14 or 17 inch bandsaw

[Mike Lipke]

The spring on my new 17" BS is literally 10 times as big and thick as the one on my Jet 14".
Putting a riser kit on it did not change the spring, which was designed for for the 14" saw with a 6" height.

[James Carmichael]

It's a marketing thing but watch out for the "wow" factor. Like "wow!, it has 5 HP" ; it means nothing if you can't cut more than 12" anyway.

So, William, if you've got a 5hp bandsaw with a 12" depth of cut, you would be willing to trade for my 1hp, which also cuts 12" stock, right? After all, that extra 4HP doing you no good.

[Mike Lipke]

My 17", 5hp has a maximum cut of 16". I have cut 14" with it, so it is not just the Wow factor.

1hp will cut something 12" thick, and I have done it. But is takes longer.
A lot longer.

[Mike Lipke]

1 hp cutting 12" works, but a lot slower.

More than Wow factor if you are cutting thick stuff.

Is 5 hp necessary?
No, but 3 is prolly minimum for very often use at that thickness.

[Andrew Joiner]

Tom: The only difference between a 14" and a 17" is 1.5" of wheel radius.

Mike: What you have is a vertical saw mill with limited cut depth and without the log feeder.

Guy: Let's really confuse Tom.

Loren: What you're saying is that set-up is critical to performance and the easier the set-up, the better the saw.

Tom: A 14" cast iron wheel requires more HP than a 17" aluminum wheel. It's not the size but the weight.

Mike: Wheel diameter has nothing to do with frame rigidity, riser or not. Neither factor affects blade tension (that's a function of the spring) or alignment (a design factor). More HP is required for wider blades and heavier wheels and has nothing to do with cut depth.

Cary: IF you can properly tension a wider blade depends on springs and frame. Weight has nothing to do with vibration. Balance does; it also helps if the wheels and tires are round.

Curt: If you want to specialize in re-sawing - get the deepest cut depth you can find with enough frame to super-tension a 1" blade and enough HP to force-feed a 16" oak log. If you want versatility look for a BS with easy and multiple conversion options relative to blade guides and tension mechanisms.

From 8" "toy" bandsaws to 25HP mills the individual components of a band saw cutting solution should be "proportional" to the job at hand. Most band saws out there have frames that could be converted into rock-crushers but the disparities in component "proportion" are huge. It's a marketing thing but watch out for the "wow" factor. Like "wow!, it has 5 HP" ; it means nothing if you can't cut more than 12" anyway.

If you study William Falberg's website http://www.falbergsawz.com/
you can see he's done a lot of experimenting with bandsaws. I'd say he pushes the limits in many ways. It is cool to see a guy do so many unique things with a bandsaw. Having studied William's saws I can kinda see where he's coming from with his comments. Yes , his comments seem a bit unconventional, but he has designed and built bandsaws.

Me I'm just a user of bandsaws.

Tom, if you want a new saw I'd say get a 17". I'm a big fan of a 2 saw shop because I hate changing blades. Some people " soup up" 14" bandsaws and get good resawing out of them. Heck, maybe that's how William got started!

To keep it simple, you should be able to resaw OK with your current saw if you get the right blade and set it up right.

[Tom Hassad]

Thanks all for your comments - the truth is I am not sure what I will end up resawing - I know it will be for boxes then I want to graduate to making veneers, etc. I still want to do curve work and I am not happy with my current saw to even do that. I do want a saw to do both so it looks like I will go with a 17 inch model. I just want the capacity but I do not see myself resawing really long boards - I may need up to 12" capacity but maybe not right now. I cannot afford to have two machines, I do not have enough space in my garage and I really want to get rid of my current saw - I do not even want to think of spending more money on it to turn it into a curve cutter. I am looking at the Grizzly models - I am going to make a decision this fall - thanks again for your comments.

[Jim Kountz]

and never look back.

Check out all of the other many bandsaw threads.

Yes yes yes, cant go wrong. No need to spend anymore money either. Great saw and great customer service.

[Pete Bradley]

So, William, if you've got a 5hp bandsaw with a 12" depth of cut, you would be willing to trade for my 1hp, which also cuts 12" stock, right? After all, that extra 4HP doing you no good.

Power is greatly overrated in band saws. If my 5 HP bandsaw was a Harbor Freight with a riser and yours was a 20" Delta with a 1HP, I'd trade any day of the week.

Pete

[Pat Germain]

Here's another recommendation for the Grizzly G0513X2. I have that saw and I'm just tickled silly with it. It's an absolute joy to use. And, for a new band saw, I don't think there's a better value out there.

This saw comes wired for 220V. I recommend keeping it that way. The cord that comes with the saw is very short. Buy a heavy duty extension cord and the plug of your choice at your local hardware store. Cut the ends off the extension cord and wire it up. (This is much less expensive than buying wire by the foot.)

[jerry nazard]

Yet another vote for Grizzly G0513x2. It's a nice saw!

[Erik Christensen]

Keep in mind that another benefit of the larger wheels on the 17" saw is that the blade life is much greater.

The smaller radius of the 14" wheel causes greater blade flex and thus fatigue which can cause premature failure of the blade. Also the larger saw usually has a much longer blade so it has more time to cool before traveling back into the cut - heat being another wear factor on blade life.

[William Falberg]

The hype behind claims of excessive weld fatigue in wheels of lesser diameter is just that - hype. Manufacturers of band saws with larger wheels cite that in their bullet points to boost sales of what are currently the worst band saw designs in existence. Under controlled testing here we couldn't find any difference in blade fatigue while the saw was run without a load. The arc section of a 20" wheel barely diverges from its 14" cousin and even the theoretical difference between them is marginal at most. We've run our 10" wheels for days with the same blade. In on-the-job operation, the blade gets dulled long before the weld gives out. Where you see the most devastating weld fatigue is in the blade's cut path. We discovered there's a direct relationship between wheel alignment and weld fatigue however, but the most likely cause of premature breakage is deflection (around blade guides, drift correction, and free-hand operational errors) through the cut path. No blade will last long under conditions of improper alignment or operation. You can't take manufacturers claims as fact. They're usually self-serving and often incorrect. I'm no exception. But I try. So you can believe me; because I never lie, and I'm always right:-)............

[Rick Fisher]

I am a big fan of a powerful bandsaw. I upgraded to a bigger saw, and now rip all hardwood on the bandsaw. Its safer, faster and takes less kerf..

I just today got my first 1" 3tpi Lennox Tri-Master blade, am about to do the "throw it on the lawn and run" routine and install it.

If I survive the un-coiling .. I will post an opinion on it.

[Dave Lehnert]

OK!

I am confused. If I buy a 17" saw I will not want to use it for curves????
Why would it not do curves like a 14" saw would?

[Rick Fisher]

A 17" will cut curves just fine.. Its actually nicer because you have more room between the saw and the blade.