Bandsaw recomendations

[mjncad]

I have a restored workshop belt drive, a Heavy 10 and a benchtop shaper. I use the workshop regularly for modelmaking. Has a 3c handwheel closer and a QC box. The 10 and the shaper are eye candy.

I told my wife when I pass, there will be one heck of a sale and someone is going to get some nice American made machinery. Gee, I even have Lincoln (Euclid, Ohio) welders in TIG and MIG.

Lets not forget about the vintage Atlas floor lathe in pristine condition in the corner, completely tooled, even a toolpost grinder thats never been used and a complete set of Williams toolholders in the original case.....
I won't get into all the Starrett and Brown and Sharpe tools I have or the Gerstner boxes they get stored in.....

Without pics, it didn't happen. :laughing:

 

[ultrarunner]

I've been running my 3-phase equipment... a Bridgeport and an old Devilbiss Compressor with home brew converters for 30 years... nothing more than a 3-phase motor set up as an idler to produce power... 1 hp for the Bridgeport and 3 hp for the compressor.

 

[5030]

I've been running my 3-phase equipment... a Bridgeport and an old Devilbiss Compressor with home brew converters for 30 years... nothing more than a 3-phase motor set up as an idler to produce power... 1 hp for the Bridgeport and 3 hp for the compressor.

You remind me of a fellow I know that uses a three phase idler and gets the idler going with a rope wrapped around the pulley on the end. Crude but effective.

I don't have 3 phase either. I do have a Gerhardt-Werner 5 horsepower rotary convertor because the LeBlond and the Kent 6-18 Toolroom grinder both are frequency drive and require 60hz 3 phase continually.

My other machines that are 3 phase, I'll piggyback off each other after starting one on the rotary. Nice thing about Delta wound 3 phase motors is their ability to produce current on the T3 leg by themselves. When doing that, one must remember to reduce the starting output of a successive motor by 30%, in other words, if your initial start is 10 horsepower, the next start can't be more than 8, however, as the motors stack, so does the startability.

If you have a 10 and the 8 at operating RPM you can start 14, within the limits of your witing of course because inrush starting amps on any motor is 3 or more times running amps, depending on configuration.

That, in essence is how a static convertor works. It excites the T3 leg though discharging a series of capacitors to get the motor up to rated rpm at which time the motor no longer needs to be externally excited. The drawback is, that when the motor is self excited, useable horsepower/torque drop off by 30% or so. Something to keep in mind on a heavily loaded motor like a lathe drive.

 

[deereman75]

all this lathe talk is making me want one more... And I dont think my vintage beaver wood lathe counts. If only I had the space and cash for my dream lathe, a 1950s south bend 9x24.

 

[5030]

all this lathe talk is making me want one more... And I dont think my vintage beaver wood lathe counts. If only I had the space and cash for my dream lathe, a 1950s south bend 9x24.

Problem is (with an old vintage South Bend) or any older used machine is it was likely abused. South Bend machines used insert bearings in the headstocks and non hardened cast iron bedways so the bed will probably be wallowed out from lack of way lubricant and the headstock bearings sloppy from lack of lubricant as well.

headstock bearings are next to impossible to replace because they are cast in and line bored and bed ways need to be levelled and scraped, basically a lost art. I know of one company north of here that still reworks bed ways and milling machine tables, for a price of course.

You are better off in the long view with a modern (flame hardened/induction hardened) bed machine with roller bearings in the headstock and oil bath lubrication plus a modern machine with come with a camlock spindle and Aloris style toolpost, both light years ahead of the old threaded spindle and rocker toolpost.

Finally, most modern machines come with integral gearboxes that cut a variety of threads with no change gears, a big plus.

FleaBay is loaded with old South Bend stuff, most is shot from abuse. You can pick and choose but it's still a very time consuming task getting one to hold any tolerance.

I spent 4 years (and lots of money) getting my benchtop rebuilt and accurate. Like an antique tractor, the original cost is nothing compared to the rebuild cost.

If yo do it yourself, you need to have the knowledge beforehand. Cutting gears, line boring, cutting keyways and machining parts takes machine tools to rebuild a machine tool.

Like I said previously, get a modern used (or new) machine and then think about a vintage machine. You'll be farther ahead and much less grief.

There are lots of machines out there that meet that criteria

 

[ultrarunner]

I'm embarrassed to say I use the rope pull method on my converter... never did build one of the over-running clutch gizmo.

I think my 1 hp converter and the 1 hp Bridgeport motor work well together is because the mill has little load on starting... it is basically just spinning.

At this point, doesn't look like a bigger lathe is in my future... I actually may be getting displaced...

30 years ago, a neighbor, who was a machinist for many years and then switched professions when the plant closed built a shop... when I bought my mill, he offered to let me set it up there... shortly after he had a heart attack and passed away...

The last 28 years the widow has allowed me to come and go and was happy to have someone taking care of things...

Her son recently took-over the home and has asked me about moving my stuff... his 88 year old mom got word and said not as long as she is alive... we all get along well.

It is time to make a move... just don't have anywhere to have a turn-key operation...

 

[5030]

I'm embarrassed to say I use the rope pull method on my converter... never did build one of the over-running clutch gizmo.....

Certainly nothing to be embarassed about. Every lawnmower engine has a recoil start.........

No over running gizmo. A rotary convertor is nothing more than a single phase motor wirh secondary windings to produce the T3 voltage and switching capacitors to smoot the transition.

I just went commercial rotary because I need very clean 3 phase power for the frequency drives.

My GW outwardly looks like a large ODP motor with no shaft sticking out the end and a large electrical box on one side. 220/1 in and 220/3 out.

Habitually, I'll start a 3phase motor on the rotary and then shut the rotary off and allow the idling 3 phase motor to excite another so long as the initial motor is larger than the next one.

I do notice a longer spool up time when stacking motors than if I leave the T3 leg excited by the rotary but it's not a problem in my application.

 

[Short Game]

Here's my $50 garage sale Enco cutting a miter. I feel lucky to have it.

 

[ultrarunner]

Here's my $50 garage sale Enco cutting a miter. I feel lucky to have it.

Want to double your money?

 

[Short Game]

Want to double your money?

I'll have to repaint if for you first. And you're in luck, I just bought two new blades. You won't mind waiting until I'm finished with it, eh?

 

[ultrarunner]

I'll have to repaint if for you first. And you're in luck, I just bought two new blades. You won't mind waiting until I'm finished with it, eh?

I like the patina just the way it is... extra blades are always good.

For a long time I used a power hack saw at work... the short blades with higher tension allowed for very accurate cuts and never a blade to weld...

Don't see many power hack saws much anymore.

I have been seeing tons of old equipment going to the scrapper... seems many are cashing in...

One of these days I will have to get with the program to post pictures...

My band-saw looks like any other saw... except it is made from plywood...

A casual glance and you wouldn't know it was made from wood painted gray.

 

[Short Game]

I like the patina just the way it is... extra blades are always good.

For a long time I used a power hack saw at work... the short blades with higher tension allowed for very accurate cuts and never a blade to weld...

Don't see many power hack saws much anymore.

Last one I saw was in high school metal shop class in 1962.

 

[5030]

Here's my $50 garage sale Enco cutting a miter. I feel lucky to have it.

Interesting. I have the same saw, which gets used more than the Roll-In by the way. Mine is grey but just as ratty.

I see you smoked the original motor as well. One of my employees stank up the shop a year or so ago. The blade stalled and he didn't catch it until the motor smoked..... about 30 seconds.

Mine now has a nice Dayton 3 horse ODP, capacitor start. I believe the motor was more than the saw which has cut tons of structural and bar stock.

The weakest point (besides the chi-com weinie motor) is the front bandwheel. It needs a ball bearing in the hub instead of the plain bearing. Other than that, it's a fine, ugly saw.

Mine IS NOT for sale.

 

[HCJtractor]

How about the Steelmax saws? I just bought the 9" version that looks like a Skil saw on steroids. Man, I cut 3" (3/16) angle like cutting a 2 x 4 pine stud. It cuts 1/2" plate like cutting plywood. I am pretty impressed with it. It leaves a very clean cut with no burrs and is cool to the touch. I have not used it much but it seems very impressive. They make a chop saw version also. I also have the cheap Jet bandsaw. It works well but cutting the same angle takes a couple of minutes. Check out the demo video on their website.

 

[Short Game]

I see you smoked the original motor as well.

I quit smoking before I bought it. That's the motor it had.

Dang it, you made me go out and look at it. Judging from the cheap thin sticker on the motor case, I'd say it's the original motor. I then checked the Enco plaque and it's so old it was made by the Chi-Nats, the good guys of Chiang Kai-shek, our old pals in Taiwan.

I wonder how much I could have scored a new one for in Kaohsiung in 1967? I bought a pirate copy of Motor's Auto Repair Manual when I was there.

 

[deereman75]

Mine IS NOT for sale.

Hey if you sold it, you would get them using the rollin more. :laughing:

 

[5030]

Hey if you sold it, you would get them using the rollin more. :laughing:

Hard to believe the original motor is still running. Mine made no power to speak of, you had to be real careful not to stall it. The newer Dayton will start the cut with the blade resting on the material. The old chi-com motor would just hum....

Of course the Roll-In is a much better saw in many ways but it's also much larger and cumbersome plus you can't move it around, the work has to come to it.

The Roll-In excells at ripping (metal) of all things. It has unlimited throat so ripping die plate is a snap. I just ripped a couple blocks of 6061 T6 aluminum in 3" x 6" x 15" in to two equal wedge shapes for his boat, for what use , I have no idea.

About the largest dimension the little saw can do is 6" on a 90 degree cut and it better not be any length of 6" solid material because the weight would collapse the sheet metal legs.

It's great for structural shapes, especially in full stick length which is how we get it in, typically 21 feet long. One end in the saw and the other on a plate roller stand. I add a Kool-Mist atomizing coolant nozzle if we cut a lot to keep things under control at the point of cut

The Alro driver get s charge out of me unloading his semi with my M9 and the forks on the front. I've considered a hi-lo but the tractor is multi use. A hi-lo isn't.

 

[mjncad]

Hey if you sold it, you would get them using the rollin more. :laughing:

+1 :thumbsup:

 

[Short Game]

My Enco has three speed settings. I have it in the middle. What's the general rule on how fast to run it?

 

[5030]

My Enco has three speed settings. I have it in the middle. What's the general rule on how fast to run it?

Same as mine. 3 different sized sheaves on the pulley's.

With the old chi-com motor, I ran it on the slowest speed (and the most power). With the Dayton motor, It's on the highest speed sheaves.

I've been running Lennox vari-pitch bi metal baldes for a long time now.