Question About A Craftsman Bandsaw - 137.224140

[Corey Hallagan]

I have a chance to buy a 7-10 year old Craftsman 14 Inch Professional Series bandsaw with about 40 hours on it.The model number is:

137.224140

Attached is an image from craftsman of the parts list and a photo of the actual saw. Anyone know who made this bandsaw and if it was a decent saw? I can get this saw for about $150.00 It has been stored inside the guys house and only used for sawing some craftwood up for a neighbor and never used again and wants to get rid of it. Anyone own one and can comment on it?

Thanks!

Corey

[Corey Hallagan]

Bump... anyone?

Thanks,

Corey

[Chuck Lenz]

You haven't bought it yet ? Looks like a great deal to me.

[Richard Magbanua]

Hi Corey,
I just checked on the net for this saw and found reviews on epinions that were very good with regards to value. Other reviews found it so-so mentioning the motor bogs down in heavier resawing cuts and that the fence doesn't adjust for drift. I think I remember looking at this saw when they were phasing it out. It looked like a nice saw except it wasn't made to take a riser kit for increased resawing. For $150 it seems like a very good deal. I think they were $450 new. I Think it will be a great saw to have as long as you plan on getting some good blades with the money saved (Timberwolf and Woodslicer get alot of good reviews). It makes a big difference. An premium blade could help the bogging down problem of those reviews. You could also look into a better fence or just make one. And then, just like any other power tool, there's a dizzying array of accessories that will claim to make your saw even better. If anything, $150 is worth it just to be able to make safer cuts that would be tempting and stupid to make on a tablesaw. After I got a bandsaw I was still attempting to make those cuts with my TS and would turn it off thinking, "wait, stupid, you've got a bandsaw now!".

[Chuck Lenz]

Other reviews found it so-so mentioning the motor bogs down in heavier resawing cuts and that the fence doesn't adjust for drift. I think I remember looking at this saw when they were phasing it out. It looked like a nice saw except it wasn't made to take a riser kit for increased resawing.

Richard, I could be wrong, but looking at the diagram it looks like the saw would accept a riser block. Infact the saw body looks like my JET or even a Delta. It would be interesting to know what size the motor is. It still looks like a heck of a buy to me.

[Matt Meiser]

It looks to be a pretty standard Chinese/Taiwanese saw--if that's the case things like a riser block kit from another manufacturer will probably fit--maybe with some fabrication on your part, but doable. I used a Ridgid riser block kit on a no-name saw I had. I couldn't use the alignment pins between the top and bottom half and I had to have my dad turn down bar for the upper guides (probably could have also just bought some steel stock from MSC), but it wasn't too bad. That's assuming you want a riser block and can't get one from Sears.

Other than that, based on general Craftsman quality I would have to guess that the quality lies somewhere between a Jet/Delta/Grizzly and a Harbor Freight. And there are plenty of people who've had good success in tuning the Harbor Freight saw to their satisfaction so I would think you'd be in good shape.

On the no-name saw I had, I put on a larger motor (an inexpensive one from Harbor Freight) and did some other tuning. I'd still have it if I hadn't gotten an awesome deal on an older Delta/Rockwell. For the most part, motor upgrades on a 14" saw are easy and you can probably repurpose the existing motor for a buffing wheel if you like. If you aren't in a rush, watching Craigslist would probably net a nice motor eventually.

[Chuck Lenz]

Being that it is a Professional series I doubt that it is built like a Harbor Freight tool. Maybe more like JET or Delta.

[Matt Meiser]

I don't know, my "Professional" dovetail jig was all plastic save for a few metal hardware parts. The templates flexed and it was a miracle to get a good fit. The thing was basically junk. My Professional cord reels are good, with the exception of cheap receptacles that don't hold plugs. My Professional recip. saw is really good. About the only thing that might be better on a Porter Cable/Dewalt is a little better ergonomics and chuck (I guess that's what you'd call the part the blade clamps in.) I don't own one, but the Professional router is a Bosch.

I would consider the dovetail jig to be worse than Harbor Freight based on seeing/touching theirs in the store (at least their templates seem ridgid--that alone makes it better in my mind.) I would consider the cord reels to be about the same. I would consider the recip. saw to be significantly better. The router is an equal to the Bosch. That's the basis for my evaluation and saying that it probably lies somewhere between the major brands and Harbor Freight.

BTW, I just looked up the OEM based on the prefix. The OEM is Rexon. I was wondering if it migh not have been the same as the old Ridgid machine that Home Depot sold that was made by Emerson but I guess not. The Craftsman OEM list is at http://www.owwm.com/Craftsman/Manufacturers.asp

[Corey Hallagan]

Thanks all for the replies. I appreciate it. It does seem to be a good value and basically a chinese import like the Delta Int, Jet etc. I have no intentions of adding a riser block so I think it will work for me. Appreciate it guys. I think I will tell him it's sold!

Corey