cut it is.
 
Do not spend over $300 on a portable bandsaw? You can get a Harbor freight for less or a Jet for another $50.
 
I did a super-cheap stand and table for my HF portable bandsaw using some flat steel from Home Depot. It's not a serious solution, but I'm not a particularly serious knifemaker as yet.

 
I have a new Dewalt D28770 porta band. They have upgraded to a rheostat v/s control and a built in light. All I had to do to mount it to the wall was to remove the front handle. I then welded two pieces of 1 1/2" angle iron together to form a 3" channel. Drill the channel so that the holes used for the removed front handle line up. Mount the channel to the wall and use the screws from the removed handle to mount it. So simple even I could do it. It hangs nice and flat against the wall and takes up virtually no space. I built a small table rest and It works like a dream.

The only downside to this is that the switch is a trigger type on/off. There is no way to lock it in the on position. So, what I did was zip tied it into the on position and ran an inline switch between the plug and wall outlet.

I have cut a lot of mosaic billets with this saw and haven't had any problems with it so far....
 

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great thanks for the pictures. what kind of blades do you use Mr. kelley. im guessing it wouldnt be a problem to switch the blades out for cutting wood?. the table rest--how did you set it? did you have to modify any of the portaband so the rest lays flat? thank you---mark
 
marekz said:
great thanks for the pictures. what kind of blades do you use Mr. kelley. im guessing it wouldnt be a problem to switch the blades out for cutting wood?. the table rest--how did you set it? did you have to modify any of the portaband so the rest lays flat? thank you---mark
Click to expand...
marekz,

Mr. Kelly is my dad!!! I'm just Steve!!!

I have my blades made here by a local saw shop. I think any quality bi-metal blade would be just fine.

No modifications were made to the saw itself. I didn't want to take a chance on voiding the warranty.
I just took off the little rest that came on the saw and built a bigger one. I mounted it with the same screws that held the old one on.

The great thing about the way I mounted the saw is that in about 5 minutes, I could have it dismounted and available to use as a portable saw again!!
 
thanks Mr. Steve, only kidding. Steve thanks for the pics and info. did you say yours is not vs or is it. if not how do you control the speed? I dont mean to be a redundent but crack -- but you can change the blade and cut wood with it right. How is it for profiling? thanks again
 
It is a v/s.. It has a rheostat control on the side of the saw. It does great on metal. I haven't tried cutting wood with it. I suppose it would be ok with the right blade. Maybe a bit slow!!
 
Hey Steve- Great minds must think alike! :D That's the same saw I have and pretty much mounted the same as mine as well.

But my "new" table is made out of 5/16" stainless :p

;)

The variable speed and the light are really nice features! :thumbup:
 
NickWheeler said:
Hey Steve- Great minds must think alike! :D That's the same saw I have and pretty much mounted the same as mine as well.

But my "new" table is made out of 5/16" stainless :p

;)

The variable speed and the light are really nice features! :thumbup:
Click to expand...

Hey Nick,

I am glad you mentioned the thicker table.That is the thing I would probably suggest doing. Mine is a bit thin. I think if I were using it a lot, I would have already changed mine...
 
Talk with Ed Caffrey about the milwakee. He has one (not sure what model). He has been having trouble with it overheating lately...
It doesn't look nearly as easy to mount to the wall.
I paid $295 for my Dewalt.
The milwakee also has a trigger feed speed controler.....That means the speed is adjusted by the amount of pressure you apply to the trigger switch..
 
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