Thread: Feedback request to Jet 16" and 19" owners

G'Day Paul

I recently bought the JWBS-18X. It has a much wider trunnion than the 16" and a slightly larger motor . It all went together without any problems . I made up a straight edge with a cut- out in it to check the wheels for co-planar and found that to be spot on . I initially checked for co-planar without any tension - it needs to be checked under tension though . I have only used the blade supplied on a few test cuts and that went OK . It was supplied with a 10Amp plug and light domestic power lead and should have a 15Amp plug and heavier lead . That would only affect the start-up though . Next move is to get some decent blades .I paid $1800Au inc GST from Woodworking Warehouse . That was WWW show special . They normally charge $2100. Your prices sound a bit cheaper .
So far so good .

Peter,
thanks for your feedback and much appreciated. Can you also tell me how deep the standard table is when you add on the guides for the rip fence (I have a space problem in the garage)? Secondly, when I googled for problems, many people talked about the table top wobbling because the trunnions were aluminium so do you get any movement like this?
Lastly, how many people does it take to move one into a workshop or did you have to hire a forklift (an oft forgotten but vital question)
Thanks
Paul

Hi Paul .

I have a van that I was able to transport the saw in but I needed help to slide the crate out of the van , stand the saw up and walk it to the spot where I uncrated it . After removing the sides of the crate the saw was left sitting on a base about 80mm high . Initially I thought I would need help to get it off the base , but I was able to slide the saw off the base and onto 4 sets off varying thickness MDF packers totalling 80mm . From there I was able to progressively remove packers until the saw rested on the wheels . A bit of a drop off the last one though . I bought a set of wheels to use on the saw as I need to store it against a wall . The width across the rip fence including the fence locking handle is 740mm . The trunnions on this machine are quite substantial , 80mm wide . The trunnion cradle looked as though it was cast iron but the trunnions are aluminium . I don't have a problem with the table wobbling . If I brace my foot on the base of the machine so that I can exert some force on the table , I can see it move relative to the blade but I think this is more a matter of the frame flexing and I don't see this being a problem while sawing . The frame obsiously does flex as the wheels were not co-planar without belt tension but were when the blade was properly tensioned.I am happy with the saw . My only dissappoinment was not getting a quick release on the balde tension which I had thought was included .

Hi,

Don't know if this is much help, but in the latest FFW Tool Guide, the Jet 18" doesn't rate too well.

p69. Fair results in resaw test; had unacceptable defections (table)' lowest resaw capacity; good fence.

Rated

Resaw test: poor
Table deflection: 0.0698" (worse on test)
Fence adjustments: Yes
Ease of blade changing: Fair.

Also, at 9 7/8" resaw capacity worse on test.

Okay. Enough about that. It's still probably better than the other Chinese or Taiwanese stuff. Might end up buying one myself.

Cheers

Peter,
thanks for the feedback on the width of the table and also the picture of the Jet 18" that shows the relative proportions of the table, fence rails, motor and base. This gives me enough information to do comparative sizings of the 16" and 18" saws in my garage.
Your story of how you got the machine into place was good. I'll have to build a moveable base or buy wheels - there is a story on the Google groups about 1 person who had to dismantle it, carry all the bits down into his basement via steps and a narrow door, and then reassemble it so that's a last option.
The table trunnions at 80mm are wide so the table flexing must be due to the frame. It may be that Jet has increased these after feedback from buyers.

Also my thanks to the person who posted news of a recent FWW review on 18" bandsaws. I have found the issue reference (May/June 2004) so I'll head down to the local library and read it. The trouble with these reviews is that the machine I want is always 2X the amount of $ I have.
Cheers
Paul

Hi Monoman

I Have only recently subscribed to FWW and am still waiting to receive my 1st one . They must have reviewed a different Jet 18" to the one that I have which is a JWBS_18X and this model has a resaw capacity of 305mm which in American is near as dammit to 12".The Australian Woodworker had a bandsaw review in issue 117 and in that review the JWBS-18 had a resaw capacity of 260mm .

Never mind the model. The point they were making, is that the Jet tested has an alloy trunion supporting the table. The better models have cast iron table supports and do no flex as much. BTW. The flex was tested by hanging a 30lb weight on the side of the table and measuring the deflection. 30lbs (15kg) ain't much weight.

Don't let this put you off, or lead you towards a more expensive machine. Check out the other bandsaws on the market. Borrow a dial indicator from the salesman nad check wheel runout as well. They should agree to doing that. Of course, the machine you pick-up may be better or worse.

I did this some years back when I bought a new ped drill. Tested every drill in the shop before I found one with less than 0.003" runout. Then bought that one. Salesman thought I was being too picky.

Hey, it's your money. Get what you pay for. Don't pay for runout.

Model numbers are important as they allow a potential buyer to differentiate between products of the same type and the JWBS-18X is a beefed up version of the JWBS-18 . Justout of curiosity I hung 25Kg from the edge of the table and measured the deflection relative to the back edge of the blade with my dial guage -o.53mm which compared to 1.77mm( 0.0698") which was quoted from the FWW review for the JWBS-18 .I looked at the saws on offer from Carba-tec etc and decided on the jet after speaking with one of the Staff from Box Hill TAFE who was at Wood Working Warehouse to pick up their second Jet Saw .

Hi, I have now read the FWW (170, May /June 2004) 18" bandsaw review in my local library. My overall conclusion is that there isn't really any really bad bandsaws in this size. As to the JET trunnions, another WW forum had the comment that JET have new ones out as an upgrade for existing owners - they are acting on the criticism so Peter's JET may have these already.
For fairness sake, I did a quick cruise of most Auckland Wood machinery shops this Sat morning and looked at what's available on the market. Very depressing as most 16" and upwards bandsaws seem to be rebadged generics that have been made down to a price. At one shop, the guy told me that they got their 18" bandsaw made to their quality specs in Taiwan so when I asked if the wheels were dynamically balanced, he just looked at me blankly!
The JET keeps looking better and better when faced with that competion.
Paul

My thanks to the people who posted replies. I have finished my research using info found on this forum and other comments found in other woodwork forums so I know the +s and -s of the Jet bandsaw and can make an informed decision.
For the benefit of other readers, the JET JWBS-16 has problems in the areas of:
* guides are a bit oldfashioned and the bottom one is difficult to adjust (most people replace them with bearing guides)
* the table is known to wobble (people say it is a problem with the trunnions below) with weight on the edges

Its major rival in Aust/NZ is the Carbatec 4300CE bandsaw which has more features (bearing guides, bigger table, fence is standard, 2HP motor, cuts to 11+" (280mm), tension release level, tracking window, etc) at the same price in New Zealand. This is marketed in Nth America as the Grizzly G0513 and you can download a user manual from the Grizzly tool site where the parts diagram are identical to the Carbatec 4300 parts.

Despite all these, I decided I preferred the JET as the design of bits like the bottom shaft mounting is better and it permits fettling in 3D to fix non-alignment in the top and bottom wheels (if such exists). Comparing the parts diagrams for the 4300 and Jet16 shows that they are not made in the same factory as the construction and design is too different between the two.

Paul

Hi All,

Probably a bit late to chime in here, but what the hell...

I'm about to buy a Jet JWBS-18X 18" band saw and have been reading up on them. There are a few substantial differences between the JWBS-18 and the JWBS-18X. The 18X has a greater resaw capacity of 12" as opposed to 10.5", rubber tires instead of cork, and the newer beefed up trunion. What a difference an X makes.