craftsman 14 inch bandsaw 119.224010 starts very very slow, and general opinion

[cody michael]

I have a craftsman 119.224010 14 inch bandsaw, it was free, so the price was right.

When I started it up it starts very slow. Like 30 seconds to full speed. (My older blue jet 14 starts up almost instantly, same electrical plugin.) It also doesn't seem to cut well (may be blade I have a new haven't had a chance to try it out)

My question is, why does it take so long to spin up, is that normal or is there something wrong?

Is it worth keeping, my shop space is limited. About 15x27 and there are a lot of other tools in there.

Should this be a decent saw, so I can have a smaller blade on it an a bigger one on jet? Or is it just junky?

[glenn bradley]

I'm going with a starter cap as a first guess. I believe this is a starter capacitor style motor from the pics. Caps are inexpensive and around here, I go to Temco but, there is probably a source in your area. As to whether it is worth it or not? I love having a large AND a small saw for just the reasons you cite.

[cody michael]

I'm going with a starter cap as a first guess. I believe this is a starter capacitor style motor from the pics. Caps are inexpensive and around here, I go to Temco but, there is probably a source in your area. As to whether it is worth it or not? I love having a large AND a small saw for just the reasons you cite.

is there any way to trouble shoot this? And make sure that is the issue?

[glenn bradley]

Pull the blade and leave the lower wheel guard/door off/open. Turn the switch on and give the lower wheel a push in the direction that is normally goes (this is what the starter cap does when you ask the motor to start). If it speeds up and reaches running speed in a fairly normal manner, your start cap is a good bet. There are various testing methods of varying complexity. Here's a simple one. Your cap, if present, (the reason I say 'if present' is because there are different types of motor and some use a starter-winding or other methods of giving the motor that first kick from a standing start) is probably under the cover shown in the last pic. My next guess will be the centrifugal clutch.

I guess I should say that I am assuming you have already removed the motor from the mechanical path to confirm that the lower and upper wheels turn freely and that the motor turns freely(?)

[Joe Kaufman]

Is the motor wired for 240V operation?

[Myk Rian]

Take the blade and belt off the saw. Start turning flat round things to see what's binding.
Unplug it first, of course.

[cody michael]

I am not sure if it is wired for 220, I had assumed it was 110, I will have to check. I am will have to try look for anything that binds.

[glenn bradley]

Is the motor wired for 240V operation?

Joe, that is such a brilliantly obvious question . . . I'll bet that's it. The slow start sounds like a depleted cap but, I usually see them just fail. If only one winding was getting juice, the symptoms would make a lot more sense.

[Duane Meadows]

Joe, that is such a brilliantly obvious question . . . I'll bet that's it. The slow start sounds like a depleted cap but, I usually see them just fail. If only one winding was getting juice, the symptoms would make a lot more sense.

If only one winding getting "juice"? Ahh, probably shouldn't even go there It's not about the "juice" comment. by the way.

[John McClanahan]

I would say the starting capacitor is on a down hill slide. If the motor was wired for 240 volts, I doubt the motor would ever get up to speed with a blade installed.

BTW, I have the 12" version of that saw. Nice saw for a Craftsman.


John

[Bill Neely]

The belt may be slipping, that's a two speed bandsaw, make sure the lever on the front is turned down to the 4 o'clock position (higher speed for wood) - you may need to do it while the saw is running.

[cody michael]

Thanks for your help, I got super busy with the wife yesterday and never got back out to the woodshop, I will check these things out. Hopefully can get it fixed.

[cody michael]

I pulled the blade off no difference, lower wheel seems to spin freely. I gave it a good push while starting and it seemed to spin up much quicker. I am assuming it is the capacitor. It is about 8$ on amazon.

It looks like it is wired for 110

[cody michael]

2014-11-19 17.19.05.jpg

is this what I need? is there a better source?
http://www.amazon.com/Polypropylene-.../dp/B00BG6L9E8

[Earl McLain]

First off--the saw itself is a pretty decent saw, even if you have to replace the motor (which i doubt). I have a belt/disk sander that starts with the 119 number, and an 11 amp motor. Similar symptoms until it finally didn't start, tried a capacitor with no success. Took the motor to a local motor shop, the old capacitor was indeed shot, and some of the internal wiring needed to be re-soldered. One day and $45 later i was out the door, and the thing runs like a top. The starter cap is a great starting point--but if that's not it, don't give up.
earl