spencer321

My Feedback: (5)

Hey i found this pretty inexpensive bandsaw made by skil and iw as wondering if it is any good. so if you have one and have any gripes lemme know cause it is a contender in my bandsaw voyage.

Rodney

Which one? Picture or part number? IMHO a good bandsaw is far more usefull than a scroll or table saw for 99% of your modeling use. Do steer away from the 3 wheel units though as they are hard on blades and have other problems. Get as big a throat as you can afford. Anything less than 12 inches can be a problem for lots of work.

yel914

Allow me to throw in my .02 on this topic. I don't anything about the Skil bandsaw. But I know a lot about buying a cheap Chinese knockoff bandsaw. You get what you pay for. That cheap bandsaw never tracked right. It sat in my shop unplugged for years. I'd shoot it dirty looks from time to time, cursing it all the while. I even threatened to throw it out in the snow. I did finally get it to run again about a year ago. Then the tensioning casting collapsed(very thin casting) so now it's dead. My dad got it right when he told me "cheap tools are expensive!" A good bandsaw is a great tool to have, but if it's just for this hobby, I'd take a good scollsaw over a cheap bandsaw.

spencer321

My Feedback: (5)

here is the [link=http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=22199-46922-3385-01&lpage=none]bandsaw[/link]

Weasel Keeper

My Feedback: (16)

I doubt you'll be happy with that saw. I have a 10" Craftsman that I bought a couple of years ago and it works reasonably well, but I wouldn't go for less in size or quality. The price I paid was a sale price of around $100 when it listed for $149. I see it lists for $199 these days. Maybe watch for a sale coming up on Christmas. I also have a scroll saw. For most jobs I prefer the band saw, but if I only had one I think the scroll saw would be best as you can easily make inside cuts.

pmw

My Feedback: (1)

spencer,

Whatever you decide to get, I would suggest a medium tooth blade for balsa and ply, but get a fine tooth also. I use`the fine tooth for light gauge metal and metal tubing. Cuts like butter. You'll love it.

Rodney

If you get the band saw (IMHO that is too small, only a 9 inch throat) use as wide a blade as you can, at least 1/4 inch unless you have some extremely tight curves. I have also found that when I use a metal cutting blade, I get good cuts in plywood - - better than blades designed for ply - - as well as good cuts in hardwood. I have both, a band saw and scroll saw and rarely ever use the scroll saw and could easily get by without it although it is handy at times.

d_bodary

My Feedback: (85)

Never used a skil. But i did have a craftsman wanna say a 11" i hated it. would'nt cut straight. so after it sat in the shop for years finally gave it to my brother in law. I am still using the scroll saw that i have had for 30 some years.

oldvet70

My Feedback: (10)

I have a daughter in law who works at a large Lowes distribution center and she says to expect deep discounts on shop tools after Thanksgivings, just a thought if you can wait.

richg99

I suspect that 99% of these inexpensive band saws were made in the same place.... with just a different name put on them. Good advice above about avoiding a three wheeler..( which this one is NOT! ). After breaking about a dozen blades over 5 or 6 years, I put mine out in front with FREE written on a sign. It was gone quickly. Hope the guy enjoyed it.

Most lightweight band-saws have an issue with tracking. It is the blade as much as anything. That said, I use my little Delta B.S. a LOT!. I cut near the line, then use my bench mounted belt/round sander to bring the part to the correct and exact line. Rich

eagledancer

i also have a delta. its a 10" 3 wheel. have had it for about 20 years. i also have a scroll saw and hardly ever use it, only for inside cuts. tracking is a problem but more then anything its the type of blade i have on it a thin blade will wander but will do tighter cuts. i have a wider blade for long cuts that works fair. if i had to do it over i would get a 14-16 inch 2 wheel bandsaw and i may in the near future as i see that mine is starting to make a bit of noise, then again not bad for 20 years

chashint

I would not recommend any tool with a grooved table.
The smaller the work piece is the more likely it is to snag in the grooves.

cloudancer03

My Feedback: (22)

my wife was nice enough to get me a craftsman 9 or 10 inch bandsaw a couple years back and though I thought it would rarely see any activity I couldnt stand to be without it as I go to it alot!I have a scroll saw and small bech sander and with my dremel I have all the tools I will ever need to build!

jetpack

My Feedback: (1)

I picked up an old King-Seeley Mfg. 12" benchtop bandsaw made for Craftsman sold by Sears in 1947. There's lots of them around.

It is not cast iron, it is all cast steel and steady as a rock. I paid $60 for it and the orignial motor, spend another $15 in new bearings and $30 on new urethane tires.

For approximately $100 I have a bandsaw thats as good as a $1200 Delta or Grizzly.

Hands-free rust removal is as easy as a battery charger, couple tablespoons of soda ash, water and a plastic tub. Totally friendly, too. No caustic stuff.

If you can spend the time to look at Craigslist in your area it shouldn't take too long to find things such as this. Seems like there's always a bandsaw for sale there, most times it's the stamped steel china made kind but a nice older machine will pop up and don't be afraid to restore one there's not much too them!

I had my bandsaw taken apart and started to clean it all within a half-hour of getting it home, and I think I used a grand total of three standard wrenches and a pin punch. New bearings and tires ordered and was here within the same week.

I also bought the same period Delta drill press complete with just light surface rust for $75 and same deal...all quality and twice the tricks of the china junk or anything made recently.

If you don't mind small restoration jobs like this, it is truely the way to go.

Not many examples have been "run to the bone" and still are tight machines with REAL handles on them (I really hate plastic knobs) and REAL motors that run quiet enough for Sunday mornings.

The only thing to be cautious of is making sure you know what your buying when looking at one compared to how they came new. Missing parts or accessories can be a hassle to find so get one that's COMPLETE to your notes.

There's places just like RCU for woodworking machine restorers so there IS help out there and they also help track down parts with you. It's how I found and downloaded original manuals for each, all with exploded views and parts lists, all free.

http://www.owwm.com/

HaveIssues

I picked up the 10" craftsman and I like it a lot. The 9" craftsman is a pos compared to the 10". Well worth the extra bucks!

clpahodges

My Feedback: (3)

I am also using a Craftsman 10" bandsaw. I use it a lot and love it. No problems with it at all.

Bill Hodges

DavidAgar

My Feedback: (108)

I have a Ryobi that I got at the Home Depot for $100 bucks. It does a good job as long as i go slow with my wood that I am cutting. If you try and go fast the blade will wander a bit. Good Luck, Dave

Insanemoondoggie

I,ve had a lot of luck with Ryobi tools and have been thinking of buying their band saw . I used Dewalt for years , but have been Ryobi , withgood results.Thanks for the post Dave, been waiting for someone to mention the Ryobi band saw

matadco

My Feedback: (1)

I have the small Delta with a 1/8" fine blade which is great on balsa and thin ply. I purchased it about 3 years ago at Lowes for $100 and I have no problems with it. However, the guide wheels need to be close to the thickness of the wood to keep the blade from wandering. I think that is the secret to cutting a straight line. On 1" pine better get the 1/2" blade and go slow but on models the fine blade works great for me. I have used it a lot over the 3 years I have had it.

balsa brain

Ah, good old Craigs list. In one weeks time I bought two delta sanders, an older NIB craftsman scroll saw with a cast base and a Delta ten inch band saw. One of the sanders is the kind with the 4x36 belt and a six inch disk and the other one is the kind with the one inch belt. They were used but in very good shape. The band saw is also used but not much. I paid $15 each for the sanders, $50 for the scroll saw and $35 for the band saw. All in all, I was quiet happy with that weeks shopping.