Resaw for dummies/bandsaw choices

[lardy1]

While I'm relatively familiar with woodworking basics, I've never owned a bandsaw. Every time I empty my chip bin after using my planer I see money going down the drain so I have been toying with the idea of a bandsaw and learning to resaw.

My reading has led me to believe that I'm going to need a 14" wheel setup and probably a minimum of 1/2 HP drive motor. If I can't get into something adequate for a thousand dollars I'm wasting my time. It's not important enough to spend more than that. Plus, I'd rather not have any bandsaw at all than to have something that frustrates me because it's undersized or underpowered for what I'm trying to do.

I believe I can master the skill. Just not sure if it's a pipe dream due to retirement budget. any experience woodworkers here willing to share their advice to my dumb ***? TIA

 

[PCustoms]

Your desired saw sounds woefully inadequate.

What are you cutting?

 

[cvairwerks]

Depends heavily on what species and the dimensions you want to work with. Resawing 2-3” material has different blade and hp needs vs doing 10” material.

 

[RTM]

The blade is everything. The bigger (deeper) blade you can run, the better. To run that big blade, you need to be able to tension it, and turn it. If you can’t do both, you will be disappointed.

I bought a used Laguna LT14SE, forget the exact specs, but about 12” resawing capacity, 2hp according to a 2007 review, running off 220v. I’ve done a bunch or resawing with friends, where they have brought over wood to be made into guitar backs, door faces etc. We don’t have the combined skill yet to make multiple <1/8” slices off a 1x6 yet. But we are getting better.

I’ve used a Kerfmaster and Diemaster 2 from Spectrum Supply. Bought the Kerfmaster at 3/4”, 0.022”, 3/4 T variable pitch, and the Diemaster at 1/2”, 0.025” 4T, Hook tooth. my saw had barely enough oomph for the 3/4” blade.

I've also used the Highland Hardware WoodSlicer, but it’s not a favorite.

our results have ranged from light planing needed to good lord did we do that, based on the skill brought to the party. Getting the guiding of the wood down pat is critical, and if you don’t have enough tension, the blade will wander, leading to the second result.

We have had a few foul ups when we forgot to metal scan an almost 12” tall piece of exotic hardwood, and the cut stalled midway through. After replacing the blade and completing the cut we found the chunk of whatever in the middle of the starting chunk, completely hidden.




We have used lots of tribal knowledge, when we started there was not much useful online, suspect that has changed in 9 years.

Two friends back east have bought the newer version of Laguna, in the past 2-3 years, and both are satisfied so far.

Spectrum Supply

When you need less waste when cutting.

www.spectrumsupply.com

Lenox Diemaster 2 Bandsaw Blade | Engineered for Contour Cutting - Spectrum Supply

Engineered for Contour Cutting

www.spectrumsupply.com

 

[dnschmidt]

Get more money or forget about it. I have a Laguna 16 (made by Miber in Italy) with a big assed 240V motor and it works fine. Anything below that ain't cutting it. Matthias Wandel on YouTube seems to get by with less than this but I can't imagine how he does it. Blade tension is everything and these homemade bandsaws that he makes make me wonder how he achieves proper blade tension with an all wood bandsaw. Mine has a welded steel frame and when properly tensioned I can hear it moving a little bit.

 

[Half-fast eddie]

It sounds like for your application that The height between the table and top blade guide is more important that the available width. I had an old (1980’s) delta 14” 1/2 hp that resawed just fine with a sharp blade and plenty of tension. Standard setup would cut 6” thick, they sold a riser that took it to 12”. Its all in the blade.

 

[The Cobbler]

and resawing is not necessarily done with a fence exactly parallel to the blade .
there's youtube videos on the topic. you basically freehand a board you want to resaw to get a parallel cut and line that to your fence . the kerf of the blade basically determines the cut of the blade and how it's going to track thru the wood
( If I made any sense)

 

[Dumber than lumber]

I had read that one of the only things a Shopsmith was good for is the BandSaw special purpose tool. I think they can be run with a wide variety of motors + pulley, but so far I have only used mine on either my 1954 era Shopsmith, or a variable speed Shopsmith PowerStation.
The SS Bandsaws are not especially plentiful, but they can be found on Craigslist. IMO with a decent resaw blade you can get a good result.
I have two of the SS Bandsaws because it is easier of move the saws around than it is to change the blades. And after having one of the Bandsaws it became obvious that it would be worth the relatively small cost to have duplicate capabilities.

 

[paulsomlo]

Bigger is better - with a $1000 budget, look for something old and used.

 

[neophyte]

If you want to resaw thick wood, you want to look for a bandsaw with a 1-1/2 hp motor, not a 1/2hp motor.
Proper bandsaw blade tension is needed, which is far easier to achieve with a narrower blade than with a wide blade
(the Hitachi CB75F bandsaw came with a very wide blade which I think was about 3”, but the motor generally wasn’t considered powerful enough to run a properly tensioned 3” blade)
A narrower skip tooth blade would work better.
The older common 14” USA made bandsaws by companies like Delta and Jet and Powermatic were fairly standard and made by a huge number of companies, so are easy to get parts for, but they always seemed to vibrate a lot when I used them.
A welded steel frame bandsaw would likely be a better bet nowadays, even by a company like Rikon.
This blog post from the publisher Lost Art Press mentions a book they started republishing that had good advice on properly setting up a bandsaw.

'Band-Saw Pointers' - Lost Art Press

Editor's note: When I first encountered this book in the 1990s, I read it reluctantly. I wasn't much interested in making wooden planes, but I was still in

blog.lostartpress.com

 

[Firebrick43]

I personally have a 14bx laguna and it does extremely well with a 3/4" resaw king blade. One pass on the planer cleans it up. Almost table saw cut quality.

I used my grandfathers 14" delta for year, and I don't know how/why people think they are suitable for resaw. His hade carter guides, was tuned, and could cut softwood or cherry in a barely adequate fasion but in no way could tension a 3/4 or 1" blade, especially not with a riser. My lagunas frame is twice as stiff as the old cast iron delta. My bx also has 2.5 hp and the 1hp on the delta would struggle splitting pine. Forget about hickory, oak, or ash. The only delta I have used that was adequate for resawing was the 20" model.

I have been thinking about getting a delta, and leaving 3/16" or 1/4" blade for it for curved cuts and the laguna for resawing.

 

[cherrybomb]

The blade,the setup,are very important,especially to those saws that might be a bit underpowered.I have learned a lot from You Tube,Carter Band Saw Products,Alex Snodgrass does an amazing 35 minute video.Band Saws are a somewhat demanding tool,it takes a bit of a learning curve,frustration,then you wii enjoy the saw.

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

I have had a 1947 Beaver 14" for near 50 years. It has a 7" between the guides. Resawing on one of the old 14" bandsaws like Delta or a clone can be done, notice the words "can be done". It's a long ways from ideal. When a riser is added it gets worse.

The best steel framed bandsaws come from Italy.

 

[lardy1]

I can read the writing on the wall. lol. I appreciate the input. But I can see it's beyond what I'm willing to invest in it. And that was a big question I had. Thanks everyone.

 

[BLUE72CAMARO]

Did I miss where the OP stated the size of the wood he intends to cut?

I have an old walker turner 14" wood/metal band saw that I have used to resaw some blocks of oak for my brother in law a couple times. Seemed to work more than adequately to me but I am no wood worker. I will say it is a stout little machine for its size and I would venture it much better built than many new saws on the market.

But with that said it is living in my shop on borrowed time right now as I restore a 18" grob NS18.

 

[Firebrick43]

Did I miss where the OP stated the size of the wood he intends to cut?

I have an old walker turner 14" wood/metal band saw that I have used to resaw some blocks of oak for my brother in law a couple times. Seemed to work more than adequately to me but I am no wood worker. I will say it is a stout little machine for its size and I would venture it much better built than many new saws on the market.

But with that said it is living in my shop on borrowed time right now as I restore a 18" grob NS18.

Maybe better built than other cast iron bands saws on the market of comparable size, I would say maybe your walker turner is better built but some of the Taiwanese 14" cast iron band saws are still quite good for general use. The new deltas are Taiwanese(i think) and the new powermatics definitely are.

However no way is it better built than the Italian style bandsaws for resawing. The minimax and laguna's(made in Italy or Taiwan) have much stiffer frames, nicer wheels and tires, and much better guides. The Taiwanese Grizzly 17's are even decent machines, with so so guides.

I think I would take a chinese rikon 10-325 or chinese laguna 14suv before I would use a cast iron 14" walker turner/delta/powermatic for resawing of any amount.

 

[BLUE72CAMARO]

Agree the factory guides on the walker turner left a lot to be desired, I upgraded mine to the Carter ball bearing guides. Again I am not a wood worker have just done a few blocks for my BIL who piddles with it, I actually bought it because it had the gearbox and was capable of sawing metal which is what I have used it for mostly. I also wasnt saying it is a top tier machine, but I would put it against any hardware store brand saw available today though and I also have less than half the money of the saws you mention in it even with the guide upgrade and I can cut metal...

 

[Citation]

Is a used Powermatic 141 or 143 an option?

 

[DFAST]

While I'm relatively familiar with woodworking basics, I've never owned a bandsaw. Every time I empty my chip bin after using my planer I see money going down the drain so I have been toying with the idea of a bandsaw and learning to resaw.

My reading has led me to believe that I'm going to need a 14" wheel setup and probably a minimum of 1/2 HP drive motor. If I can't get into something adequate for a thousand dollars I'm wasting my time. It's not important enough to spend more than that. Plus, I'd rather not have any bandsaw at all than to have something that frustrates me because it's undersized or underpowered for what I'm trying to do.

I believe I can master the skill. Just not sure if it's a pipe dream due to retirement budget. any experience woodworkers here willing to share their advice to my dumb ***? TIA

You may find a used 14 Inch Delta bandsaw on Craigslist or Facebook Market place I bought a Delta 14inch off of market place with a 12 inch riser block already installed for 300 dollars. Remember all bandsaws American and foreign have copied the Delta cast iron hollow arm saws.

 

[RivennHewn]

There are a lot of resaw fences on the market.

I have this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001IHR444/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Try a few practice runs on scrap before you cut into your project wood.

 

[ez-duzit]

A 14" bandsaw is generally borderline for resawing. Consider 16" a minimum. I have both a 16" and a 20". Paid ~$1500 each, used.

 

[cannuck]

I am not a big time woodie guy, but I DO have a saw I used when we made propellers for airboats. I bought it from a closed down very old shop, suspect it to be around 1950 vintage, 24" wheels, 3 phase 2 HP motor (EASILY changed for a single phase). It had a broken guide so they gave me the saw...and it remains one of the best and most productive tools I have ever owned. IF I was doing re-sawing with it, though, I would build guides for 1" blades. BTW: the thing weighs in over 600 lbs. (mostly big iron castings).

 

[paulsomlo]

A 14" bandsaw is generally borderline for resawing. Consider 16" a minimum. I have both a 16" and a 20". Paid ~$1500 each, used.

Three bandsaws!? I have an MM16 as well.

I used to go to a restaurant in Marina Del Rey, "Aunt Kizzies" - it was in the mall off Glencoe. My Friday night routine was Pizzarito, Baskin Robbins, then the movie theatre - same mall.

 

[ez-duzit]

Three bandsaws!? I have an MM16 as well.

I used to go to a restaurant in Marina Del Rey, "Aunt Kizzies" - it was in the mall off Glencoe. My Friday night routine was Pizzarito, Baskin Robbins, then the movie theatre - same mall.

16" MM16 usually setup with narrow blabe for curved work. 20" Agazanni setup with 1" carbide blade for resaw. Other machine is 18" metal-cutting, which I sold last week (have a vertical/horizontal mitering metal-cutting bandsaw).

Aunt Kizzie's Back Porch (long gone) was a favorite of mine--soul food--stuffed pork chops... mmmmm.

 

[acer66]

Three bandsaws!? I have an MM16 as well.

I used to go to a restaurant in Marina Del Rey, "Aunt Kizzies" - it was in the mall off Glencoe. My Friday night routine was Pizzarito, Baskin Robbins, then the movie theatre - same mall.

Buddy of mine lived on a boat in the Marina for awhile so our pre work meeting when working over there was most of the time the little corner Coffee bean.

 

[Packard V8]

With all the discussion of motor horsepower requirements, surprised no one has mentioned swapping the motor on a small bandsaw for one with more horsepower is an easy upgrade.

Increasing the strength of the frame to tension wider blades is pretty much impossible.

And yes, agree, finding the right skip-tooth blade will make the most of the limited resawing capabilities of the Delta/W-T/Powermatic bandsaws.

jack vines

 

[nadogail]

When I lived in Spain, carpenter shops had bandsaws with wheels that were about 40' in diameter.

 

[slowtwitch73]

Makita (and maybe Hitachi?) made a nice 16" resaw with big *** blades.... think the blades are tricky to come by.

A Makita just came up locally for not bad money... looked quality and stout.

 

[Firebrick43]

A 14" bandsaw is generally borderline for resawing. Consider 16" a minimum. I have both a 16" and a 20". Paid ~$1500 each, used.

The old style 14" such as delta, walker turner, and powermatic are borderline. Some new Italian style 14" saws such as the 14bx laguna have the HP, ridgidity to tension good 3/4" blades(which all the old saws can't) and throat height for resawing.

 

[ez-duzit]

Some new Italian style 14" saws such as the 14bx laguna have the HP, ridgidity to tension good 3/4" blades(which all the old saws can't) and throat height for resawing.

Actually the main problem is that 14" is too small a diameter around which to bend a proper resaw blade of the correct thickness.

 

[Maui]

Did I miss where the OP stated the size of the wood he intends to cut?

I have an old walker turner 14" wood/metal band saw that I have used to resaw some blocks of oak for my brother in law a couple times. Seemed to work more than adequately to me but I am no wood worker. I will say it is a stout little machine for its size and I would venture it much better built than many new saws on the market.

But with that said it is living in my shop on borrowed time right now as I restore a 18" grob NS18.

I have a 16” Walker Turner bandsaw that was built in 1939, and it is currently set up for cutting metals. I am very confident that it would be a good machine for resawing when set up properly. And if the OP could find one of these 16” saws it would likely fit within his budget of $1000. If the OP looks long enough he may get lucky.

 

[Firebrick43]

Actually the main problem is that 14" is too small a diameter around which to bend a proper resaw blade of the correct thickness.

No its the tension on older cast iron saws under 20" . No one made a heavy duty framed 14" bandsaw until recently. The 14bx will tension a resaw blade and run it over the wheels just fine. Beautifull cuts. Lots of people are having excellent results with them.

 

[ez-duzit]

No its the tension on older cast iron saws under 20" . No one made a heavy duty framed 14" bandsaw until recently. The 14bx will tension a resaw blade and run it over the wheels just fine. Beautifull cuts. Lots of people are having excellent results with them.

If that were true 14" resaw bandsaws would be everywhere--they are not, for the reason I gave: the wheels are too small. This is why virtually every professional uses a larger saw for resawing.

 

[CallumRD1]

If that were true 14" resaw bandsaws would be everywhere--they are not, for the reason I gave: the wheels are too small. This is why virtually every professional uses a larger saw for resawing.

I have no idea where this idea came from. Metal cutting horizontal bandsaws running 3/4" through 1-1/4" blades with 8-14" wheels have been around for an extremely long time and they don't have any issues with their blades taking the tighter radii (and they're typically tensioned tighter than most woodworking blades).

 

[ez-duzit]

I have no idea where this idea came from...

That's not my problem. Metal-cutting bandsaws turn very slowly and also have very little set.

 

[Firebrick43]

Until the Italians saws, such as your MM16 came out, the only saws stiff enough were 20" cast Iron saws. The Italian type saws, if made with enough metal, are stiff enough. Even the mini maxs have only been in the US for what 30-40 years max? I have never seen one myself in a shop, just online. All the shops around here and a lot of the good hobbyist run old 20" saws. The 14" resaw stye bandsaw has only been on the market for approximately 10-15 years (I "think" the first was the 14suv) which is why you don't see many. Took a while for acceptance due to the perception of older 14" saws. I think most of the other manufacture are only in the last 5 years or so in this class of band saws.

If you do a little research online you will see the Laguna 14bx is pretty popular for resawing now. There is no issues with wheel size.
laguna 14SUV
laguna 14bx
Rikon 10-353
Grizzly G0817
Jet 14SFX

All have the HP, stiffness, and throat size to resaw 6-12" boards with a proper resaw blade.

I run a resaw king carbide tipped blade on mine with no issues whatsoever.

Don't see what tooth set has anything to do with it? the wheels have to be wide enough and crowned to not touch the set of a wide resaw blade but diameter is in material.

 

[jar944]

Until the Italians saws, such as your MM16 came out, the only saws stiff enough were 20" cast Iron saws. The Italian type saws, if made with enough metal, are stiff enough. Even the mini maxs have only been in the US for what 30-40 years max? I have never seen one myself in a shop, just online. All the shops around here and a lot of the good hobbyist run old 20" saws. The 14" resaw stye bandsaw has only been on the market for approximately 10-15 years (I "think" the first was the 14suv) which is why you don't see many. Took a while for acceptance due to the perception of older 14" saws. I think most of the other manufacture are only in the last 5 years or so in this class of band saws.

If you do a little research online you will see the Laguna 14bx is pretty popular for resawing now. There is no issues with wheel size.
laguna 14SUV
laguna 14bx
Rikon 10-353
Grizzly G0817
Jet 14SFX

All have the HP, stiffness, and throat size to resaw 6-12" boards with a proper resaw blade.

I run a resaw king carbide tipped blade on mine with no issues whatsoever.

Don't see what tooth set has anything to do with it? the wheels have to be wide enough and crowned to not touch the set of a wide resaw blade but diameter is in material.

Check the recommended min diameter for the blade. Iirc Lennox suggests 20"+ on their carbide tipped blades. Smaller wheels cause more metal fatigue leading to premature failure. A 20" Italian saw is a nice compromise on space capabilities. A bit too small for a table mounted feeder.

Best deals are the old 36" saws.

 

[DFAST]

Three bandsaws!? I have an MM16 as well.

I used to go to a restaurant in Marina Del Rey, "Aunt Kizzies" - it was in the mall off Glencoe. My Friday night routine was Pizzarito, Baskin Robbins, then the movie theatre - same mall.

my resawing will not need to be as accurate as your big machines. I will use it to take a piece of fire wood and cutting the bark off and trueing it to a 10-12 inch cylinder so it will run smoother on a wood lathe with out shaking the lathe so bad. 2nd I plan to cut 1 inch planks out of fire wood and plane down to 3/4 inch when dried to make segmented bowls.

 

[DFAST]

I would like to hear from you fellow bandsawer's on your method of bandsaw tension. I have already bought the heavy duty tension spring from Carter products. Plus since my Delta bandsaw is a older 1946 year is there a after market sawdust port to attach vacuum to.

 

[Firebrick43]

Check the recommended min diameter for the blade. Iirc Lennox suggests 20"+ on their carbide tipped blades. Smaller wheels cause more metal fatigue leading to premature failure. A 20" Italian saw is a nice compromise on space capabilities. A bit too small for a table mounted feeder.

Best deals are the old 36" saws.

Yes, the lenox is a thincker blade more for a sawmill cutting down wood for millwork, siding, and flooring.

Lenox woodmaster CT

It has a backing .035" thick compared to the resaw kings .024". Also the kerf for the varible 2/3 tpi tooth is .065" on the lenox vs .041" thick on the resaw king. The varible tooth is important if you are doing veneers as rougher cuts mean a planer trip or you sand to much and get uneven thickness, either way waste wood.

The resaw king is wonderful for verneers or recutting. It has better quality finish than a lot of cheap ripping blades on a table saw. It has a finish that only needs sanding which is important in veneers, and with the reduced kerf means you can get an extra slice out of a two inch board if cutting 1/8" veneers compared to the lenox, two if cutting thinner. Like sticking a twenty in your pocket if cutting birdseye or flame maple or other expensive exotics.