Portable Band Saw

[FL Guy]

Anyone have the following horizontal portable band saw from…….

Northern Tool
Harbor Freight
Grizzly
Saw Blade

Are there any other manufacturers out there that I have not listed?

Just looking for pros and cons before I make a decision. Three of the ones that I mentioned above are within the same price range but the one from sawblade is literally double the price.
Picture for attention

 

[Maui]

The Port-a-Band bandsaw from Porter Cable that I have used for years has been bomb proof. And I imagine on the used market it costs much less than the ones you listed.

 

[GeoBruin]

Shop Fox carries a 4 x 6 like that. I don't own one and I hate when people get up-sold in these threads but if you are at all considering the swiveling head model with the hydraulic downfeed (like this) I have a lot to say on the topic.

 

[driftpin]

I have a P-C Porta-band saw. I bought a bunch of blades online awhile ago. It does what I need.

 

[Snapped-off]

I have a grizzly, admittedly haven't gotten to use it yet.

 

[jrsavoie]

The Port-a-Band bandsaw from Porter Cable that I have used for years has been bomb proof. And I imagine on the used market it costs much less than the ones you listed.

Try dropping it 3' onto a concrete floor.
I don't remember the perpetrator, but I remember the feeling when I saw it falling.

I was able to make it work again. Still has never been quite right.

I have the porter cable and a Milwaukee.

I've always preferred the Porter Cable

 

[RivennHewn]

Love my Femi Hem saw

782XL Mitering Bandsaw, HEM Saw, Femi

The HEM Saw 782XL portable bandsaw is a great fit for hobbyists and those needing a accurate portable saw with a large cutting capacity.

www.trick-tools.com

 

[pbon]

There is a little Swag table that will take one of the handheld 4” saws from Milwaukee or Dewalt that use the roughly 44” blade. Add a foot pedal to the plug and they are pretty portable and convenient. For production work, I’d get a bigger one.

 

[finn]

I have a Jet and an older Wilton. The Wilton is a Craigslist purchase and seems sturdier than the Jet. The base is heavier and has troughs to catch the swarf, while the chips fall to the ground for the most part with the Jet. The Jet was on sale at Menards when they were moving to a new, more modern building.

The Jet uses a standard blade commonly found at retailers while theWilton requires some searching to find. The Wilton table was missing when I got it, so it’s dedicated to horizontal cutting. The Jet table is pretty small and flimsy, but it does work. Nothing like a several thousand dollar vertical Doall, though.

 

[Renegade1LI]

Get the HF they're all the same, I had a HF and they worked great. But one now with a 20% is a great deal, even their blades are pretty good.

 

[ItsNemo]

The one you pictured isn't a portaband, it's just a horizontal bandsaw. Portabands are handheld and the little tables are a nice add on to those.

 

[jrsavoie]

The one you pictured isn't a portaband, it's just a horizontal bandsaw. Portabands are handheld and the little tables are a nice add on to those.

I found the table to be a permanent thing.
Once I put it in the table, it wasn't friendly to being taken out, used by hand and put back in the table

 

[Nutria]

I have an old Porter-Cable and a middle-aged Milwaukee. Both make me smile. The Milwaukee is on a SWAG table; recommended.

These saws have often been ridden hard and put up wet, but they are pretty easy to rebuild with new bearings, etc.

Note: I see that these aren't a good fit for the OP's horizontal bandsaw needs.

 

[BD1]

I bought the HF 4x6 horizontal bandsaw over 12 years ago. It has been great and I recently replaced the motor on it. It has been cutting straight from day one. All I ever did was replace blades which I bought at Farm and fleet. I made my own base because the one provide was really low. Since then I bought an ELLIS 1600 bandsaw. That's a real bandsaw but it's also around $4,000.00.

 

[shoot summ]

Love my Femi Hem saw

782XL Mitering Bandsaw, HEM Saw, Femi

The HEM Saw 782XL portable bandsaw is a great fit for hobbyists and those needing a accurate portable saw with a large cutting capacity.

www.trick-tools.com

Same here...

 

[cvairwerks]

As to blades, easy to order and lots of variations out there. Bandsawbladesdirect.com is where I get my blades. Typically order and have them at the door three or four business days later. Be sure and look at the quantity discounts for the particular ones you order. Last order, getting 5 blades of each of two styles was the best deal for me. Dropped my total cost to about 12$ a blade, vs around 28$ a blade local, for whatever was on the shelf.


Just looked, blades have gone up about 250% over the last time I ordered.......

 

[tarbellb]

By portable you mean on wheels?


The 4x6 horizontal bandsaw is as common as it gets, has been around for years and at the cheap of the market all perform almost exactly the same.

Choosing the company or store you buy from is likely a better place to be concentrating vs the minor function details that may exist. I
ie look who will provide the best customer service, or price, warranty, parts, etc...

 

[rsanter]

Over the years. Ha had 3 of the HF bandsaws and one that was a generic make.
We used to use the **** out of them.

What I know:
Out of the box they work ok but will not cut straight.

It takes 1000 hours of adjusting to get it to cut straight.

The HF blades work but they are low end and do not help with getting it to cut straight

I think many are the same but from having the HF and other brand I know they were not exactly the same.

The HF stand is junk. I have seen a couple designs out on the net where people have built stands that allow you to fold and stand up saw to use less space when stored.

You will need one or two material support stands that are the right height for cutting long material. Not having them *****.

I still have one that I keep around for cutting very thick or solid material, but for tubing it’s far better to have the chop saw.

I would change over to a porta-band with base kit but I don’t use the horizontal band saw enou spend the money

In its upright use it is nice that I don’t have a limit of the length of material you can cut like you do on a regular band saw

 

[no704]

McMaster Carr actually has pretty good prices on good blades, arrive the next day.

 

[Jim greengo]

I've got the dewalt 20v cordless version,cuts everything I've ever thrown at it and doesnt take up floor space.

 

[speed bump]

I've got the dewalt 20v cordless version,cuts everything I've ever thrown at it and doesnt take up floor space.

I've got the same saw and I attached a piece of 1/8" plate to it and mostly use it as a vertical band saw. Works awesome and two screws it's back to a normal band saw.

 

[FL Guy]

So I bit the bullet and picked her up today.
After a few gift cards, I’ve got about $200 invested.
Hope it serves me well!
The roller stands were on sale at Lowes for about $26 each. With a 5 star review, it was hard to pass them up.

 

[larry4406]

Nice.

I wouldn’t call that size portable though.

 

[2oolhound]

I've got the same saw and I attached a piece of 1/8" plate to it and mostly use it as a vertical band saw. Works awesome and two screws it's back to a normal band saw.

Me too! I use it mostly as a vertical.

I got mine beat up and well used about 8 years ago. Rebuilt it and am super happy with it. It's got a Busy Bee tag on it. I use it more than my Fein clone or my baby Porter Cable units.

I had to cut some 2" x 8" steel last week and the vise wouldn't grab it so I clamped it in. Also used a couple bolts in the threaded holes on the base to hold it in place. It's very useful and for your $200 you did good.