Thread: H&F sale

Wont comment on the bandsaws but if the sale is like the one in Sydney they will have benches full of el cheapo tools. Dont make the mistake of ignoring them. At Sydney they had two sorts of Mujingfang planes for $14 & $19 which is $10 cheaper than they were at Pauls. Also if you pick through the benches there are a lot of useful things among the crud.

Can't comment directly on the two bandsaws but I have the BP-14a. I find the 550watt motor struggles with larger pieces of wood, so as the BP-250 only has a 375watt motor I would suggest it would be struggling with all but the smaller pieces of wood. The 750watt of the BP-300 sounds more useful. - Both of them would be better than the 14a because they have roller guides, dust chutes and hinged doors.

You really need to test one - if you can get into their showroom get them to turn it on and see how steady it is. You are supposed to be able to balance a 20c coin on its side while the saw is running. Have seen this done on a much more expensive saw.

Another thing to check is the size of a piece of wood you can run through the saw. The 250 does not seem to have much clearance between the table and the top blade guide.

Of course it all depends on what you want it for - while the 14a was great for me for rough cutting turning blanks, I am now trying bandsaw boxes and it has evere limitations - I really need something like the BP-430 - but ouch! the price.
Regards
Don

Can you give a brief outline as to what sort of goods are included in the sale. I am on their mailing list, but have not received a catalogue?

Steve

Just about everything Steve. Jointers, thickneessers, dust systems, attachments of all sorts, table saws, ducting kits, lathes etc etc. It's 4 pages , maybe you'll get it tomorrow, being that you are in the country the mail may be an extra day.

Originally Posted by Gumby

I'm thinking of a bandsaw but can only justify a cheapy. Does the BP 250 for $249 or the BP 300 for $479 sound like a good deal and is the 300 worth the extra ? (prices include rip fence)

Gumby,

I bought the BP 300 at the WWW show for $ 489. It does what I want it to do and fits in the space I have available for it. I am happy with it.

If you want to try mine out before buying one let me know.

Peter.

Thanks Pete, I've got on to another one as well. It's about 20 years old and maybe for sale. I'll take a photo and post it shortly. I'd love to know what everybody thinks it's worth.

Here it is. Gilbert & Weston UF14 1987 model. I wonder about parts and a rip fence etc.

Not sure if it's for sale yet either.

I purchased a BP-300 some weeks ago in Sydney at a tad over $540 so the price is really good. I have been impressed by the unit - the roller guides, good dust extraction and 180mm resaw height sold me. Super quiet as well and the rip fence is better than most supplied. If you are like me, you will appreciate the larger than average table size. Easy to set-up and I had instructions that were complete enough to get the job done with a minimum of fuss. I wouldn't say the standard blade is great but that is an easy replacement at a later date.

Regards,
Tony

Just to finish my bandsaw search, the old one I posted the photos of a couple of posts ago is now mine...............for free That'll do me!

Somebody has to have a win sometime. The gods must have been looking down on you Gumby.