Rockwell Band Saw?
January 16th, 2009My Cheapness Gene is Screaming Audibly
Okay, tool people, I have a new one for you.
Some guy just put a 14″ Rockwell 28-200 band saw on Craigslist for $165. I have read up on it, and it is supposedly a very good saw, and you can put a riser on it to resaw big stuff. He says it cuts metal, but I have no idea what he means. This is a wood saw; apparently you can put a transmission and different motor in it to cut metal, but I haven’t called this guy to find out if he has done that.
I feel pretty sure I can get the 19″ Shop Fox I mentioned for $800. It seems likely that the guy who is selling it is having some problems. He is about to move, and he complains that business is too slow to support the big tools he owns. But money is money; $165 is certainly better than $800, and I can almost certainly get my cash back out of the Rockwell, whereas I would probably lose a couple hundred if I had to unload the Shop Fox.
What would you do?
January 16th, 2009 at 10:22 AM
“He says it cuts metal, but I have no idea what he means.”
You can get metal-cutting blades for an otherwise wood-only saw. Not super-powered cutting by any means, but it’ll cut it. I remember that a company called Evolution sells gear like that. A few others may do similar.
January 16th, 2009 at 11:51 AM
Buy the Rockwell. Remember, a band saw is also useful for cutting up primal cuts of meat…
January 16th, 2009 at 12:28 PM
“… and saw is also useful for cutting up primal cuts of meat…”
The best meat advice I ever got was, “Have the butcher hand-bone the meat. If they use the band saw, the saw will smell…. gamey.”
Just make sure you wipe the blade down between cuts. All of it.
January 16th, 2009 at 12:41 PM
If it appears to be in fairly decent shape (no cracked castings or anything else obviously bent or distorted) and the iron isn’t terribly pitted, I’d jump all over the Rockwell. Parts should be readily available for it, and as you said, a riser block is made for it, increasing resaw capacity to 12″. For probably $3-500 (depending on the actual condition) and some sweat, you could have a bandsaw that would sell for close to a grand, new.
January 16th, 2009 at 12:48 PM
BTW, forget about cutting meat on that thing. You’ll contaminate the meat, and the saw too. Think about cleaning it afterward. Besides, it’s seriously underpowered and undersized for anything larger than venison. There is no animal up to the size of a steer that can’t be better handled with a knife.
January 16th, 2009 at 3:46 PM
The meat cutting was tongue in cheek, guys.
January 16th, 2009 at 4:19 PM
If you want real fun in your life, use a wood cutting band saw to cut meat. Even better, cut frozen fish, I recommend halibut. Meat bits are driven into ALL the hundreds of nooks and crannies of the saw, even under the tires on the bandwheels. It is impossible, short of submerging the entire saw in hot water with disinfectant to get most of it out. The saw will reek of rotting meat every time the humidity goes above 20%.
What a saw can cut is mostly a factor of what band is used. All the saw is is the drive system for the band. You’ll need to do some research to learn what bands are best for the material you’re cutting.
On a 14″ saw the most generally useful band is a 1/4″ 3 TPI hook tooth. These can be made up by a decent saw sharpening service more cheaply than they can be bought retail.
Gerry N.
January 16th, 2009 at 5:59 PM
Of course, you’ll need a blade welder and learn that frustrating skill.