Does anyone have any experience with Wilton band saws? Do they cut square?
There is a 1HP 7x10 for sale locally for $400, just wondering if it is worth looking at.
I have been keeping my eyes open for something to cut tube with when I get farther along with my project, I was hoping to find a Kalamazoo or similar, but even used & 40 years old they are pricey.
My understanding is that Wilton band saws are generally large, heavy, chunks of cast iron that were made for production furniture making factories. These days the more serious woodworkers buy and restore them. You may need to replace the bearings, clean up any rust, and repaint. If you do, it will last longer than your life time in hobby use.
Tuning up a band saw is fully described in back issues of the magazine Fine Woodworking. I think that you can search back issues on their web site.
I will offer the opinion that cutting tubing will grossly underutilize a Wilton band saw's capabilities, but you can order up an appropriate blade from a number of sources and have at it.
For airplane building, a regular Delta or Jet 14" band saw will do everything that you need. Not sure what you want to spend, but one of those will do most of the cutting jobs you need for building several airplanes and all of the furniture you care to build.
For what its worth, the band saw in my shop is a 16" Jet that has a set of blades from 1/4" to 1". I recall that I spent about $900 for the saw new and then bought the blades. But then, I build furniture, jigs for making metal and composite airplane parts, and storage stuff for my airplane shop. Good tools make the work quicker and more fun.
Best of luck,
Wes
N78PS
It is listed with a grainy 1x2 pic in the local auto trader rag, it looks like one of the horizontal metal cutting saws from the pic but I can't tell if it has coolant or hydraulic feed. It does say it has 4 speeds (60-110-160-210) and has a 3/4 x .032 x 101 blade, which I believe is fairly large.
I have a small vertical band saw I use for wood, but I have been wanting a separate saw for metal.
Last edited by Mike Switzer; 12-23-2012 at 07:58 AM.
Mike, that's a good saw and might be a good deal if it's one of the wet cut band saws. If it's one of these, call him and tell him sold.Originally Posted by Mike Switzer
Last edited by martymayes; 12-23-2012 at 08:28 AM.
If it's one like this, I wouldn't get too excited unless it's close to brand new:
Blade length - My 16" Jet European style wood band saw uses 123" blades, so the quoted 101" blade length probably means its a 14" band saw.
Best of luck,
Wes
N78PS
The pic looks sort of like that, the guard is squared off. If it isn't a wet saw I don't want it - I am going to call after I get done with church.Mike, that's a good saw and might be a good deal if it's one of the wet cut band saws. If it's one of these, call him and tell him sold.
Wilton is (was) one of the best machines out there. I'd snap that thing up quick. My Wilton drill press came out of Ryan Aeronautical in the 50's. I think it was built in the 40's during WWII-the big one. My only regret is giving it to my brother to use-he pawned it. I haven't spoken to him since. I still have my Wilton 12" disc sander though!!! That will go to my son.
I have a 6 x 9 metal band saw and it uses 64 1/2" blade.
Mike: For tubing and general cutoff work, you would be much better off with either a power hacksaw or a cold saw. We use a power hacksaw to cut a lot of things in ouir instrument shop at work. It would really shine when we were squaring off some 6" thick 6061T6 or 7075T6 offcuts to have machined into equipment chassis. Both the power hacksaw and the cold saw can be run dry or wet and they will provide cuts that are near weld ready all the time.
I've got a Wells 1400 series horizontal bandsaw in my shop. It is not a lot bigger than that Wilton and probably outweighs it by 1500 lbs, but will cut a 14" x 16" piece of stock. Here is a link to a 1200 series. Mine doesn't have the autofeed like this one. Mine is torn down for a complete overhaul and repaint so I don't have any pictures available right now.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Wells-Automa...-/400255958739
Last edited by CraigCantwell; 12-23-2012 at 01:00 PM.
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