Craftsman 12" Bandsaws

[pgriff]

I recently purchased a Craftsman 103.24260 and a 103.24280 bandsaw along with a small scroll saw without a tag. They are complete but a little tired. The 24260 has rotted tires and the tires are missing on the 24280. Which saw is a better one to keep? Any suggestions on where to get tires as well as suggestions on saw blades? Thanks.

[EvilTwin]

From what I can see from a quick online search, they dont look to be too different from each other.  I would tend to favor whichever one is in better condition.  Tires can be had from many sources.  Probably they both came with rubber tires which if you replace with the same should last many more years.  But you will probably have to crown the tires unless the rim already has the crown built in (like the typical Delta 14).

I would probably avoid the urethane tires, they may not last long and you may have some slipping or tracking issues if they arent glued and crowned.  HTH. Post some pics of both candidates for better answers.

[pgriff]

Thanks for the response. I do not have an account set up yet for posting pictures. Is photobucket still the best option? or is there a better choice?

[TDKPE]

I've stopped using photobucket as it's just gotten too bloated. I stick with tinypic (and there are others like it), which doesn't require an account, nor any personal info, nor even an email address. And without an account, the risk of moving and losing it is essentially zero, since there's no album.

[stav]

As the models are very similar, the better one to keep depends a lot on condition.  Although, I would suggest that the better one to keep might be both of them.  I have a couple of smaller band saws and keep different blades on them.  They don't take much space and it is handy to not have to mess with blade swaps for different things.

[rwe2156]

Neither one.  IMO it won't even be worth $35 for a decent set of urethane tires.

You're headed or nothing but frustration. My advice is scrap them and look for a better saw.

[EvilTwin]

Neither one.  IMO it won't even be worth $35 for a decent set of urethane tires.

You're headed or nothing but frustration. My advice is scrap them and look for a better saw.

Curious as to why the OP will have nothing but frustration and what you think a better saw would be in the 10-12" size?

These saws were built for Sears by King-Seely in the '50s.  Here is a picture of a restored one over on vintagemachinery.org:

[Mac1]

If you want to test the one with bad tires, read on.  First thing , don't laugh at this.  Make a new tire from ordinary masking tape. Ten layers is about right.  It will last for  a long time. Like I said , don't laugh till you have tried it, it works.

[EvilTwin]

If you want to test the one with bad tires, read on.  First thing , don't laugh at this.  Make a new tire from ordinary masking tape. Ten layers is about right.  It will last for  a long time. Like I said , don't laugh till you have tried it, it works.

I've got an old Powermatic 30a Belt and Disk Sander.  The drums for the belt sander are aluminum and over the years became dished and needed to be turned or replaced to recreate the crown.  At the suggestion of someone on OWWM long ago, I used some masking tape and built up the drums so each had a crown again.  Its been running like a charm ever since.  Once the tape dries out, it will be rock hard.  So I'm laughing with ya on this one.

[stav]

I've never heard of this masking tape tire trick, but you know I have to try it now.  Which works better, the blue or white tape?