Ridgid Band Saw

[Mike Gager]

i have a 1400 and i have no complaints with it. im not sure what the difference between the 1400 and 14002 are though

[Noah Levy]

I've had a couple pass through my hands. I'd hold out for an older (1990's vintage or earlier) Delta 14". THe Ridgids I had were really rough in terms of getting the guides aligned. Move the upper guide post a few inches in one direction or the other and you pretty much had to redo the whole set up. Lot's of vibrations too.

[Chris Bruno]

I have one, and though mine has a few upgrades, I quite like it. I did upgrade to urethane tires and bought a couple of nice blades for it.

When I bought mine, the PO had already installed the Rigid fence, ceramic cool blocks and the rigid caster system. I'm not fond of the ceramic cool blocks, but the Rigid fence is -OK-, and I really like the caster system setup.

I had an extra Grizzly nearly new 1.5HP motor from a TS that I put on it, and though I don't think its required, it was a nice upgrade. When I installed that I used the link belt.

If you upgrade to urethane tires, a link-style belt and a good blade, I believe you'll be quite happy with the saw, and you'll still have spent well less than what some of the 'higher end' models cost.

Good luck!
-Chris

[Douglas Brummett]

Anybody own the Ridgid Band Saw 14002? I've been looking for a 14" band saw, and this one has come available in good condition for $250. I've read several reviews, a majority of them lean towards the negative.

Would you buy this particular saw for this price or hold out for something better?

Here is a cut and paste of my thoughts on the saw. I posted this about 6mo back.

I have spent a bit of time wrestling with the Rigid bandsaw that I picked up. I have gone back and forth on the value vs. something from Grizzly. At this point the grizzly G0555 with shipping (just shy of $500) would have been about the same out of pocket. Overall the Rigid won out because of warranty and immediate availability. I also had a Lowe’s coupon that HD honored.
Okay, onto the setup. I knew out of the box that there could be some issue with vibration. Assembly was pretty straight forward. I got the saw up to the point that I could fire it up. Yep, pretty bad vibration. The whole frame chassis was flexing allowing the motor and saw to oscillate on it. The belt was the first suspect in the anti-vabration hunt. So I made a couple of calls and located a Gates v-belt.
Once installed the majority of the vibration was removed, but there was still the issue of flex in the stand allowing the motor and saw to pull towards each other. I had some scrap mdf laying around, so I quickly made a sub base and placed this between the stand and the motor/saw. I remounted everything. It did require some longer screws on the saw. I used the same motor screws, but removed the rubber band-aid bumpers they spec’d. I crossed my fingers and fired it up. Bingo, vibration gone. I ended up having to find a few longer screws to mount the belt shroud, but fortunately I had those on hand.
Everything went smooth from there. I got the table mounted and adjusted and finished adjusting the guides. Nothing major. So I was onto some sample cuts. Gotta say, the stock blade is garbage. Very rough cut, major drift, and too wide to do much curve work. I really don’t know what this blade’s purpose it. I will hang onto it for odd jobs, but only so I don’t damage my nicer blades.
Tonight my Kreg fence, cool blocks, and Olson blades came in. I installed each in turn. Wow, great improvements on all fronts. Kreg fence is a quality piece of equipment. Good instructions and straight forward install and adjustments. The cool blocks also bolted right on, reduced noise and most likely heat. The Olson brand blades seem good quality. Cut is much smoother and drift is only 1-2 degrees. I also noticed quieter running of the saw during cuts.
In the end I can’t say that these upgrades wouldn’t be necessary on the comparable Grizzly. For the Rigid these simply changes and additions make the difference between a saw that I would complain about and a saw that I would be happy to brag about.
short video review:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vr4oUluudKI




Since then I have done several projects, some resawing of lumber, and little if any maintenance. It is a decent saw at a good price. I liked the fact that I could go down to the store and pick it up in person, on the spot. The Kreg fence is a very nice addition. At $250 it isn't that great of a deal if it is stock and ill-cared for. If it is well cared for and has extras like blades and a fence that is a good price. You gotta make that call though. Honestly I don't think any of the saws in the sub $500 range stand out as much better than the rest. If I had it to do over I would likely save up and get the Rikon 14in. It has more power and more capacity.

[Chuck Schultz]

Thanks for all the info guys. Unfortunately, I lost the band saw to some other buyer, but I think I'll stick with the Ridgid Band Saw. It's relatively cheap, and it seems that with some tooling, it can be a really good saw.

[Lance Norris]

Chuck... just a final post about this saw. I bought mine because I wanted a second bandsaw so I could keep one dedicated to resaw and one for curves. I had just bought a Grizzly G0457 and it is designed for resawing. I got tired of switching blades back and forth from large to small. Having a second saw, for my work, was a great option. I didnt want to spend a lot of money on a second saw, so the Ridgid seemed like a good idea. It was rough out of the box, but doesnt take a lot of expensive fixes to make it great. Like I posted above, Urethane tires and wheel balancing and a link belt will make all the difference in the world. There are other tricks if you still have vibration issues like stiffing the stand. I did this to mine by adding a plywood shelf where the cross braces are on the lower legs. This stiffened the stand and gave me some storage space for stuff. I have since added a mobile base, riser block, Carter Quick Tension Release, 4" dust port, Kreg fence and a Carter Bandsaw Stabilizer. There isnt anything about the way the saw is built thats says "cheap". Its in the same quality range as any of the current 14" bandsaws(Delta included). I think Ridgid has made a mistake by not taking the time to balance the wheels, because vibration is the biggest complaint about this saw. If you are not afraid to tinker a bit with this bandsaw, It will make a fine addition to your shop. Again, go to the Ridgid forum and read my posts and the others as well, and you will get a great tool for not a lot of cash. Get ahold of Louis Ittura and ask for his free bandsaw catalog. There are lots a high quality replacement parts should you ever have an issue with your bandsaw, as well as a lot of other info about bandsaws. 1-888-722-7078