Is anyone a fan of benchtop bandsaws?

[Deck Reagan]

Hey everyone,
I am new to this forum. I just found it! It's great and you all seem very nice. It seems more relaxed than some of the other forums. I live in Nebraska!

I have been woodworking for some time. I'm not an expert by any means but I sure enjoy it. I am building up my major tools as I go. If I take on a project and I need a new tool I buy it. Sometimes I take on projects just so I can buy tools . Anyway, I plan to get rolling on some nice Adirondacks soon. I need a band saw. My shop is in my 2 car heated garage. My wife gets her side and my tools get the other side. Because space is somewhat limited and I think it's usage would be limited I was considering a benchtop model. Are they worth the money? Would anyone highly recommend a specific brand?

Thanks

deck

[Jim Becker]

Benchtops have their place for scrollwork in thin materials and could be used for the chair projects you anticipate. 1) Stick with two-wheel models only...avoid the three-wheelers like the plague, unless it says, "Inca" on the name plate 2) If you can do a 10" or 12" model, go for it.

That all said, a 12" or 14" bandsaw on a mobile base doesn't take up a lot of room and can easily be tucked away when the garage needs to be used as a garage...

[Joe Mioux]

Welcome to SMC, Deck. Is that "the Beav", Wally, June and Ward in your avitar?

If you plan on doing small stuff, there are some pretty nice bench tops out there. Check out the Rikon's bench top.

Joe

[Vaughn McMillan]

Hey everyone,
I am new to this forum. I just found it! It's great and you all seem very nice. It seems more relaxed than some of the other forums. I live in Nebraska!

No we're not! We're TENSE here. Tense I tell ya! Relaxing is for sissies! And don't bother me. Can't you see I'm busy typing?

(Sorry, I couldn't resist. )

Welcome to the Creek, Deck. You're right about it being a kick back, take your shoes off type of place. Everybody minds their manners and we still manage to have a lot of fun.

...Sometimes I take on projects just so I can buy tools .

Looks like you have this woodworking thing already figured out.

As Joe mentioned, the Rikon benchtop bandsaw has been well-received by some of the folks here. Steer clear of the $100 specials at your local borg, though. A good benchtop saw is only a few dollars more than a cheapie one, and there's a world of difference in performance and features. They'd easily handle the Adirondack chair project, but then again so would a hand-held jigsaw.

That said, as someone who recently upgraded from a cheap $100 benchtop saw to a full-grown 14" with riser block, I'd recommend going with a standalone saw if there's any way you can afford it space-wise and wallet-wise. You can do a lot more things with a bigger saw (and still do all the things you can do with the benchtop saw). Jim's right about how a standalone saw on a mobile base can be tucked away when not being used. Of course your need and available space may dictate going with the smaller saw, and like I said, there are good ones out there.

Happy tool hunting -

- Vaughn

[David Duke]

Hey everyone,
......... Sometimes I take on projects just so I can buy tools ..........

My kind of guy !! Welcome to the Creek, won't find a better bunch of folks anywhere!!

As far as your question on benchtop BS's, I haven't any experience with a benchtop all I've ever used is a stationary 14" so I couldn't help you there.

[Deck Reagan]

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=550><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=2>Vaughn,
Good point with the jig saw. I have been kind of checking out the grizz below. Comments have been favorable on other forums. I have never bought a Grizzley product but I have not seen much grizz bashing. My table saw is a delta and most of my other power tools are bosch or dewalt.

Thanks for the welcome and your opinions.

deck

G0555 The Ultimate 14" Bandsaw


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[John Miliunas]

Deck, first off, welcome to the Creek! Great place to hang out. Lots of great info and just a super bunch of people!

Now, on to the BS issue. I think you'll find that something like that Grizz actually won't take much more room than a bench unit, once you figure out how much bench space you lose. As for that particular Grizz, I don't have one but, I have seen a LOT of user reviews on it and, generally speaking, most all of them have been very positive! Also, if you have a Woodcraft near you, the Rikon 14" would definitely be worth your while in checking out. Loads of very, very favorable reviews on that one, as well and right in the same price range plus, no shipping charge, though you would have to come up with your state tax.

[Vaughn McMillan]

Yeah Deck, if you search SMC for G0555 you'll see a lot of good things said about that saw. I have a close cousin to it, the Shop Fox, and I've loved every minute of using it.

- Vaughn

[Allen Grimes]

Deck,

I've been browsing woodworking forums for a little while now and throughout that time I've read hundreds of comments about the G0555, and I NEVER read a single bad comment about it. There may be some out there and I dont doubt that there are people who dislike who bought that BS and werent satisfied, but I personally never read anything about them.

That was actually one of the main deciding factors for me when I bought it. Anyway, it hasn't gotten to me yet, but when it does, I'm sure I'll be lucky enough to have a complaint or 2, especially since I just jinxed the crap out of myself by saying never.

[Clint Malone]

http://www.grizzly.com/products/G1052

That one looks to be the best bench top saw I have seen.

[John Bailey]

Deck,

Welcome to the "Creek." As you've found out, it's a good place and you'll enjoy and learn.

As to your question, I would tell you that, practically speaking, a good 14" bandsaw takes up less space than a benchtop. A good 14" bandsaw can be easily made mobile so you can move it out of the way. A benchtop will always take up bench space. If you've looked at any of the pictures of shops on this site, you'll notice there aren't many of us that end up with much usable bench space. Any decent benchtop is going to be fairly heavy to pick up and move. It will get to be a pain when you want to move it out of the way, and then you'll find yourself wishing you had the 14" bandsaw that you could just push out of the way.

There's a reason why the vast majority of woodworkers use a 14" bandsaw. Over time it has proven to be the most useful size for most applications. They seem to work for most folks.

A caveat here. I don't own a bandsaw, just done a lot of reading. So take my comments for what they are worth.

John

[tod evans]

welcome deck! personally i consider benchtop tools toys and won`t spend hard earned money on them.....02 tod

[John Towns]

I just replaced my 'toy' 10" bandsaw with an 18" Rikon. then, I decided to keep the old 10 incher around. It was, after all, my 'first' tool, a gift from LOML 20 years ago. In addition, I can forsee using it for quick cuts.

John

[Mark Rios]

Welcome Deck, nice ta meet ya.

I owned the G0555 and it did more than I could (should) have asked it to. I worked very hard for me.

And, if it matters to you, the President of Grizzly (who is a member here and posts when he needs to) once posted that he uses the G0555 for building his extra, super, fantastic, world famous guitars.

[scott spencer]

Hi Deck...welcome! I've got a 9" Ryobi BS that works ok, but it sure isn't the ideal BS. If there's anyway to fit a more substantial saw into your scheme, I'd highly recommend it...14" seems to be the happy medium for many. My 9" does alot of what I need, but falls short often enough that I use other methods to accomplish some tasks. I also have a good friend within 5 miles who has a Minimax MM16. If I didn't have access to the MM16, I"d guess my opinion of the Ryobi would drop alot b/c I'd be completely restricted to the capacities of the Ryobi!

Just for the record, I'd give the edge in power and build quality to the MM16....the welds on the MM are a bit stronger than the plastic seams of the Ryobi.