Are ANY of the cheap BandSaws adequate?

[jweaver]

I have some space on my bench (Where my old Lidl pillar drill was (before I found myself a floor standing Fobco)) and fancy the idea of a cheap bandsaw.

Clearly, after looking around, the cheap makes are pretty much the same, and many are just re-baded versions of each other.. And there isn't a lot of love for them.

But to be honest, I only want it for some very light DIY.. And wonder if the Sealey SM1303 (Which is currently on special offer for £110) would do the job.

At the end of the day, if I find that I use it more than I expect, I could just upgrade later... Does anyone have any horror stories about the Sealey SM1303? Or better still does anyone have a recommendation of something a little better..

I would be willing to go to £200 but don't want something so big/heavy, I can use it...

Axminster appear do do their own version which is EXACTLY the same and want £150 for it...

http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ho ... 5n-bandsaw

Does anyone have any thoughts?

Jon

 

[Phil Pascoe]

If you only want it for small light jobs, you could do worse than one of the old three wheel ones with a decent (Tuffsaws) blade. It's surprising what can be done with them, and they can be bought for peanuts.

 

[jweaver]

If you only want it for small light jobs, you could do worse than one of the old three wheel ones with a decent (Tuffsaws) blade. It's surprising what can be done with them, and they can be bought for peanuts.

Whats an "old 3 wheel one"? The other thing I didn't mention is that I am vain and want it to look nice.. I am more than happy to have old tools.. I am in love with my Fobco.. But on my bench I would prefer something new, until the time comes to get something heavy duty and accurate.

Jon

 

[Claymore]

Hi Jon,
Don't know about the Sealey but have heard these are pretty good and as i have a larger Axminster bandsaw I can recommend them as a great company to deal with.
http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ho ... 5n-bandsaw
whatever you get the standard blade supplied with it won't be very good and you can transform saws by using a good quality blade from places like Tuffsaws etc and worth investing in.
Cheers
Brian

 

[jweaver]

Hi Jon,
Don't know about the Sealey but have heard these are pretty good and as i have a larger Axminster bandsaw I can recommend them as a great company to deal with.
http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ho ... 5n-bandsaw
whatever you get the standard blade supplied with it won't be very good and you can transform saws by using a good quality blade from places like Tuffsaws etc and worth investing in.
Cheers
Brian

Snap.. Thats exactly the link I edited into my original post.. This appears to be EXACTLY the same as the Sealey one.. And its £40 more...

To be honest, my expectations are so low.. I won't be dissapointed in anything I get.. I just like the idea of having a saw there, powered, ready to use....

The other obvious choice is the Jet:

http://www.axminster.co.uk/jet-jwbs-9-bench-top-bandsaw

which has had fairly favourable reviews here:

http://www.getwoodworking.com/news/arti ... review/833

 

[orchard]

But to be honest, I only want it for some very light DIY..

At the end of the day, if I find that I use it more than I expect, I could just upgrade later... Does anyone have any horror stories about the Sealey SM1303? Or better still does anyone have a recommendation of something a little better..
Does anyone have any thoughts?

Jon

Something to consider is that if it's cheap it may well be high maintenance to get consistent results from it, putting you off the tool and wasting £200 mate.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

If you only want it for small light jobs, you could do worse than one of the old three wheel ones with a decent (Tuffsaws) blade. It's surprising what can be done with them, and they can be bought for peanuts.

Whats an "old 3 wheel one"? The other thing I didn't mention is that I am vain and want it to look nice.. I am more than happy to have old tools.. I am in love with my Fobco.. But on my bench I would prefer something new, until the time comes to get something heavy duty and accurate.

Jon

Burgess, B & D or De Walt - although I wouldn't say they looked nice, or new

 

[Alexam]

This is the old De-Walt I started with a year ago. It worked very well with TuffSaw blades, but I have now upgraded to a Record BS400 and can use a 1/8" blade or a 1" blade ................................. all TuffSaw ............. obviously!

Whatever you get, it will only be as good as the way you tune it up and the following video will show you how.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGbZqWac0jU

The Axminster may have a better re-sale potential when you get hooked and want something bigger.

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

I must say I don't buy into the logic of buying new and cheap because it looks nice if its at the expense of it not working properly! Surely it's better to buy a machine where the quality is assured even if it's second hand to satisfy the budget constraints. Can you not stretch to a 2nd hand BS300 which is floor standing I admit but which would actually work if fettled correctly?

Alternatively restrict your focus on benchtop models to those with evidential reports of quality from people you trust. I understand that's really the purpose of this thread. Trouble is I'm not sure any of the benchtop models are good enough. Hopefully someone will chime in and prove that wrong

My experience is that bigger and heavier is better with bandsaws!!

 

[RogerP]

Hi Jon,
Don't know about the Sealey but have heard these are pretty good and as i have a larger Axminster bandsaw I can recommend them as a great company to deal with.
http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ho ... 5n-bandsaw
whatever you get the standard blade supplied with it won't be very good and you can transform saws by using a good quality blade from places like Tuffsaws etc and worth investing in.
Cheers
Brian

I've had the larger Axminster hbs250n (first model) for quite a few years.

It's given no trouble, cuts straight and accurately (Tuffsaws blades).

I also have a smaller 2 wheel Delta (about the same size as the Sealey) it's many years old and, again, had no problems.

 

[jweaver]

I must say I don't buy into the logic of buying new and cheap because it looks nice if its at the expense of it not working properly! Surely it's better to buy a machine where the quality is assured even if it's second hand to satisfy the budget constraints. Can you not stretch to a 2nd hand BS300 which is floor standing I admit but which would actually work if fettled correctly?

Alternatively restrict your focus on benchtop models to those with evidential reports of quality from people you trust. I understand that's really the purpose of this thread. Trouble is I'm not sure any of the benchtop models are good enough. Hopefully someone will chime in and prove that wrong

My experience is that bigger and heavier is better with bandsaws!!

Don't get me wrong. If I could buy a decent 2nd hand one, I would.. But its a mine field and I know NOTHING of bandsaws, so I wouldn't have a clue what I was looking at..

My plan was simply to buy a small, cheap one to see how much I use it, and then if its becomes something I use lots, look for a decent floor stander later..

For now it has to be a bench model, but I don't feel in the mood to spend months trying to buy a decent one locally, like I did with my Fobco.. I just want to buy something over the counter and start playing.

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

Righto...RogerP's experience seems helpful then. He documents two specific machines both of which are known to perform when used with decent quality blades. I'd be inclined towards that kind of advice because it's corroborated ie its evidential. Personally I put a lot of stock in that.

 

[woodfarmer]

Brian

To be honest, my expectations are so low.. I won't be dissapointed in anything I get.. I just like the idea of having a saw there, powered, ready to use....


http://www.getwoodworking.com/news/arti ... review/833

I have a Fox Bandsaw, and I guarantee you would be disappointed with that, currently only use it for cutting small firewood. Gone back to using a chainsaw for bowls.

 

[AndyT]

Answering the question What's an "old 3 wheel one"? - this is my old Burgess three wheeler. I bought it second hand about 25 years ago. It gets frequent light use, for odd rips or crosscuts. It does not take up much space, just sitting on a chest of drawers in the corner, next to the cramps and bench drills.

Maybe one reason why it is so dependable is that the motor is a big old lump. There's no rating plate and it may not even be the original motor, but apart from buying it a new capacitor, it has served me well.

It will work up to the full capacity of cut. This is the outer bit of a lump of Idigbo after I cut a turning blank out of it. The cut is nice and right angled throughout.

I wouldn't expect to convert tree trunks with it, but for the sort of work I do it's all I need. From many references on here over the years, they do seem to be reasonably easy to find at boot fairs or on eBay.

 

[jweaver]

Brian

To be honest, my expectations are so low.. I won't be dissapointed in anything I get.. I just like the idea of having a saw there, powered, ready to use....


http://www.getwoodworking.com/news/arti ... review/833

I have a Fox Bandsaw, and I guarantee you would be disappointed with that, currently only use it for cutting small firewood. Gone back to using a chainsaw for bowls.

I have gone back to looking that the Sealey vs Axmister model, and whilst they look the same, there are a lot of differences

http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ho ... 5n-bandsaw
http://www.sealey.co.uk/PLPageBuilder.a ... ctid=12083

For a start the bed on the AM looks to be "milled" where as the Sealey appears to be pressed.. Then internally, the "wheel" look diffent, as does the feed mechanism..

So I wonder if this is just made in the same factory, but to a difference spec..

I am going to give AM a call to get their thoughts on this....

Edit.. I think I have worked it out.. The AM one appears to be the same size as the SM1303, but with the bed of the SM1304.. Considering the SM1304 is also on special, it seems like a better deal that the AM version.. Which is smaller and less powerful.

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

Just as a tip, closely scrutinise each different model in detail. My experience is that whilst the basic foundations of many of these clones are all produced in the same Chaiwanese factory there are sometimes specific differences. Things like different grades of bandwheel, table, fence, guides can be unique to a given supplier if they have invested in tooling for a given model. Having said that, this is less prevalent with the lower end of the range which is of course mostly what we're talking about here. It is definitely worth having a close look at the key components to discern any differences and equally ask the supplier specifically what's different between their model and the equivalent clone from SIP/Fox/Charnwood/Axy etc. One of the advantages of going with Axy, even if the model is moderately more costly then a competitor is the 3 year warranty. Axy are known for their excellent customer service and in many respects, just buying it from them totally de-risks it for you because if its a duck, they will always stand by you...with replacement parts and if necessary, a total refund. The other cheaper (superficially) brands like Fox/SIP/Charnwood I wouldn't personally touch with a barge pole because I've heard horror stories of taking the money and running from post sale problems.

 

[jweaver]

Just as a tip, closely scrutinise each different model in detail. My experience is that whilst the basic foundations of many of these clones are all produced in the same Chaiwanese factory there are sometimes specific differences. Things like different grades of bandwheel, table, fence, guides can be unique to a given supplier if they have invested in tooling for a given model. Having said that, this is less prevalent with the lower end of the range which is of course mostly what we're talking about here. It is definitely worth having a close look at the key components to discern any differences and equally ask the supplier specifically what's different between their model and the equivalent clone from SIP/Fox/Charnwood/Axy etc. One of the advantages of going with Axy, even if the model is moderately more costly then a competitor is the 3 year warranty. Axy are known for their excellent customer service and in many respects, just buying it from them totally de-risks it for you because if its a duck, they will always stand by you...with replacement parts and if necessary, a total refund. The other cheaper (superficially) brands like Fox/SIP/Charnwood I wouldn't personally touch with a barge pole because I've heard horror stories of taking the money and running from post sale problems.

Cheers.. I am swaying towards the AM model.. It looks fine for my needs.. And its the right size (I over estimated how much space I had on my work bench).

 

[finish_that]

My recent experience :

Found an as new burgess 3 wheeler , a week later I spotted an Inca , 35 years old - but complete with fences , circle guide
and spare blades for £85 For the extra £25 and some fuel for a 100 mile round trip I ended up with something worth having
After cleaning up the Inca - brush and vacuum , fitted one of the spare new blades - fired it up and was able to make some test cuts - 1mm thick cuts from a 50mm deep offcut from the bin... just like that.
I got round to unboxing the genuinely as new Burgess and proceeded to fit the new blade that came with it , took me 20 mins of fiddling
tested it to make sure it ran and advertised it that evening, oh and it came with no fence.

My advice , wait and keep an eye out for an Inca, Delta , small Kitty , they do turn up , the Incas - in the last couple of months there have been 3 reasonably local and a couple went for less than a new cheapy , you are just as likely to spend time messing about with a new one as fettling
an older one.

 

[DiscoStu]

I saw a review of the Axminster vs the Jet and the Axminster came out quite a bit better. It was even stated that it was an ideal intro and would still be of use even if a bigger machine was bought. I have the bigger 250model and with the right blade it's brilliant. I find I use the bandsaw more than anything else.

 

[RogerP]

The only (but sometimes crucial) advantage of 3 wheelers is the greater maximum width of cut, size for size, than 2 wheelers. The disadvantage is blade breakage as the blade is so stressed going around the smaller wheels.