What would be a fair price on this band saw?

[southgalawyer]

I would like to get a bandsaw for cutting circles, etc., and for light resawing...like splitting 4 or 5 inch boards...nothing too severe.
Saw this one on Craigslist locally....assuming it is in good working condition, what would you pay for it?

Band Saw

[Richard D.]

I like THIS ONE on your local CL much better. It is a clone of a Delta. The Craftsman you show wouldn't be worth buying IMO. I'd offer $150 for the one I posted.

[Bob Vaughan]

They're both worth the $150.00.
The Craftsman is a small, lightweight machine made for smaller work. Its very quiet and smooth running when in good condition. It uses an 80" .020 thick blade. Its also USA-made and has a cool retro-look to it.

The other saw is a 14" from the Taiwan Tools people. Chances are it will be noisy and clunky. It appears to have a riser block so figure on 105" blades. You can get 12" under the guides. It looks like a Delta from 20 feet, but the closer you get, the lesser it resembles the older Delta band saws. Both the upper and lower blade guides are Taiwan-made substitutes and don't resemble he Delta guides of old. It also appears to be missing he upper blade guard and has no included miter gauge. Calling a 9 amp motor a 1 HP motor isn't the way its done here i the states. Routinely a 9 amp motor is more like what we know as a 3/4 HP.

[jteneyck]

My friend has a Reliant that looks like the one Richard posted. It runs very smoothly and cuts just fine with that motor. Last I knew there was 760 W per HP, meaning you need 6.9 amps at 110 V. At 9 amps that motor is comfortably 1 HP. In any case, my friend's cuts fine with a good blade on it. He paid $175 for his with no riser block.

John

[TDKPE]

Motors that size usually have an efficiency of around 75-80% and power factor around 70-75%, so shaft power at 9A and 115V (NEMA motor voltage) would be something like (9A x 115V x .75 x .70) / 746 = .73 hp to .83 hp (at the higher range of eff and pf). A run capacitor will 'correct' pf to the high 90's, and eff is usually a little higher, too, but 1 hp from 9A, while possible, is a bit optimistic as they don't usually put a run capacitor on such a small motor. But it's certainly possible.

[gregr]

Last fall I was doing some on site work on an old wooden boat and the only band saw available was a 14" POS Grizzly made in Taiwan. The saw vibrated and jumped around so much it was a real chore to use. The guides were horrible and the saw was so poorly made that if it were mine it would have gone in the dumpster.

Also, I have never seen a made in USA motor that is rated at 1 HP and only draws 9 FLA. That amp draw is more typical of a 1/2 or 3/4 HP motor.

Greg

[measure once cut remeasure]

The reliant sold for about $300 retail and $200 when on sale. My brother is still using one just for cutting aluminum. It is a solid saw, but there is no support for parts on this brand.

[mr_skittle]

That vintage of a Craftsman should be a solid tool. If it's in decent running shape it's probably worth $150. OWWM.org is a great resource for old tools like that. Check this out Craftsman 100

I recently pick up an early 40's delta band saw and am finding these old tools can have a few surprises. Things like bearings, belt, pulley may need attention but that Craftsman looks in pretty good shape with the original base and motor. Ad says it "works great". I'd go for it.

[Steve N]

I believe patience is the word you will need to exercise a lot of with both of those BS's, expect them to saw slowly, and they will handle what you want a BS for. The one RD posted is by far the bigger capacity, however it is woefully under powered to call it a resaw machine. Saw slow, and like the hare you will win the race Of course good blades, and spot on tensioning will be required.


Edit to add the big saw could easily take a bigger motor, not to sure of a need of that on the smaller one.

[Axl]

Richard D. said:

---

I like THIS ONE on your local CL much better. It is a clone of a Delta. The Craftsman you show wouldn't be worth buying IMO. I'd offer $150 for the one I posted.

---

I had one of those, but gave it away when I got a Craftsman Tilter. Never missed the Reliant.
Now that I restored a 14" Delta, I don't miss either one of the others.