Getting my first bandsaw

[jeff oldham]

well im getting ready to bite the bullet and buy myself my first large bandsaw,,one for resawing actually,,i have a tabletop model but needless to say not that good for resawing,,I have been looking at the laguna 1412 and the grizzly go778,,both are 110v,,at the moment I don't have 220,,the laguna is 12in resaw I believe where the grizzly is 10in,,,the laguna is on sale here at woodcraft for 987.00plus tax which I can pickup,,the grizzly is 1150.00 which includes free shipping and no tax,,can anyone offer some advice on each bandsaw and what they would prefer or for that matter some folks that own either one,,,,thank you

[Roger Chandler]

I have the G0555LX 14" bandsaw from Grizzly, and use it all the time to cut bowl blanks and also is does a pretty good job of resawing with a good blade on it, properly tensioned and adjusted. It has more in height capacity, with a riser block, and will set you back about half of what the G0778 will. Of course it is a clone of the classic Delta bandsaw, but it is a work horse. My G0555LX has a strong 1 hp motor, and I have cut numerous 11" thick bowl blanks with it, both in green and semi-dried blanks from log sections. Proper feed rate and a good blade and this thing hums!

The G0555X Extreme duty is $859 and with a riser block will give you the 12" cutting height and a 1.5 hp motor which is basically the same as the 1.75 hp on the G0778, just a little more efficient. The fully computer balanced cast iron wheels will give you the greatest amount of torque in the cut and I will presume that the saw is as smooth as my G0555LX, which is the smoothest 14" class saw I have ever used, and I have used about every brand on market in the 14" class, except Laguna.

Good luck with whatever you decide........just thought information would be helpful to you. Just to give you a bit of background.....I also have in my shop an 18" Jet bandsaw, which is a beast, and it is a fine saw........most of the time I use the Grizz 555LX because it does such good job for me. I use the Woodturners blades from Highland Hardware for bowl blanks, which are 3 tpi. Resawing boards, I use a 4 tpi or 6 tpi blade of 1/2" wide. On my Jet, I have used from 1/2" to 1-1/4" wide, 3 tpi or 6 tpi if I want really smooth cut, but have to slow down the feed rate.

[David M Peters]

Hi Jeff, I have the 1412 and primarily use it for green wood processing. No experience with any Grizzly bandsaws. My only real complaint about the 1412 is the durability of its ceramic guides, you need to be gentle with them to avoid rubbing off the ceramic. Otherwise it's a very good saw that cuts damn straight with minimal fuss.

[Alex Snyder]

With 110 power, the Rikon 10-326 should be on the consideration list as well: http://www.rikontools.com/productpage_10-326.html

[Bruce Schoenleber]

I have had the 1412 for 3 or four years it is a fine saw and I have no overall complaints. I have had to replace a couple of the ceramic guides. no big deal. One issue I do have is the 115 inch blade size, kind of an odd duck length and not as many purchase options as other more common blade lengths.

[Van Huskey]

First, I agree the Rikon 10-326 should be considered as well.


Both the 14/12 and G0778 are still spined saws and will have less deflection in the frame than a cast 14" Delta clone. The power is essentially the same with the Laguna having a little extra resaw height that even if you don't use it directly it helps improve the sight lines depending on your height. Both have fairly high table heights which is a good thing if you are tall, not so good if you do a lot of resawing and with cutting bowl blanks it is generally good as long as the weight of the chunks are easy for you to lift to the height. The Laguna has a slightly larger table and the fence lock doesn't stick out like the Grizzly when locked. I prefer the mushroom switch on the Laguna since it is easier to slap to turn the machine off than the switch on the Grizzly.

Probably the biggest advantage of the Laguna for wet wood cutting is the ceramic black guides, not only are they the easiest guides to set (since you can run them slightly touching the blade so no guessing or measurement) but they help scrape off sap and other debris from the blade which is useful hen cutting wet wood. Being a solid guide they have no moving parts like bearings to seize and all roller bearings will sooner or later so you clean and degunk them or replace them.

I prefer the Laguna for ease of operation and the ergonomics seem better thought out to me but in the end both will cut wood. The Rikon has the advantage of a warranty 5 times as long as the other two and has their new updated guides which I prefer to the Grizzly but still prefer the Laguna guides over the Rikon guides. It has essentially the same power and 13" of resaw height, I like the fence a little better than the other two. It is similarly priced and can be cheaper when it is on sale, not sure if it is but Circle Saw has the best day to day prices on Rikon saws but that isn't a local pick-up for you like the Laguna is.


BTW Fine Woodworking did a test of 14" bandsaws in issue #244 it included the G0457 and 14/12 along with the last generation Rikon (the Rikon was updated last year) the 14/12 was picked as both the best overall and best value in the test, it shared best overall with the 15" Powermatic which was basically a ringer because it is much more expensive and shared best value with a Steel City saw but they are out of business now.

[Bob Bouis]

I'll second the ceramic guides for cutting green wood. I recently put some Laguna guides on my minimax and the difference was huge. They scrape the sides of the blade clean (don't help the teeth, though, so you still need to lubricate the blade) and help keep it from twisting or deflecting when it gets dull.

They are kind of unpleasantly loud, though.

[Dennis Collier]

I have the same 555LX that Roger spoke about. Mine has the riser block and is a workhorse. At a turning class last weekend, the instructor mentioned that saw as well. Said his club purchased one and they cant kill it. Its a lot of saw for the money. If you insist on spending your entire budget, I would consider the G0513. That steps you up to a 17", 2HP saw for less than 778 your asking about.

[david privett]

I would suggest getting 220 v in the shop and then look at saws with a new set of eyes.

[Van Huskey]

If you insist on spending your entire budget, I would consider the G0513. That steps you up to a 17", 2HP saw for less than 778 your asking about.

Note the G0513ANV is the same saw in different paint and slightly cheaper, the biggest issue with that saw is the guides, they are the worst guides of any saw Grizzly makes and aren't tooless. Other issues are: it has a fairly low budget fence, not nearly as nice as the other saws in consideration which may be a non-issue if he only plans to use if for cutting blanks, it also has the steel vs CI trunnions and the aluminum vs CI wheels and smaller table. Basically no free lunch, but if he moves his budget up ~$150 the G0513X2 comes into play and makes a more compelling argument.