Mini Max E16 Bandsaw

[John Davidson]

I am thinking about purchasing this saw. If any one has used or owens the saw I would love to here you thoughts~!

[Jim O'Dell]

I have one, but have not really used it yet. It is powerful, and smooth. I had to adjust a few things, but nothing I would consider to be a pain, or problem. The lower wheel on mine was a little out (1/4 turn on the adjusing screws) and wouldn't track a 1/4" blade properly. The upper blade guard was (is?) shaped so that the rear bearing would not adjust up to the 1/4" blade, and took a very quick modification to fix. And my rack and pinion upper guide adjustment was not very smooth. A couple washers in the right place made it smooth as silk. I resawed a piece of pine 2X4, and took a 3/32 slice off the 3 1/2" side that was very even, no wondering, and that was with the 1/4" blade on it. When I get the rest of my shop fixtures finished, I'll actually get to start on a project that maybe I can use it on, and really learn what it can do.
The things that I wanted on a BS was cast iron wheels, powerful motor, and a foot brake. Nothing else had these items at the price I got my E16 for at that time. The only thing I see that could be better is the miter slot is not the standard size. It is shallow. But that doesn't bother me as I don't see myself using a miter guage on a bandsaw anyway. But if this is crucial for you, a standard miter guage will not fit this saw.
Good luck with your decision. For some reason, the bandsaw seems to be the hardest one to make. Jim.

[Bruce Page]

John, use MiniMax E16 in the Google search function above. You'll get lots of info.

[John Davidson]

Thanks guys! I did found alot of imfo on the E16. But here is my story. I have been wanting to upgrade for some time. I set my budget to $1500. As a hobbist I think that should be plenty and as it works out MM says they can deliver the E16 to my door with lift gate service for about $1650. But then I start thinking how little more it would cost to move up to an even better saw. So I have got prices on Agazanni , Laguna and MM. Here it goes! I can get the Agazanni B18 to the local terminal for about 2250 and the MM16 to the house for 2550. I want to make sure that I get the saw that will see me through and never have to repalce or upgrade but I don't want to over purchase. I want to be able to resaw but it is not the end all be all of my decsion as I will use the saw more for scroll work. But when I go to resaw I don't want to be waiting for the water to boil, so to speak, to get the job done. I am so confussed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Also, it seems odd that Laguna has priced themselves completly out of this. I can afford the extra but do I really need to? I even have a green light from the wife. By the way I am moveing up from a Jet 14"

[Leigh Betsch]

You might try to see if MM has a used or last years showroom model. I purchase a MM16 last years showroom model, drove clear to Austin TX to pick it up (along with a ST4 saw/shaper, and a FS41 JP). When I got there the MM16 wasn't ready so Jim upgraded me to the MM20 at the same price. Gotta love these MM guys.

[Jim Becker]

John, both the Aggi and the MM are excellent saws. Don't be afraid to negotiate or see if you can leverage a "show price". I know that Eagle and MM both try to do the best they can for their customers. And Michael's team at MM is top notch.

[Jim O'Dell]

John, when I first started looking at bandsaws, I saw the S16 MM had at the local woodworking show. I decided at that time, that I would wait and save to spend the little extra on the MM16. Then the E16 came out at an introductory price. If I was paying the 1500.00 plus shipping price, I'd probably be back to saving a few more pennies for the MM16. If you aren't in a big hurry, the end of the year is about here, and they always have a year end price special. Seems like the MM16 last year was 2300 shipped?? I might not be remembering that right. Jim.

[Christof Grohs]

I love my mm16, no problems thus far. It's a well build machine to say the least.

[Kevin Adams]

John, if you could swing a little more $, I would strongly suggest you consider the S45N rather than the E16. I purchased the former a couple of years ago and it is a fantastic saw for the $. LIke you, I did a lot of research and had several people advise me of problems they had with the E16 right out of the box. Of course, the MM16 or equvalent is also a fine machine, but I wanted a larger throat than 16" and really never saw myself needing to resaw 16" (the S45N is 12"). If you are building furniture, the S45N is a great choice. If you want to keep the budget down, I might actually consider one of the offshore models rather than the E16.

Good luck.

Kevin

[John Davidson]

I have thought about the S45N but I don't like some of the features of the this machine. With that being said I can afford to spend more but I am not sure that I need to. So as of today I have decide to go with the Agazanni B18. As it turns out they did include lift gate service in thier quote. Right at $2258 to the house. I can live with that and feel confident that with Eagle Tool's and Agazanni's reputation I won't reget this decision. I thank everyone for there input, it has been a big help. Yesterday I was so confussed. After really thinking hard on it today and having talked to a couple of Agazanni user it seems clear to me that I should be happy with it. Thanks all!

[Ken Fitzgerald]

John,

I just bought a b/s recently. I was considering the Agazzani B20, the MM-16 and the Laguna 16.

In every case I talked with one salesman and told him what competitive machine I was considering and everyone of them said "You can't go wrong with any of those machines."


I exchanged emails with Mark D. and told him what I was considering and his take was "you can go wrong with any of those Italian made machines."

I don't think you'll regret your decision.


BTW...I bought the MM-16.

Good luck!

[Jim O'Dell]

For the 400.00 difference between the S45N and the MM16, I'd be more than willing to give up the extra throat depth. I wouldn't make the decision because it has 16" resaw either. It's the strength of the frame (look at the weight difference), and the ooomph of the motor that would get me. I agree, with the stated price of either the E16 or the S45N vs the MM16, I'd save my pennies for the MM16, no wondering back and forth. My decision to go with the E16 was the introductory price I got it at. Otherwise I'd probably still be saving my pennies for the MM16. Jim.