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I currently have a 10 vintage (old) Delta bandsaw, used it yesterday and the saw locked up (blade came paritally off the wheel and cut into the cover) and blew the breaker. Thiis is not the first time so I'm looking into a new bandsaw. Any thoughts/opinions on these brands:
Jet
Wen
Grizzly
All have a 14" in around the same price range with the features i'm looking for. All can resew, though depths vary, all have easy blade changing system.
Additionally, the Jet has a closed base, haven't used one of those since highschool shot class.
Mike
I work on the 50-50-90 rule: If there's a 50-50 choice, I'll pick the wrong one 90% of the time! 
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Sounds like you might have a tire issue where the blade is not tracking correctly.
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(10-28-2020, 04:09 PM)stav Wrote: Sounds like you might have a tire issue where the blade is not tracking correctly.
Yes, but it's only with 1/2" blades. I need something I can resaw on, and this doesn't fit the bill.
Mike
I work on the 50-50-90 rule: If there's a 50-50 choice, I'll pick the wrong one 90% of the time!
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In 14 inch saws ,many here like the Grizzly and the Rikon, don't think you would be unhappy with either.
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If you're willing to consider older, I'm a big fan of the Delta / Rockwell 14" from the early 1970's with a 1 hp motor and closed stand - I have one among the too many bandsaws currently in the shop and refuse to let it go. I see them on Craigslist for around $300 - $500 with some frequency in SoCal, and that leaves some room for tires (if needed), mobile base and blades. Some come with the 6" riser.
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(10-28-2020, 06:57 PM)jcredding Wrote: If you're willing to consider older, I'm a big fan of the Delta / Rockwell 14" from the early 1970's with a 1 hp motor and closed stand - I have one among the too many bandsaws currently in the shop and refuse to let it go. I see them on Craigslist for around $300 - $500 with some frequency in SoCal, and that leaves some room for tires (if needed), mobile base and blades. Some come with the 6" riser.
One of the things I've been debating is the open vs close stands. Any thoughts on the plusses/minuses? I've had an open one all my life, the only closed one was in wood shop (50 years ago) so I don't remember it much.
Mike
I work on the 50-50-90 rule: If there's a 50-50 choice, I'll pick the wrong one 90% of the time!
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Closed or open stand is just cosmetics; what matters is what sits on top. If you want to do much resawing you will be far better served by a steel spined saw rather than a cast iron one in the 14" range. I have a 14" Delta with riser and 1.5 hp motor on it, and it's certainly possible to resaw with it, but you can measure speed with a calendar. Why? Because you just can't put much tension on that cast iron frame; about 12ksi is all it can muster on a 1/2" blade w/o distorting the frame and risking breaking the blade tracking mechanism. With low tension you have to saw at a slow pace, really slow, to avoid a barreled cut. With a reasonable quality 14" steel frame saw you would have no trouble putting 20ksi on the same blade. The difference in performance is remarkable; from pain to pleasure.
If you only need to resaw a few feet then, sure, a 14" Delta will do the job. If you want to saw a hundred feet of 6" maple though I would look for a steel saw. At 10" the choice would be even more clear.
John
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I just went through a somewhat similar conundrum. Spent a couple hours resawing 5-inch thick hard white oak on my 12" Craftsman bandsaw and decided that I needed to upgrade. While it provided a good cut with a new sharp blade, it was slow, and really underpowered. The 1/2 HP motor was super hot when done (granted it was a Harbor Freight motor as the saw didn't have a motor when I got it). I will say that I've gotten my use out of this Craftsman, and it has been a great performer, straight, clean cuts all the time. But this effort really made me yearn for more.
I was initially looking at the Grizzly and used options, because I'm thrifty that way. After looking at those, and reading a couple really well written reviews here on WoodNet, I ultimately decided that for a bit extra $$ I could get a brand new saw with more HP and hopefully end up with my forever saw and no regrets. I ended up purchasing the Laguna 14BX with 2.5 HP motor. I recently put 220V in my shop to power a 2HP motor swap on my 1962 Unisaw, so power wasn't an issue. Unfortunately, the band saw is currently on backorder from the manufacturer due to Covid, but I'm hopeful it will be here before Christmas. I ordered from Rockler this month while they have the 10% discount on Laguna, and Rockler is 1.5 miles from my house so I can save the delivery fee by picking up there.
As noted above, if you're planning to resaw alot, you're probably better off with a steel spine saw instead of cast, and a stronger motor if you can run it. If not much resawing, you could likely use just about any other 14" with no regrets.
My research started with this post by Murray M. $1K bandsaw comparison. Well thought out and written. Certainly opened my eyes to other options than a used saw. That an used saws in good shape here are either non-existent, or nearly new prices. Murry M also put together a great $2K comparison post for larger bandsaws. $2K Bandsaw comparison
Good luck.
Kevin
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I believe I saw JET was on sale in the most recent Woodcraft mailer.
I had a 14" open-stand JET I bought new (or from the Woodcraft shop area, can't remember), and now have the JET 18". Both did what they're supposed do, and the 18" does a very good job resawing.
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(10-28-2020, 03:45 PM)Scouter Wrote: I currently have a 10 vintage (old) Delta bandsaw, used it yesterday and the saw locked up (blade came paritally off the wheel and cut into the cover) and blew the breaker. Thiis is not the first time so I'm looking into a new bandsaw. Any thoughts/opinions on these brands:
Jet
Wen
Grizzly
All have a 14" in around the same price range with the features i'm looking for. All can resew, though depths vary, all have easy blade changing system.
Additionally, the Jet has a closed base, haven't used one of those since highschool shot class.
I'm a bit confused as to which saw you have. A 10 year old delta or a delta 10" saw? If its one of the older 14" saws, those are capable of doing resaw work when tuned up with a good blade. If its one of the 10" saws like the old Gumby versions, then probably not so much. I had one of those saws and I fixed it up fairly well, but I would never think to try and cut much of anything thick on it, it wasn't designed for that.
I look at the new saws at places like Woodcraft and I can't believe the prices. All of the 14" saws are around a grand. Ouch. I would look for a used 14" saw as a minimum size if you want to resaw. You could probably save half off of new.
If you want new, Griz has a 17" on sale for 1075 with free shipping https://www.grizzly.com/products/grizzly...n/g0513anv. That is probably the best deal you will come across.
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