Thread: Feedback on Laguna 12/14 bandsaw needed

Originally Posted by Dengue

I would appreciate any comments on the pros and cons of this machine

Hi Dengue,

I saw it in the flesh, so to speak, at the Melbourne TWW show, and I gave it more than a passing glance. I am not in the market for a bandsaw at the moment as I already have two (21" and 14") but that Laguna is as close as I have seen to being able to do the jobs of both. I am surprised that I spent so much time checking out something that I was not there to look at given that I only went to the show one day, so it must have been quite impressive.

Pro's:

-Great depth of cut
-Can run a 1' 3tpi tungsten carbide blade, which was resawing some very fine veneers with a very smooth cut
-Can also run the skinny blades for fine work.
-Plenty of "extras" like foot brake
-Definitely a quality-built machine
-3hp motor, I think?
_the price is good for the quality and features, in my opinion

Cons:

-For resawing with the tungsten carbide blade, it must surely increase blade fatigue running it around 14" wheels as opposed to the similar blade I run around 21" wheels. Of course this is a moot point if the teeth wear out before the blade body anyway. I dont know for sure how that will pan out but it is a concern I have about longevity of an expensive blade.
-Dust extraction is not as good as it should/could be, but certainly no worse than any other bandsaw on the market
-pretty sure it has 15 amp plug, which you may see as a pro or a con
- crosscutting is limited to 14"

Thats my opinion based on what I saw at the show, FWIW

Cheers

Doug

Is it the LT 14 SUV ? AWR #78 has a review/comparison.

Thanks for this info, Doug. From the pros and cons you describe, I suspect you were looking at the Laguna 14" SUV model, not the Laguna 14/12 bandsaw. The latter that I am looking at is $400 cheaper. But what a machine, eh, the one you saw?

I found the attached extract online. Looks very good! I particularly like the idea of the lamp which will show the resaw line much more clearly.

Information from Gregory's Machinery (Brisbane) is that the first container load has just arrived and is being unloaded at their store today.

I'm in the market for a bandsaw Dengue and I latched on to that article. It was rather disappointing as there was no mention of them even putting a piece of wood through it.

I decided to email Chuck Bender about the test in Popular Woodworking and he answered almost immediately. Part of what he said is:

"In speaking with the designer, during the test, I was completely blown away by how much thought he put into every detail. The most amazing part isn't that an engineer obsessed over the details but they seriously took into account the user experience. It seems that everything that was done on this saw was done with a single concept in mind; make it work better.

I used the saw in the PopWood shop during the test in which I tried a variety of cuts using various species and sizes of material. With a 1/4" blade installed the saw tracks well when making scrolling cuts in material varying in thickness from 1/2" to 3". When resawing, using Laguna's blades, the machine works well whether slicing paper thin veneer or turning an 8/4 plank into two 4/4 boards. During even the heaviest cuts the saw had more than enough power.

If you're trying to figure out if the testing I did convinced me that the saw is a worthwhile purchase or not; all I can say is I bought one."

Many thanks for this information, Jim. Looks like it is a pretty good buy

Had another email from Chuck Bender and he says that if anyone has any queries about the Laguna review he'll be glad to answer them. He definitely believes in feedback at Popular Woodworking.

I have used a Laguna 14 SUV at a local "Mens shed" and it is a great bandsaw. I did not think I needed that much saw so I settled on the new Laguna 14/12 bandsaw you see advertised everywhere.

I received my Laguna 14/12 bandsaw today. The build quality appears reasonable although there are several downgrades from the 14 SUV that really cheapen the overall package. The door locks on the SUV are a nice machined, blue anodised aluminium on the 14/12 they are a similar design except in a cheap black moulded plastic. the knob that locks the fence to the guide rail has about 40mm too much thread and the knob is not even solid plastic but a light hollow plactic off the shelf Tri-knob. These may be just cosmetic but I think they will contribute to a shorter saw life with lots of cheap little bits failing over time.

The one big fail so far is the mobility kit fitted to the saw by Gregories. While the bandsaw was still on the truck I spotted that the front foot opporated wheel assemberly was twisted to the side by around 10 degrees. I mentioned it to the delivery driver who said he would be able to realign it if I had allen keys. He did realigned it and the first time I used it to raise the front of the saw it twisted again. I believe it is a design defiency that places too much load on the undersized plate which mounts to the saw base. There is too little surface area to take the load. My fix will be to weld a larger mounting plate to the assemberley and spread the load. I should not have to contemplate doing this to a new band saw.The system used on the SUV is far better with a seperate wheel unit that engages a simple and substantial lug on the band saw..

I did not think I needed the power or capacity of the 14 SUV or its foot brake and and the $300 difference could go towards a helical cutter head for the planer/thicknesser. Bad decision, I already regret buying what is essentially an ecconomy bandsaw with cheap bits everywhere, I should have spent the extra $300 and bought the 14 SUV, I believe there is a lot more difference in the two machines than $300 would suggest.

I will make more comments after I have used the bandsaw for a while.

All the best.

It is now Easter Friday and I thought I would set up the Laguna 14-12 bandsaw. Although I paid Gregory's Machinery $500+ to assemble and deliver three machines in Brisbane. Things are not as they should be. I used the mobility system to move the bandsaw to a position where I could access all sides of the machine. I released the lifting wheel to stabilise the machine only to find the weight of the bandsaw is still sitting on the front lifting wheel.

When you purchase the bandsaw the items included with it include four rubber stabilising feet with the four screws and washer sets that are required to fit them. As a mobility kit was being installed only two of those feet needed to be fitted as the two rear wheels of the mobility kit act as feet when the saw is in place. Unfortunately Gregory Machinery neither fitted or supplied those feet. I would like to know where they are as I have paid for four of them and also paid to have two of them fitted. There should be two on the machine and two spares for me to retain. I have had to place wood blocks under the machine to stabilise it so I can set it up.

When It came time to set the table square to the blade the adjustment bolt was stuck due to tapping swarf being left in the hole. I had to remove the table and was unable to blow it out with compressed air or pick it out as the swarf had been crushed into the thread. I ran a tap into the hole and cleard the obstruction and all was good. For what they charged to assemble the bandsaw I thought that is the sort of thing that they would have picked up and fixed.

The more I do on the bandsaw the more elements I see, the more I like it. The assemberly may leave a bit to be desired and the cheap/ecconomy fittings are just that cheap. But having said that the engineering of the bandsaw as a whole is solid. The assemberly and missing parts can be corrected and the cheap knobs can be upgraded in the future.

Next are some test cuts, fingers crossed all goes well.

Originally Posted by labrat

It is now Easter Friday and I thought I would set up the Laguna 14-12 bandsaw. Although I paid Gregory's Machinery $500+ to assemble and deliver three machines in Brisbane. Things are not as they should be. I used the mobility system to move the bandsaw to a position where I could access all sides of the machine. I released the lifting wheel to stabilise the machine only to find the weight of the bandsaw is still sitting on the front lifting wheel.

When you purchase the bandsaw the items included with it include four rubber stabilising feet with the four screws and washer sets that are required to fit them. As a mobility kit was being installed only two of those feet needed to be fitted as the two rear wheels of the mobility kit act as feet when the saw is in place. Unfortunately Gregory Machinery neither fitted or supplied those feet. I would like to know where they are as I have paid for four of them and also paid to have two of them fitted. There should be two on the machine and two spares for me to retain. I have had to place wood blocks under the machine to stabilise it so I can set it up.

When It came time to set the table square to the blade the adjustment bolt was stuck due to tapping swarf being left in the hole. I had to remove the table and was unable to blow it out with compressed air or pick it out as the swarf had been crushed into the thread. I ran a tap into the hole and cleard the obstruction and all was good. For what they charged to assemble the bandsaw I thought that is the sort of thing that they would have picked up and fixed.

The more I do on the bandsaw the more elements I see, the more I like it. The assemberly may leave a bit to be desired and the cheap/ecconomy fittings are just that cheap. But having said that the engineering of the bandsaw as a whole is solid. The assemberly and missing parts can be corrected and the cheap knobs can be upgraded in the future.

Next are some test cuts, fingers crossed all goes well.

30 Apr 2014. The issue with the rubber feet that were not supplied and fitted by Gregorys as they should have been, was addressed within a day or so after my call. That is good service by any standard.
I have now made some inital cuts using the band saw and i've been really impressed with the saw and how it tracks. Once set up as per the manual, it cuts nice and straight with no perceptable run out. I have been using a 3/8 inch blade with 6 TPI and have cut up to 4" stock to see how it would handle the thicker stuff. The off cut of 100mm SQ Kwila post was not a problem for the saw. I cut a couple of 1/4" slices with a reasonable finish, given I was not using a fancy resaw blade. Then a couple of gentle curves and it was easy to keep to a line and keep the cut smooth. My old saw would have had me frustrated within minutes.

I originally wanted to have the task/work light fitted to the saw and was told they were not available at that time but would be coming soon.. Thinking of buying the optional task light I went looking for the socket they plug into which should have been on the back of the frame and I could not find it so resorted to reading the manual and looking at the circuit diagram. It shows the socket only fitted to the USA 115V saw and not fitted to the 240V version. I am still not sure if they are available or not and I don't really know if I want a 240V light on a piece of equipment when so many people say only a low voltage light shold be used for safety reasons. I'm not sure which way I will go with lights. The blue plastic, battery opperated, magnetic LED flashlight from super cheap auto is just not cutting it for this type of lighting..

The laguna resaw blade with its TC teeth is a very tempting item that I am not sure I can justify at Au$236. I can do a lot of scraping and sanding for that amount of money. I was considering buying one for my wife for mothers day, then the survival instinct kicked in and I decided against that idea.

Excellent.

Originally Posted by labrat

30 Apr 2014. The issue with the rubber feet that were not supplied and fitted by Gregorys as they should have been, was addressed within a day or so after my call. That is good service by any standard.
I have now made some inital cuts using the band saw and i've been really impressed with the saw and how it tracks. Once set up as per the manual, it cuts nice and straight with no perceptable run out. I have been using a 3/8 inch blade with 6 TPI and have cut up to 4" stock to see how it would handle the thicker stuff. The off cut of 100mm SQ Kwila post was not a problem for the saw. I cut a couple of 1/4" slices with a reasonable finish, given I was not using a fancy resaw blade. Then a couple of gentle curves and it was easy to keep to a line and keep the cut smooth. My old saw would have had me frustrated within minutes.

I originally wanted to have the task/work light fitted to the saw and was told they were not available at that time but would be coming soon.. Thinking of buying the optional task light I went looking for the socket they plug into which should have been on the back of the frame and I could not find it so resorted to reading the manual and looking at the circuit diagram. It shows the socket only fitted to the USA 115V saw and not fitted to the 240V version. I am still not sure if they are available or not and I don't really know if I want a 240V light on a piece of equipment when so many people say only a low voltage light shold be used for safety reasons. I'm not sure which way I will go with lights. The blue plastic, battery opperated, magnetic LED flashlight from super cheap auto is just not cutting it for this type of lighting..

The laguna resaw blade with its TC teeth is a very tempting item that I am not sure I can justify at Au$236. I can do a lot of scraping and sanding for that amount of money. I was considering buying one for my wife for mothers day, then the survival instinct kicked in and I decided against that idea.

Three months on - how is the saw performing. Do you still think you may have been better off with the 14SUV?

I used only one carbide tipped band saw blade for resawing, it's an expensive blade but last longer than bi metal as what I've noticed. I'm back with bi metal blade, using it mostly for everything. I haven't used TC blade, I assume its different from the carbide tipped blade, right?