Recommendations for a resaw bandsaw

[Chris Atzinger]

Thanks for the feedback, guys. I have updated my profile to include my location. I am in Park Hills, Kentucky (right across the river from Cincinnati). I have skimmed through CL a little but most BSs are 15 yr old 10" Craftsman or Delta benchtop models with people asking $100. I'll be honest, some of the brands mentioned above are new to me (very intrigued).

When looking for used tools, I am only aware of CL and ebay. Are there other sources for this sort of stuff? I once heard someone mention that Rockler had a used tool forum, but I have yet to find it....

Thanks!
Chris

[Stephen Cherry]

When looking for used tools, I am only aware of CL and ebay. Are there other sources for this sort of stuff? I once heard someone mention that Rockler had a used tool forum, but I have yet to find it....

Thanks!
Chris

I'll let you in on a secret: searchtempest, bidspotter, auctionzip. You really need to look at least once a day, and search for "band saw" and "bandsaw". It only takes a couple of minutes. I bought my agazzani on craigslist from NC. As far as these machines coming up used, by occasionally, you may see just a handful of good deals each year. You probably only need one though, and you can be sure the best deal will come up after you buy your saw. Most of what you will see is junk, you just need to sort through it. Many of the good modern saws are Italian.

[dirk martin]

From a pure resawing point of view the G0568 and MM24 are not in the same class. Let me pose a simple question, when you need to resaw a 20" tall board do you go to the G0568 or the MM24? I know the answer and I guarantee your answer is the same as mine.

I politely disagree. If you were a betting man...you'd lose.
The truthful answer is, I'd go to whichever is nearest, and isn't being used.
I've resawed hundreds of linear feet on both, and there's no difference....except that the MM24 will leave your pocketbook thinner.

Now, if you are creating your "classes" based on cost....then yes, they are in different classes.

[Van Huskey]

I politely disagree. If you were a betting man...you'd lose.
The truthful answer is, I'd go to whichever is nearest, and isn't being used.
I've resawed hundreds of linear feet on both, and there's no difference....except that the MM24 will leave your pocketbook thinner.

Now, if you are creating your "classes" based on cost....then yes, they are in different classes.

Are you sure? Are you saying your 24" Grizzly can resaw a 20" board?

[JohnT Fitzgerald]

I have skimmed through CL a little but most BSs are 15 yr old 10" Craftsman or Delta benchtop models with people asking $100

Wow, great price!! LOL. I have not seen a lot of good stuff on CL around here. I did see a BS in "excellent" condition - picture looked like it was covered in rust. Oh - and it didn't have a motor. other than that, ir ran great!

[Van Huskey]

Ok Cincinnati. Stephen pointed out use one of the several searching programs, I like searchtempest. Great bandsaws aren't for sale constantly but they do come up regularly BUT sometimes you have to drive a little to collect them. Just an example a pristine Minimax MM16 came up in Cleveland a couple of weeks ago. Although it would probably sell outside your budget it is just an example of a good CL bandsaw find. The CL finds are there you just have to be determined and a little patient. The Grizzly 513/514 series saws are excellent and are GREAT values but if you have some time to spend searching you will likely be able to get cheaper, bigger and/or better.

[Van Huskey]

This is somewhat of a threadjack but since the OP was interested in some of the "other' names he wasn't aware and I made the bold statement regarding "class" I figured I would follow it up.

I ask Dirk which of his bandsaws he would use to resaw a 20' high board, I knew his answer would be the Minimax because the resaw height of the MM24 is 24" and the resaw height of the Grizzly 24" bandsaws (G0568 & G0569) is 16". This is what puts them in VERY different classes in terms of a resaw bandsaw regardless of cost.

The Italian bandsaws are like Italian sports cars they have gained a reputation over the many decade they have built welded steel saws. The two main companies ACM and Centauro build the saws marketed in the US as Laguna, Agazzani and Mini-Max. They actually have HUGE lines of bandsaws sold in Europe and worldwide under many different names including their own.

Taking a look back at the history of the bandsaw saw early saws made from huge iron castings in both the US and Europe. The unfortunate circumstances in Europe during the early 1940s left countries without the ability to forge large castings and the engineers started building bandsaws (and many other things) from welded steel. The huge weight and other properties of cast iron saws allowed for lots of inherent vibration dampening which mask unbalanced rotating assemblies and the like. Welded steel offered no such safety net so the European saws had to be built to higher tolerances. The US kept building large saws with heavy castings and only dabbled in welded steel for lighter weight saws for the lower end market, when Asia began building export machines they followed the US prototype. This developed into a competitive advantage for the European companies when large castings became less and less economically feasible. The Asian exporters have become better and better at welded steel saws and recently we have seen three volleys over the flanks of the Italian saws. Both Grizzly and Powermatic have set out to build saws that compete with the Italians (Grizzly even mentions this in their literature). To this point I think both have failed to match the Italians but they are getting close. The PM entry is the PM1800 and though in many ways they are right there the economics of scale (in this case the Italian companies make a LOT more saws) pushed the price point of the PM saw ABOVE the Italians so it is a hard sell. The Grizzly 17 and 19" forrays into the market have been more successful in my eyes. Interesting this is probably one case where Grizzly does not have economics of scale on their side. The 17" G0636X is a very solid performer with a price tag significantly below the Italian 16" offerings. The 19" GO701 is also a good saw but it doesn't offer the costs savings over the Italians that its little brother has. In my opinion the G0636X is the harbinger of the fact that the Asians are coming but not quite there.

Returning to the class issue. The vertical "resaw" bandsaw is a relatively new and loose term but gets its origin from Torben Helshoj (founder of Laguna) deciding to build vertical bandsaws with resaw heights roughly equal to the wheel diameter, this occured in the late 80's. Up until then "traditional" bandsaws had resaw heights more along the lines of 2/3 of the wheel diameter. The Minimax MM-24 fits the "resaw' mold with 24" of resaw and over 1,000 ponuds of heft which comes with a spine rigid enough to tension wide blades over such a significant cantilever that results from the large resaw height. The Grizzly G0658 and G0659 have a more traditional 16" inches and results in a saw that has 170 or so less pounds of heft. Simply put completely different classes of saw.

As for the best Grizzly G0658 vs Italian apples to apples comparison I would say this would be the Agazzani B-24 with roughly 17" of resaw height these saws are very similar in capacity and weight but the Agazzani has about a $300 dollar premium in price. It does come with superior QC in that Eagle tools (the only us retailer) sets up every saw, plots the table flatness etc. It is for the individual to balance this along with the nit-pick features of each saw to determine the best value.

In the end whether buying new or used if the Italian saws fit ones budget I prefer them to Asian saws, assuming they are in similar condition and capacity. If one is buying new and looking for the most value (and doesn't need mongo resaw heights) the Grizzly line represents the best performance-cost balance, only when some of the other Asian saws are on sale do they approach this. The ONLY place the Grizzly lower line bandsaws misses a beat is in the 14" welded bandsaw with 12+ inches of resaw height category. Rikon owns that subclass. FINALLY, I will also say for the majority of hobby woodworkers like myself the Grizzly 513 and 514 line offer the absolute best values in bandsaws, but the Italians earned and deserve their reputation at the top of the vertical bandsaw pyramid. Used American iron is a WHOLE other discussion and lets just say their are some pre-1950s American iron I would trade my Italian stallion for in a heart beat, but I would miss it...

[Norman Hitt]

If you want to do some "Real Resawing", check the Dallas Fort Worth Area Craigslist. Some guy there has TWO 42" (Tannewitz IIRC) bandsaws for sale, (for a mere $7,000 each, IIRC) Only shows a Pic of one. You really need one of these Van, for your collection to keep those tiny ones in line.

[Rick Fisher]

I have a used 24" SCM600 .. which is a Centauro SC600.. Mine is a 1989 .. or 1987.. cant remember.. It looks like a short MM-24.. lol
Its resaw capacity is only 12-3/4" with Carter guides.. Having said that .. I think its only been an issue one time.. I had a 14" wide slab of quilted maple.

The reason I bring it up is that these saws can be purchased for under $1000 in working condition.. They are usually 3 phase, but that can be worked out.. I re-powered my saw with a Baldor 5hp.. I can tell you that it will resaw 12" hardwood no problem whatsoever.. I use it to do all my ripping, its much faster and safer than my cabinet saw.. less kerf too..

It replaced an 18" Delta, which is a toy by comparison.. The Delta was way less machine in every way possible.

I bought mine and restored it.. The cost was much less than a new saw of similar size.. I would do it again tomorrow.. its a fantastic saw, meets all my needs with ease.. Restoring a bandsaw is pretty simple compared to most machinery.. A new Laguna 24 or MM-24 would be a better saw than mine, but also in the $5000 + range.. If your up to fixing up an older saw, they are often built just as good (or better) than the newer ones, and worth the elbow grease to bring back to life.

[Van Huskey]

If you want to do some "Real Resawing", check the Dallas Fort Worth Area Craigslist. Some guy there has TWO 42" (Tannewitz IIRC) bandsaws for sale, (for a mere $7,000 each, IIRC) Only shows a Pic of one. You really need one of these Van, for your collection to keep those tiny ones in line.

Never seen an RH "in the wild" a bunch of the smaller GH and GHE series but never the 42"er.

Those big brutes have their appeal but they take up a LOT of real estate both in the horizontal and vertical planes. Honestly the only one I would go the extra miles for (room, money) would be a Yates American Y-36 or Y-42 Snowflake and then it would have to be priced right initially. I do love the big stuff but in reality nothing I am ever likely to cut would need anything like them. Just the logistics of moving one is enormous. One of the monsters would make a great conversation piece, the last creeker I met has a 36" Crescent and the second I walked into his shop I was drawn to it like a magnet and stared at it almost the entire time we chatted. Funny it is on CL in TX, I have gotten everyone of my used BS from Texas.

[Van Huskey]

Rick, that is a very nice saw and I love those CP20 guides, at least I think that's what they are from the picture. You did a great job with the rehab! I have been looking for an older Centauro 700 or 800 for several years but having a specific saw in mind makes CL shopping hard!

[Josiah Bartlett]

Whatever you go with, budget for a couple of good resaw blades (and tires and/or guides if buying used). I dont' ever trust used blades, especially with resawing. It is so much less frustrating to start with a new blade when setting up the saw, especially when you are doing it for the first time and getting used to the quirks of your saw. Most used blades have drift problems from being rusty or dull on one side from hitting nails.

Even the OEM blades that come with new saws usually suck.

[Doug Shepard]

...
Then get a Laguna Resaw King, Lenox Trimaster or Lenox Woodmaster CT for the blade....

What he said. I use a Trimaster on a MM16 and still grin every time I use it. A carbide blade is going to give you a huge improvement on resaw cut quallity whatever saw you end up with.