Thread: Woodfast bandsaw - Good Buy?

I have the same unit withoutthe base.

If I were closeby I would snap it up at $150.

It looks like a good buy for the price and I too would jump at it.

If this was going to be your only ever bandsaw I would personally look at something a little bigger to offer a little more flexibility. That said however if I was in your shoes I would grab this one for the price and then get a second larger unit later. You may find that this one fits all of your requirements and there is no need to get a larger unit (which will be a win for you) but if you do think you need to upgrade it would be ideal to keep this one as your second unit with a different blade configuration for smaller work.

My main bandsaw is 16" and I find it covers my needs well. It is not the best unit and if I had my time again I would possibly look at spending a little more to get a better quality machine in around the same size (16" or 17"). The reason for the better quality unit would be for hopefully easier setting up. I would be very happy to pick up that bandsaw for $150 and I would permanently set it up with a finer blade for curved work (like bandsaw boxes) and leave a larger blade in the bigger saw for stock preparation.

In relation to the fence you may find that you can getaway without an after market one. There are lots of examples of home made fences that are more flexible than the commercial ones. It looks as if you do not have a mitre slot, but again I wouldn't be too worried about that.

I do not envisage that this will be my one and only bandsaw. So at a later date I will upgrade to a bigger machine but keep this one.

Thanks for the tip on homemade fences. A quick search brought me these photos, a combination of the three would seem ideal: I like a tall fence, and one that is secured adjustable from both the front and back.

011210005_01-bandsaw-fence_md.jpg band-saw-upgrade-big.jpg 11899_5F00_roundnose.jpg

It does not have a mitre slot however the bed can be tilted and I can add a slot to my false bed when I make the bed.

The other thing it does not have is a dust extractor ports. Is it as simple as cutting a hole in the base and fitting a hose?

I have the same Woodfast band saw that you are looking to purchase. They are a solid old unit but check out a few things first. The rubbers that go around the drive wheels perish and you need to get custom ones made now. the guides are a bit hit and miss and the lack of fence is a bugger. If you make a fence like the one you pictured it will reduce the usable space for re sawing etc. saying that mine has served me well, the motor died recently but cant really blame it, it was in a high school for 40 years before I got it! for that price I would get it.

Thank you all for the advice. I have pretty much committed to buying the band saw.

Questions - were is the best place to buy band saw blades in Melbourne or OZ? Also is their a disadvantage to using all carbon blades over bi-metal. I know the bi-metal can take more tension but what affect does this have on the machine? Also what size/length and width blade would such a machine take? I would be interested in the widest possible blade.

A cursory search indicates that bi-metal last longer, I will not be cutting shapes just straight lines for ripping so wider is fine. My reading says more teeth slower cut but better finish.

I will post photos of the band saw as soon as I get it and hopefully you guys can walk me through the restoration processes and getting it running smoothly.

Not knowing which area of Melbourne you are from it is hard to advise on suppliers. One that I have used is McDiven Saws in Williamstown.

I am in Coburg, Inner North.

I took possession of the bandsaw on Monday and gave it a good clean, brushing out dust and wiping it down with steel wool rust inhibitor and shellite to give it a clean. Here is the photo.

IMG_3419.jpg

Now unbeknownst to me was that their was no power plug/cable connected to the machine. The old one was cut off. The old one was a two wire cable with No earth. Now I had a chat to a bloke an electrical supplies store and he said that I really need to get an electrician in to replace the power on/off box, and the two the isolation switches otherwise I risk KILLING myself and that an electrician is the only person legally allowed to fix the machine. I assume what he told me was all correct and that he was looking after my best interest.

BUT

The machine worked perfectly well for 50 years without an earth wire and the two wire points the cable needs to connect to are shown in the photo. Would it not a as simple as replacing the wire with new cabling shown in the photo and connecting it to a standard wall power plug?

If the former is true and the old electrics has to be thrown out how much would an electrician cost to come and install a new box with an earth cable and would this mean replacing the motor as well?

IMG_3420.jpgIMG_3421.jpgIMG_3423.jpgIMG_3422.jpg

My second question is that the blade does not line up with the center of the hole in the bed is this a problem? Other then making the fitting of the zero clearance insert more difficult?

IMG_3424.jpg

Andrew - please do ensure you use a licensed electrician, and have the machine EARTHED.

You might not feel the zap, but your family and friends sure will....

It appears to be a 3 phase machine, but the cord on the ground in your photo is a single phase cord.

Regards
John

Thanks John for getting back to me.

I called a local electrician and explained what I needed done i.e. the installation of a new magnetic switch on a bandsaw, he replied that it was not something he could do and that I would need an industrial electrician.

So my question is were can I find an electrician who will take on the job?

I am really starting to wonder if this was a good buy $150 for the machine + $200 for an electrician + $100 for magnetic switch + possible other things is fast adding up and costing me time and I am almost half of the way there to buying a new machine.

Originally Posted by thumbsucker

I am really starting to wonder if this was a good buy $150 for the machine + $200 for an electrician + $100 for magnetic switch + possible other things is fast adding up and costing me time and I am almost half of the way there to buying a new machine.

That is not good news. I found a similar thing when doing up my jointer, buy the time I purchased it, and purchased a new single phase motor, the new starter, had somebody wire it and all of the other extras it did add up. Fortunately this was a 12" jointer which all up cost about the same as a new 6".

In relation to your electric issues I would take the motor and any switches off the machine if you can. I called up a local motor company from the "Google" and they connected the starter to the motor for me (https://www.woodworkforums.com/f228/e...tarter-160810/). After this had been done professionally and safely it was an easy enough task to "fit" it all back onto the machine without the need of trying to find an electrician to do a house call. I purchased the DOL starter from Electrical Supplies, Online Electrical Wholesaler, Electrical Accessories, Electrical Wholesaler Brisbane, Electrical Wholesaler Sydney, Electrical Wholesaler Melbourne, after getting advice on these forums on the right one to get to suit the motor. If your bandsaw motor is three phase then it would be a matter of finding a cheap single phase motor (at least it should be low HP's) or a 3 phase converter and unfortunately either option is going to take even more shine off what should be a really good buy.

Thank you for the information. Is their a way to find out if my motor is single phase? And if it works?

So basically you are suggesting to buy a new motor and switch and take it to a company and get them to connect all the cables and then install them all myself?

What kind of motor would be best for my machine? As I know nothing about motors?

Hi,

I recently bought an old woodfast bandsaw as well, and had to re-wire it up. It was 3 phase and I spent about $330 getting it up and running. That said I had a very good friend who's a sparky that did the wiring for me. I would recommend you..

1. Open up the bottom of the unit and remove the motor. This will help you identify what sort of motor it is, the power, whether it's single phase or three phase, and whether or not it can be wired into delta configuration. I expect that this uni is three phase. There should be a plate on the motor where all this information is written. If you are unsure, just post a photo of it to this forum.

2. Get yourself a VSD unit - which basically lets you run a three phase motor of a single phase 10A 240V plug. Something like this. Because I used a VSD I had no need for a new magnetic switch, that are actually very expensive ($120+). All you need is a 3 pole isolator (around $20 - $50 depending on the brand).

That's what I did and I now have a perfectly working woodfast 18" bandsaw!

S.

I agree that the plate on the motor should tell you all you need to know.

The VSD seems to be a popular option lately to get three phase motors running on single phase, however I didn't feel confident going down that road myself as I am not confident with playing with electrical things and it seemed to much trouble to try and find somebody who would do the work. If your motor is three phase however (which would be more likely if it came from a school or tafe) I cannot see any reason not to invest in a new single phase motor - given the size of the bandsaw you could get away with a 1 or 1.5hp model.

Now I don't know the answer, but I would wonder if you need a starter on a small single phase motor. Just thinking about my lathe which would be around 1-1.5hp it just has a simple switch and not a magnetic DOL starter like my larger machines (table saw etc). A quick search on Ebay uncovers a 1.5hp single phase (with plug attached) for $150 - you could perhaps find a second hand one even cheaper on Gumtree.