General I vs grizzly 17" bandsaw - any thoughts

[travis howe]

Hope you're all doing well. I sold my 14" Jet bandsaw and was looking at the new Grizzly Polar series513P GO for $800 then I came across a floor model of the General International 90-240M1 for a couple hundred bucks more.

The General seems to have some sturdier parts, any thoughts, suggestions, feedback?

[Eiji Fuller]

bigger and heavier is better.

[glenn bradley]

Looks remarkably similar. Same fence rails and base. Frame form-factor looks very close. Even the window, dust port, knob and wheel placement is similar. I would say either would probably serve you well. A lot of folks have the 513 in one flavor or another but, that doesn't make it better. I do love mine. I'm seeing the General Int'l at $1500 to $1800; if you're seeing it around $1000, that sounds like a bargain, at least on their price. If they are as similar as they look, maybe not so much. That extra weight is coming from somewhere but could be their packing as the weight listed on both machines is shipping weight. Hmmm. Any chance of getting your hands on them for a touchy-feely experience? That will often tell me a lot that specs won't.

[travis howe]

That seems to be what I'm seeing as well. First I know the wheels are cast metal on the GI vs aluminum on the Grizz...then again that's another debate. I've had my hands on the GI but no where to touch a Grizz around here. I "think" the GI is also a baldor motor vs a less standard on the grizz (something I'll need to look at)... The other positive is that the GI is from a very reputable tool store in my area that is near by so that might help w/ some hassles if something were to go wrong.

[Kent Chasson]

Don't know about the General but I have an older version of the G0513X2B (which is also a couple hundred more than the Grizzly Polar series513P GO) and it's been a good saw. The upgrade gets you cast iron wheels, a better fence, better guides and a brake. The brake is a very nice feature. Probably the aluminum wheels don't have the momentum of the cast iron but mine will turn for more than 30 seconds after you shut off the machine. When the dust collector is on, you don't hear the saw continue to turn and it's easy to walk away for 10 seconds and come back forgetting that the blade is still going strong.

The frame is sturdy. It will resaw 9" of wenge with no problem. Blade changes are easy. The guide arm is sturdy and adjustable for plumb. Only problem is that a few of the guide bearings have frozen in in less time than I would expect.

[lawrence dosson]

i have that general saw it is a good saw i only use it to resaw does that just fine.
i have a delta 14 in saw for all other work 'mine is 4-5 years old no proplems the motor is made in tywain just like the rest of the saw