Replies

1. 
   Floss | Dec 19, 2004 06:21am | #1

   Depends on what you are using it for and your expectations. My father has a craftsman bench top and he uses it to cut pig ears for the dogs. Works great for him.
   J.P.

1. 
   mwinkle | Dec 19, 2004 06:52am | #2

   use would be in a very small woodworking shop.  Mosstly hobby work.  Probably a cut above pigs ears.

1. 
   art | Dec 19, 2004 07:37am | #4

   I started out with a Craftsman benchtop band saw. It had three wheels which is how it achieved a 6 inch throat with 6 in wheels. I wound up giving it away because the blades kept breaking probably due to the tight bends on the small wheels. My 2 cents.  Art

2. 
   vertis | Dec 26, 2004 07:35am | #24

   I have a 14" unit and a friend asked me to use it for cutting deer meet,and then I laughed at him,he could not understand why I said no.

1. 
   CharlieD | Dec 26, 2004 09:41am | #25

   Jeez, whatta horror story...CharlieI tell you, we are here to fart around, and don't let anybody tell you different. --K Vonnegut

2. 
   lwj2 | Dec 26, 2004 02:17pm | #26

   Tell your friend to check with the local game warden or game commission office, they'll probably have the name of a local meat processing plant that's licensed to handle game.ISTR that Harbor Freight or one of those companies offered a meat cutting band saw for a couple hundred bucks.If neither option is acceptable to him, Stanley makes a great hacksaw that cuts bone just fine.Leon Jester, Roanoke VA

1. 
   vertis | Dec 26, 2004 06:34pm | #27

   Either it gets taken to butcher or one can always use a sawzall.happy holidays.

2. 
   stancalow | Dec 19, 2004 07:35am | #3

   MWINKLE 

   Once upon a time I had a Ryobi which was usable, but not stable.  Now, I have the small Delta, bought at a garage sale for a great price, otherwise I would have bought larger.  It works fine, but it about 12 years old, with metal case, and not the same as the current model.  It works fine for most cutting I do on it but definitely not re-saw capable.  Also, not as much blade selection available. 

   I was in Lowe's today and looking over the 12" Hitachi which is not much bigger than the Delta I have for $300.  Could be used as a benchtop I suppose. 

1. 
   Cheatah | Dec 20, 2004 10:40pm | #10

   Stanth---

   I recently inherited an OLD Delta benchtop BS. It is a 1/5 HP machine. I find that mine is bascially worthless. It stall cutting through most all 3/4" stock--even pine.

   Have you gotten much productivity out of yours? What is the HP on your BS?

   Thanks-

    

   Cheatah

1. 
   JohnWW | Dec 20, 2004 10:56pm | #11

   I've used that saw and there is no reason it should stall that easily, there is something wrong with it.

   John W.

1. 
   Cheatah | Dec 20, 2004 11:17pm | #12

   John:

   Care to guess what the problem is? I have no clue as to where to troubleshoot first. Any info would be great.

   Thanks-

   Marko

1. 
   SawdustSteve | Dec 21, 2004 11:03pm | #15

   Marko... Check the tension on the serpentine belt. I had one that was (factory) set too tight. As soon as I backed off on the tension at tiny bit, it was able to cut all the 2x4 stock I fed through it.
   SawdustSteve

2. 
   stancalow | Dec 22, 2004 04:35am | #16

   marko

   Yeah, mine is a screaming 1/5 HP too.  Yes, it will bog down in 8/4 stuff, but mostly I use it to cut thin strips, dovetails, and cut to bark and other defects off of 4/4, 5/4 rough stock.  I definitely would not buy a benchtop model new for any purpose, but this does work for what I need right now.  I wouldn't have commented but for the other comment for the Ryobi, which I used to have.  The Delta is much better. 

   I found the blade to be a big factor in getting performance.  There isn't much to choose from in these small blades.  I am using a Olson 3/8" skip tooth, which is better than the others I've tried.  Also, it took me a while to realize that I was trying to push the stock through too fast - as if on the table saw. 

   Basically, I find that "benchtop" anything is a false economy, as the space-saving size and lower initial cost doesn't make-up for the lack of capacity and hassle of moivng things around when you need to use them.  I will get a 14" in the future, and pass the Delta on to someone else.

   PS.  I was having a lot of trouble at first.  I found that the thrust bearing (the wheel directly behind and perpendicular to the blade, upon which it pushes) needed adjsutment to track properly.  Probably why the previous owner sold it to me for $10. 

    

   Edited 12/21/2004 8:38 pm ET by stantheman

3. 
   RANGERP75R | Dec 19, 2004 08:54am | #5

   M W

      With the info you gave, I would reccomend the Ryobi BT what-ever it is now. Used to be the BT3000. It has legs but you don't have to use them. Here's why. 1 1/2 HP with 2 short serpentine belts that drive from a motor about 8" away for the arbor. A much better fence than you'll find on the cheaper $300 models. Rails that will extend out and you can do major ripping. A slider and a ton of options that can be attached. A very good dust port on the rear that you can attach a shop vac to. The trough or shroud under the blade catchs 85% of the saw-dust that drops.

     And add the fact that the riving knife (yes, riving knife and not a splitter goes up and down with the blade and  tilts with it right and left. And you can even remove the top gaurd and I'll show you how to make a crown guard as on the high dollar European models. You get lots of bang for the buck with this saw. if you ever get the space, you just attach the legs and you are in business.

     Attached is a picture of a Ryobi BT 3000 I bought junked and did some heavy modification. Its pushing a 2 HP Delta Marathon motor and has 3 short serpentine belts. The slider bearing have been boosted and I added a maple cabinet under-neath. Now picture it mounted to a piece of ply instead of the cabinet that you can place and remove from the table-top or work-bench.

      Some will laugh, but the Ryobi is a lot of "bang for the buck" and has some features a much more expensive contractor saw doesn't. It is as or more powerful with those short belts as they don't lose HP as the long belts and less likely to slip as a contractor. The motor is adjacent the arbor under-neath instead of 2 1/2' away hanging out the *ss end. It's completely closed into the top cabinet and that reduces space and increases efficiency.

      I have ripped over 30,000 linear feet on my modified Ryobi and have replaced belts twice. You get an advantage with the slider also with small panels and cross-cutting. If you are going to just "tinker" this is a very serious tinkerer. If you decide to get serious, it will get you there and if you modify it it will surpass anything on the market for under $600. That's my opinion and I'm sticking with it. ha.. ha...

   Regards...

   sarge..jt

    

   Proud member of the :  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

   
1. 
   JohnWW | Dec 20, 2004 07:34pm | #9

   sarge,

   The one serious flaw that the Ryobi BT 3000, and the newer BT3100, have is their incredibly noisy universal motor, other than that they are an amazing piece of machinery at an unbeatable price. 

   I have considered replacing the motor on the saw, but the problems of attaching a much larger and heavier induction motor presented some major challenges.  Could you give some details or a picture or two of the modifications you made?

   John W. 

1. 
   RANGERP75R | Dec 24, 2004 08:08pm | #22

   John

      Sorry, running a few days behind here as we just finished our donated toys from scraps project last nite.

      I don't have pictures of the mods underneath. Basically, the majority is the same with the exception of a cradle that mounts the motor and a longer shaft that the serpentines ride on. The mods were blue-printed and designed by a friend who is a mechanical engineer. (unfortunately he is untimely deceased as of last Feb. from a bout with cancer at 58).

      The cradle (mounts) and slider bearing strips were machined along with the other mods by my BIL who is a lead machinest at Delta Air Lines here in Atlanta. That took several months as he did it at work in spare time when he could. 

      I built the base cabinet form maple scrap and the side and rear extentions are poly'ed MDF. The sides of the TS enclosed case had to be replaced with plate steel to attach the motor cradle assembly, so the case isn't stock except the front piece which is re-inforced. That aluminum case would not support the extra weight of the beefed motor cradle and motor. The motor I have is an old Delta Marathon removed from a Delta contractor.

      The way I get to the inner guts to clean, graphite, check nut back-out, etc. is to open the door to the cabinet underneath and crawl under as you would a car sitting on jack-stands. Kind of tight and requires a flood lamp to see well under there.

      If I ever have to remove the TS from the base, I will turn it over and see if I can get some snap-shots. TJ (the deceased engineer) ask I not disclose as he thought about running a patent on the design, but that is water under the bridge at this point. I would have to as his family as they now have access to the blue-prints. Two of his sons and one daughter are Ga. Tech grads and engineers also. I doubt they would mind as it is not their forte, but I don't know unless I ask.

     Hopefully, this gives you an idea of some that is required. As I stated, a major is the beef-up of case and a completely re-designed cradle to handle the motor. If I were doing it alone, I couldn't without being or paying a machinist and the cost factor would over-run the worth of finished product IMO. As I said, this was just a little "labor of love" project from several dumb ole country boys that pooled their acquired talents and donated labor to build a "hot rod" from something that someone else found had no further use. It cost me $125 for the TS at a yard sale and material cost was another $100 or so.

     Just an "ole junk-yard" table-saw, but I will say that as an "ole junk-yard" dog; it ain't too bad for what I paid for it. Just throw it a bone every once in awhile and it'll sit up and howl at the moon with the best of them at 2 HP. ha.. ha...

   Regards...

   sarge..jt

      Proud member of the :  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

1. 
   JohnWW | Dec 28, 2004 06:33pm | #28

   Sarge,

   Thank you for spending the time to answer my question.  I figured it had to be a major job to hang a much heavier motor on the fairly light trunnion assembly under the table. 

   I'm thinking about taking a BT 3100 and using it as a dedicated cross cut saw with a new induction motor.  If I accepted keeping the blade vertical, I could mount a new pivoted motor down inside of the base, sort of like a contractors saw with the motor below the arbor instead of off the back.  This would avoid 90% of the work that you and your friends went through, at the loss of being able to tilt the blade.

   Sorry to hear about your friends death, life seems very unfair at times.

   John W.

    

1. 
   RANGERP75R | Dec 28, 2004 07:36pm | #29

   John

      Just caught your post heading for part-time work. A dedicated cross-cut sounds good at the price of the BT and if you have the space. I rarely use mine to cross-cut anymore as I picked up a Hitachi slider at Lowe's a year or so back. They were closing out the current and bringing in the Laser. Sold it to me at cost as I know the tool mgr. there for $229. A deal I couldn't refuse.

      It allows me to keep a 24 tooth flat grind blade on the TS for ripping and have the slider set up with a Freud SCM 60 tooth for cross-cutting. The only time I have to change blades to cross-cut is when I do stock and panels wider than 13" as that's the limit on the slider. It makes life simple as I believe in proper blade for given job.

      My opinion on the dedicated cross-cut.. Go for it!

   Regards...

   sarge..jtProud member of the :  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

4. 
   RANGERP75R | Dec 19, 2004 09:01am | #6

   M W

     Sorry for the post. I have spent about 14 hours in the shop today and am exhuasted. I didn't catch BANDSAW as I was thinking TS.

     I persanlly haven't seen a becn-top BS I felt was of enough quality to get the job done. If you're doing small work with a lot of curves, I would opt for a decent scroll-saw instead.

   Again, sorry for the post on a bench-top TS...

   sarge..jt

   Proud member of the :  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

1. 
   milanuk | Dec 19, 2004 09:09am | #7

   What about the new 10" benchtop bandsaw from Ryobi? Supposed to be a bit beefier than the older 9", plus some other new features (sorry, don't have a spec sheet handy)?Thanks,Monte

2. 
   mwinkle | Dec 19, 2004 03:57pm | #8

   It's the thought that counts.  Your answer was thoughtful and informative- what I've come to expect from Knots.   Thanks for the effort.

5. 
   CharlieP | Dec 21, 2004 07:37am | #13

   I had the Delta bench top band saw.  It was very good at cutting straight and curves.  When I wanted to cut straight, it cut a curve.  When I wanted to cut a curve, it cut straight.  When I had to follow a line, I got out the saber saw - it did a better job.  I took a bandsaw course to see what I was doing wrong, and it didn' get better.   I had an expert set it up, and it cut right for a few inches.  I couldn't figure why anyone wanted a bandsaw... until I sold the toy and got a 14 inch saw. 

   By the way, did I say I didn't like the benchtop bandsaws?

   ________________________
   Charlie Plesums  Austin, Texas
   http://www.plesums.com/wood

1. 
   mwinkle | Dec 21, 2004 03:21pm | #14

   Thanks for providing the kind of feedback I was looking for.  Now I know why Lowes had it marked down from $99 to $79 with an additional 20% off.  Shouldn't recommend to a frined!! Thanks for a "user" report that contains details.

6. 
   scooter1 | Dec 22, 2004 09:35pm | #17

   Benchtops are worthless unless all you want to do is the occasional quick cut off of some thin stock. You can't cut curves very well, it won't track very well to much else. I'd invest in a good Sabre Saw with a fence, like a Bosch; or buy a scroll saw.

   Bandsaws are so simple and used are so cheap that you could probably find a really good used one for under $200.

   I got a 1948 Rockwell 14 inch for $250.

   So unless this is a floor space issue, opt for a full size model. If it is a floor space model, save your money for a Sabre saw or nice scroll saw.

   Regards,
   Boris

   "Sir, I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow" -- WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934

1. 
   mwinkle | Dec 23, 2004 04:48am | #18

   Thanks for the input.  It is a floor space issue- I told my buddy that we'd be better off if I worked with him to maximize the space  then maybe we could find space for the real thing instead of the toy.

1. 
   richtes | Dec 23, 2004 08:03pm | #19

   Few months ago I sold my General 6" jointer to someone who had a small shop. Looking at the 36" in my garage, he spoke about how much he liked his little Inca (think that's how it's spelled.)

   Not cheap, and might not currently be imported (though parts are), but I've heard very good comments from several people about them.

   Rich

7. 
   CharlieD | Dec 23, 2004 08:50pm | #20

   Properly set up, you can get away with a lot on a little benchtop saw. Don't get me wrong--I've long ago upgraded to a 14" Delta, and I'm not at all sorry. But 5 or 6 years ago, I bought an 8" refurbished Delta benchtop BS for $99 from Tool King in Denver. 1/5 HP. Not the 9"--the 8" had a 5" resaw cap., so I got it instead. Don't see it too often though.

   I made the attached chair with it. It's QS White Oak, and every curved or tapered piece--including the curved resaw cuts on the stretchers across the back of the chair, at least 3" of oak--was cut on that saw. The right blade for the job at hand, the right tension, carefully set guides etc will make a lot possible. Of all of these, the right blade is the most important, followed by the right tension (which can be hard to achieve on a benchtop.) You CAN do this though. That little saw's not bad. I especially liek the rack and pinion adjustment.

   Charlie

   
1. 
   CharlieD | Dec 23, 2004 08:54pm | #21

   Wow...sorry the pic came out so big. It's only 96k--why does this happen..?CharlieI tell you, we are here to fart around, and don't let anybody tell you different. --K Vonnegut

2. 
   mwinkle | Dec 26, 2004 01:44am | #23

   Thanks for the thoughtful input.  I hoped somebody would have something positive to say!