Not sure which way to go?

[himzol]

Hi Folks,

As some of you are aware I will be heading across the border to the Vic WWW show. The main reason for going is to see if I can pick up a DC for a reasonable price. The unit I'm after is the 2HP economy unit which most of the resellers have at about $300. The other things I will be looking at will be a Jointer and/or a bandsaw.

Up until recently I had pretty much made up my mind to get an 8 inch jointer, however recent posts regarding the ML392 made me think that this may be the way to go. I already have a Ryobi thicknesser (which does what I require), so would I be justified in purchasing the 392 for the extra jointing width?

As for the bandsaw, I'm even more confused as to what I should be looking for. I've already read through the comparison in the Australian Woodworker magazine which pointed out all the features of the differing models. I guess what I really need here is guidence in choosing a unit which will give me the flexibility to resaw timber, cut blanks for lathe (on shopping list for next year), as well as to be able to do some fine curve/staright cutting for current and future projects.

When you baught the units you own, what features were you looking for?

Himzo.

[barnsey]

Himzol

Like you I'm a bargain hunter too but have found that the shows up here (Brissie) are hard to get a deal - they can sell more than they've got with them so they aren't that easy to negotiate with. I'm sure there are others that will say they got a deal but that is just my experience. Mind you I have been able to negotiate the WWW Show prices in other states by approaching the local office and they will generally come to the party ;) It was a 2hp economy DC actually - same pricing and they loaded it in the back of the 4wd so no freight ;)

I've got a 6" jointer of about 2 hp and while I would love the extra width capability I'm not sure I can justify the cost. I don't have a thicknesser but I'm accumulating the bits I need to build a 1200mm sanding thicknesser that was described in the AWW magazine a few months ago.

Bandsaw - mine is Taiwanese, multiple speed so I can cut metal when I need to. A 14" job - its great value and depending on the blade and how you tune it, it will do wonderous things. Mine only has 6" depth of cut and at times I've wished I had twice that particularly for deep large bowls and where i was looking to do some resawing but I'd suggest that would be stretching the limit of an economy bandsaw in any event especially hard timbers. :confused:

I've got a 2 speed economy scroll saw as well that I use for the really intricate stuff.

Not sure if that helps but gives you another perspective ;)

Jamie

[mat]

Timbecon currently have their 2HP economy DC at $279. If you order and ask them to bring it to the www show you can get it freight free assuming you will transport back to SA yourself.

[Iain]

Timbecon may also have a dutch auction on Sunday, if you are sticking around that long.

[himzol]

Thanks guys,

Timbercon is definately a fallback, I believe that the specials they have on at the moment go on till some time in November, they also have a pretty good deal with the DC/8" Jointer .

Barnsey thanks for the advice re: the bandsaw, I hadn't considered the multi speed for use with metalwork, I do a bit of this so it would come in handy.

I have to say that the main reason for the Melbourne trip isn't the WWW show and possible bargains, The other half and I haven't had much time to ourselfs of late and I'm using this as an excuse.

I did pick up a bargain at the Adelaide show of sorts, I managed to get my 12" table saw and SCMS from Timbercon for the same price that they were at the Sydney show ( the aussie dollar had droped quite a bit between the two). It does happen, haggle but you have to be prepared to walk away if the deal isn't to your likeing.

I might approach Leda to see if they will match what Timbercon is offering, they are local, and I think I've got enough orange in my shed :rolleyes: .

Himzo.

[Caliban]

At the Sydney Show this year Silent C and I were offered, on the Sunday early arvo, a 3hp 4 bag DC that normally sells for the best part of $600 for $349 by the gasweld guy, they had been about $100 dearer on the Saturday. He even said we could collect one from the local gasweld shop if we paid then, so he wasn't just flogging off damaged show goods. The 2 hp unit was about $100 cheaper, We walked away, me wishing I still had that much cash left, so the deals are there to be had, especially on the last day.

[Justin]

Hi Himzo,

A few tips on your new bandsaw, from things I've figured out in owning mine :

- Easily adjustable blade tension mechanisms are a good thing. It's best if you slack off the tension for any extended periods betweens use, and you dont want to be mucking around with a small, hard to hold/easy to break knob to do this. Also, some kind of tension indicator is handy for repeatable tuning accuracy.
- Check that the fence is able to be adjusted so that you can skew it at a tangent to the blade, to allow for drift when you're ripping (resawing).
- Make sure any mitre attachments fit neatly and slide freely in the tracks.
- A rack and pinion mechanism for moving the "blade guide pillar" (?name?) up and down is really handy. If you can't get this, try to get a pillar that's designed in such a way that it can only slide up and down, and not rotate left or right to twist the blade.
- Look for a well placed and decent sized collection port.
- Look closely at the blade guides, and ensure that there's a good range of adjustment in each of them to cater for blades at either end of the size spectrum. For example, my saw uses roller bearings for guides, and when using very narrow blades I can't get the rear thrust bearing up close enough to the back of the blade, because it fouls the mounts for the guide bearings on each side of the blade.

Good luck with your purchase,


Justin.

[TassieKiwi]

Do a search on the Jet 14" bansaw - all seem to rave about this one.