Great help & a couple of Q's

[Woodchuck]

Howdy all,

Wanted to say thanks to all here for their help & info, Just got a cheap Taiwanese 14" saw & riser :D The books & sites given made it very easy to put the saw together & tune. For which I am thankful, the instructions that came with it were next to useless.

It had pretty bad vibration at first but with tuning & a small amount of playing about with it was able to get rid of alot of it.
I will try better belts/blades as such when I can afford them to see if they help even further.

Also on another note have a couple of questions.

When resawing to get a veneer, is it better to cut on the outside or inside ?

Are there any fences you can get for the cheap taiwanese saws that have a rail on both sides of the table?

& lastly was just wondering wheres the best place to get good blades at an ok price & if anyone knew of a place in Adelaide ?
oh & whats the better type of blade to go for really.

Thanks again & Cheers
Woodchuck :D

[jow104]

My setup works best cutting on the outside, you will have to try both for yourself and decide.

[kenmil]

What brand/model did you buy ? The "cheap" bandsaws are usually made in China. Taiwan is where the better ones are made.

[AlexS]

I have a similar Chinese cheapo without the riser, and find it's best to cut veneers next to the fence. The secret when cutting veneers, as well as tuning the saw which you have already done, is to keep an even pressure on the stock going through. Don't force it, or you will get a barrel shaped cut.

[jow104]

My bandsaw is the RSBS 12 Record, British firm, but I suspect parts are made out East. Cutting OK, but there is a plastic lockup fitting to secure the upper thrust back wheel that is rubbish. I shall have to get a brass piece turned sometime.

[Woodchuck]

Kenmil,

Mine is made in Taiwan but I thought it a cheap BS as it was only $499 I think, might have even been less. Model number I'm not sure of, it's from Gasweld & it baged a Toolex Machine.

It has a 1hp motor & 4speeds. After tuning it some more now having it for a few weeks I was able to get rid of all the vibration pretty much. It looks very much like SW-1401 to me.

I also bought a $99 riser for it & so far think it is great. I was able to cut a pine veneer thin as paper almost. The blade that came with it is pretty crappy tho & will be grabbing some better ones soon as I get round to it.

The motor seems to have enough grunt for what I do, mostly pine,MDF & chipboard. I also cut some gum (8" or more maybe thick), elm & oak also without any trouble tho there was a little burning on the harder/thicker woods. But as I said the blade seems poorly & has too many tpi for thick work.

So I'm pretty happy with it, is it a good machine ? I've no real idea as I'm a total newbie still trying to learn & muddle my way through everything. Also it's had little use at this point. Time will tell as I use it more & I know what I'm doing maybe :)

Cheers

Woodchuck

[mikmaz1]

hi woodchuck,
im thinking about buying the same bandsaw, and ar ewondering if i could pay you a visit and check it out.
send me an email to let me know, thanks.
seeyasoon mik.

[Tankstand]

& lastly was just wondering wheres the best place to get good blades at an ok price & if anyone knew of a place in Adelaide ?
Woodchuck, I have no idea where in S.A. you are but I have used Elite Saw Sharpening on O'sullivans beach road, Lonsdale to make blades for a school I used to work at. Maybe you can find a similar service close to where you live?

[gatiep]

Henry Bros in Sydney has excellent quality blades at an excellent price, even taking postage into consideration. The one brother Mark, is extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Tell him what you want to do and he'll make sure you have the correct blade for the job. All the blades I got from them doesn't even go click click when the joint goes thru the timber.
Mark at Henry Brothers Saws in Sydney
E-mail Address(es):
[email protected]


Cya

[AlexS]

Hi Gatie,
Glad to hear you've had good service from Henry Bros. Even though I'm in Sydney I haven't used them. Many of the smaller saw blade suppliers in Sydney (eg Academy saws) are being bought out by either Henry Bros or Leuco's and I thought this may have had an adverse effect on service. Glad to hear it hasn't.

[Woodchuck]

HI all,

Sorry about not getting back to the boards sooner.

Tankstand,
I will check elite saw's out as I'm in the same area as you & lonsdale would be nice & handy.

Mikmaz1,
How do I find out your email addy to send you a mail ? I guess it would be ok for you to come have a look. I still haven't changed the pullys, belt or Blade as yet.

Thanks everyone for the input :)

Cheers

Woodchuck

[RETIRED]

Woody, go in to Miks profile (just click on his profile in his post) and use the email addy there.

[mikmaz1]

thanks !
seeyasoon mik.

[Woodchuck]

Thanks :)

Mikmaz,
you have mail :)

Drop me an email back if you still want to come have a look at mine. Not sure where abouts you live & I may be too far. I'm south of the city.

Cheers
Woodchuck