What size band saw and why
 

I'm considering a band saw and I'm unsure as to what saw I'd need (as far as size) to cut tops/ backs/braces....
Besides I can use a good band saw for ALL SORTS of things besides guitars!
So, what size would you recommend for a small home shop? And why?
Thanks guys
B


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A 14in bandsaw has served me very well for 20 years. Unless you are going to resaw your own stock it will pretty much do everything else including minimal resaw for things like neck blank. In fact I've even resawn up to 6in for back and sides on it but it's stressful. Doable but not practice.

The bandsaw was by far one of the best power tools I own and gets almost daily use.

I now have a monster bandsaw for resawing back and side sets which is great but not necessary under normal circumstances.

A 14" Rikon, Laguna, or Grizzly welded steel (not cast) frame will do everything you need to do on a guitar. They will resaw tops, backs, and sides including exotic hard stuff like rosewood, hard maple, oak, Osage.... but they really aren't powerful or stiff enough to do volume resaw work.

The cast steel 14" band saw will do everything except for resawing backs out of hard exotic hardwoods, hard maple, oak, Osage orange and stuff like this. You can kinda do it - but it takes a lot of time consuming setup and it goes really really slow.... They will resaw mahogany and woods in its class with a riser block much better. They are more flexible than the welded steel models. For bindings, necks, head and tail blocks, bridges, and fretboard blanks - they are fine.

If you have the money and space - an 18"+ saw makes everything easier... But they are huge and won't run on 110.....


Thanks

I have two bandsaws, both are 14's.

One is fitted with a nice 6mm blade, so I can cut shapes and follow curved lines, its a cheap harbour freight type one, maybe 600 dollars

The second is fitted with a ripping blade 25.4mm deep, I use it to Resaw my tops and back and any long straight cuts, it's a Laguna with blade, cost me almost 4000 dollars

Think of what you want it to do, work out your budget and go for it.

Steve

Get a 24" Aggie (Aggazani), add ceramic guides, and be done with it. I forgot to mention, I like Lenox blades.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...4-quot-bandsaw

If I could have only one (as I did for many years) it would be a Delta 14 with the 6" extension block. I now use that saw with a 1/4" 6 or 8 tooth for utility and scroll cutting, and I have a 2 hp 20" Delta running a 5/8" 3t hook for re-saw.

A 14 inch is plenty. You'll have more than adequate resawing capacity for just about anything you want to do. I don't know if you are a fine woodworking subscriber or not, but here's a link to,their most recent bandsaw comparison. http://www.finewoodworking.com/2014/...14-in-bandsaws

You have to subscribe to fine woodworking to be able to access it. This article says Laguna and Powermatic are best overall. Laguna and Steel City (no longer in business) tie for best value. Grizzly is also highly rated. I have seen a lot of good reviews on Grizzly.

Whatever you do, make sure you get cast wheels and NOT aluminum wheels. Heavier wheels gives more momentum hence less chance of bogging down.

A good 14" bandsaw *which is well setup* will handle most shop tasks and then some. Like any tool, you can mess up on a crappy machine and you can mess up on a great machine.

It's way nicer doing resaw of dense rosewood on a larger saw that can handle the tension of a wide blade, but it's not out of the question doing it on a 14" saw if you use a really sharp blade. I did about 30-40 sets worth of rosewood mostly in 3 and 4 piece backs (so about 6" resaw height max) on a Shop Fox with a 3/4 resaw king blade and riser block; it just took a while.

About a year ago I got a 19" Grizzly and couldn't be happier. I use a 1 1/4" resaw king blade and have done almost 100 two piece sets on it. I kept the shop fox and put a small blade on it for scroll cuts and the like. It saves a lot of time having the two saws.

Another vote for a well-set-up older Delta 14" with riser block. I have one that's served admirably for ten or fifteen years.

Just got an older blue Jet 18" which is good for resaw but actually has less height than the 14" with riser block. Time will tell whether or not I keep the Jet -

I stand corrected. I never could resaw much on my 14in saw but I didn't have a riser block either. But 6in on a 3/4hp motor was torture to cut through. I'm not sure resawing is even worth it unless you do volume though so a 14in saw is really a perfect size even if you want to resaw the occasional barn find or bargain bin wood

overkill
 

My opinion: if you don't plan on immediately resawing backs/sides/soundboards, a lot of the advice already posted, I think, is overkill. A ten-inch saw will happily do a whole bunch of good work for 2-3 hundred bucks and won't need to run on 220 and weigh on the wrong side of a quarter-ton. See the Laguna saw that Woodworker's Warehouse has on sale for January. Would I bring one into a production shop? no. But I'm a hobbyist, different rules and perspectives apply.

My 14 Laguna has no problems with re-sawing sides/tops and backs, would recommend this brand any day.

Steve

The Laguna 14-12 is not the typical 14 inch bandsaw.....either in terms of price or capacity. The typical 14 inch bandsaw has a 3/4 or one horsepower motor, and cuts 6" deep unless a riser block is installed. IMHO, you need at least 1 1/2 or 2 HP to resaw the harder hardwoods 8" deep (which is necessary to make two-piece dreadnought backs). You may get by with resawing mahogany or spruce using a minimal saw, but harder woods like rosewood (or even walnut, maple or cherry) are a different story.

I say get the biggest, best saw you can afford.....even if you don't plan to resaw. For one thing, a larger bandsaw means longer blade life. Who likes changing bandsaw blades? And if the motor is a true 2 HP or more, I recommend a dedicated 220 volt circuit. It is well worth the small expense........if you are not currently wired for it.

Agreed, but they are a nice compact unit, here i am cutting a replacement bottom for a Banjo/Mando

Clean straight cut.

http://i1379.photobucket.com/albums/...pscejgze4c.jpg

As others have stated, what bandsaw to get depends on what you want to cut and what you want to spend on the saw.

For 35 years I've had a Rockwell 14" bandsaw with a 6" riser. (Rockwell was purchased by Delta, labeled as Rockwell Delta and, later, just Delta: in other words, same saw as the Delta 14".) I've cut 9" deep rosewood and cedar on it, amongst many other things. It will cut it, but it is very slow. With the 6" riser installed, there is a lot of "bounce" in the upper wheel reducing cut quality: unless the riser is needed for capacity, I use the saw without the riser. It has served me well, but isn't a great saw, about $600 when I bought it 35 years ago.

A few years ago, tired of fighting the Rockwell's quirks, I bought a Laguna 14-12. It is in another snack bracket in fit, finish, design and cut. Fitted with a Laguna $150 carbide-tooth blade, it will quickly cut to its 12" capacity with a nearly-finished quality surface. I highly recommend the saw.

Regardless of what you choose to buy, it should have some mechanism for dust collection. (The Laguna does, the Rockwell/Delta doesn't.)