Thread: Which Bandsaw?

I have the non-variable speed version of this one -
4"x6" Industrial Portable Variable Speed Metal Cutting Bandsaw (Taiwan) | eBay It was slightly more expensive than a swivel vice machine (still is) but worth it I think.
I bought it because a mate of mine who ran his own fabricating business told me of the two types, the swiveling head machine was far better. If you are only going to do straight (square) cuts it doesn't matter, but if you even only occasionally do a bit of mitre cutting, a swiveling head machine is much easier and quicker to set up and revert to square again.
The other big plus is that if you have a length of material to cut you don't have to swing the material around. Means you can set up some in-feed rollers in one place and cut away regardless.

Michael

I have a BS-5S and whilst it's an OK saw, off the shelf blades are crap, no built in cooling system, no wheels. I purchased it about 8 or 9 years ago and whilst it's use is limited since I purchased a cold saw, I still regret not purchasing the BS-7L - the advantages are pretty clear to see - Coolant system, more common blades, movable, hydraulic adjustable down feed and a more solid machine.

IMO Spend the extra $500 and get yourself a better bandsaw.

Cheers
Jon

I have the BS-5. Bought it some 8 years ago, and should have bought it much earlier as it saves a LOT of time over a hacksaw. I can recommend it if money is tight, if it is only for a hobby/home shop, and if you do not mind spending some time improving it.

At the time, there was an important difference between the BS-5 and the BS-4: the 5 was made in Taiwan, and the 4 was made in China. The difference in quality was very obvious. But I am not sure if today's 5 is still Taiwan made. The best is, go to a Hafco store, compare them both side by side, and decide.

To work well, both need some tender loving care, the 5 and 5S a bit less and the 4 a little more. Make a solid base for it, toss away the factory base. Toss away the toy carbon blade, buy a real bi-metal blade (either from ebay US, or Minitech in Brisbane has some too). Toss away the drive belt, and get a link belt instead. After some aligning, you will end up with a pretty good bandsaw. There is a Yahoo group for this bandsaw with a lot of mods and ideas on how to improve. If you can afford it, the 5S is easier to make angled cuts, if I could choose again I would go for the 5S. Chris

Hi, I've got the BS-4 and although it required a fair bit of tweaking to get it cutting square out of the box, it works OK. That said, it is a cheaply-made machine and if you can afford the extra cash, I'd recommend going for better quality machine that has in-built cooling because it is a bit of a pain to manually apply cooling/cutting fluid. Eventually, I'm going rig up a cooling system for mine.

Unfortunately, I’ve had to set my limit at around $400-$600 for a new machine, which is roughly what the three base level Hafco machines are priced between. I’d love the BS-7L, but I can’t really justify spending any more for a saw! The ozmestore bandsaw Michael G mentioned has pretty good specs, I might add that one to my list as well as the one from pinnacle. Decisions, decisions.

I have one of the fixed head units, my third actually, 2 when I had the business. My current one, for different angles I made blocks of different angles (45 and 22.5), saves having to go to the trouble of resetting the angle block. The stop bar I made adjustable so that cuts could be stopped at any point, ideal for notching out, a plate with a series of threaded holes for holding small pieces, a chute/funnel on the side to catch most of the swarf. Some good ideas were obtained from Model Engineers Workshop. The Skip tooth BiMetal blades I get from Independant Saw Works on Torrens rd Croydon Pk they are an off the shelf item. I get a fine and a coarse to cover the different thickness of materials.
Kryn

Hi tongleh,
My advise is to have a good look at all three that are within your budget, I did and purchased the BS-5S the build quality is slightly better, but cutting angles is a whole lot easier and in my opinion worth the extra dollars. Over the life of the saw this dollar difference is soon forgotten. You will need to put a set of wheels/castors on it and stiffen up the frame ( suggest you do this before as you assemble it) and do the modification that I just posted in "Your Latest Project"
Bob

I bought the BS-5 several years ago but wish I'd bought the swivel head BS-5S. It's a pain having to set up the vice to cut mitres, especially if you only have a coupel of mitre cuts amidst a stack of straight cuts. They're a good saw, you'd never go back to a drop saw after a band saw. I ditched the factory stand and built a taller stand on castors, plus a couple of feed rollers to handle long material lengths. Only mistake was having to extend the frame to stabilise the saw in a vertical position. Must admit the BS-7 is good value with hydraulic feed and coolant but it's a big price hike to get a swivel head vis the BS-7DS. rgds Peter

Thanks for the input blokes, I had a look at the BS-5S in Melbourne last week and decided that is the one I want. I rang General Tools today and would you believe it, they have one in stock, will try to pick it up next week.

Have you seen the current price of the BS-5S?
I just received a sale catalogue, I have no idea what the old price was but they are now $495inc

Stuart

Yep, I noticed the special when I was looking up H&F's site this afternoon. Don't know if General Tools will play along but I'll certainly ask.

Based on the inputs above, did you already make a decision on what band saw to buy ( BS-4S, a BS-5 or the BS-5S)?

Yes, I bought the BS-5S. GT sold it to me for $475, not as good as H&F's &450, but still a good price, happy with that.

Originally Posted by tongleh

Yes, I bought the BS-5S. GT sold it to me for $475, not as good as H&F's &450, but still a good price, happy with that.

You got it for $475 , I think it's amazing. Do you have a cooling system for it?