Band saw: Grizzly 17″ or Jet 14″ (sale ending)
Bottom line: If you had a thousand dollars to spend on a new band saw would you buy the Grizzly 17″ G0513ANV or the Jet JWBS14-SFX?
Both are currently on sale at right around a thousand dollars. The grizzly sale ends 8/17, so I have 4 days to make a decision with 20 year implications! I’ve read what I could find online but it seems that the Grizzly has undergone some changes in the last year or two…which includes a paint job looks like an arcade hunting game.
Uses: My table saw is inadequate for what i have been using it for. Its a fine job-site model 15v duwalt that has the advantage of a very small foot print when it is folded – this allows my wife to park her car in the 1.5 space garage even with everything else in my shop. It is too light and unstable to process large or heavy stock safely – although I have done so without catastrophe…so far.
I want a band saw that can do most of the work of the table saw and more safely while also letting me cut some tapers and curves and all the other awesome band saw cuts.
The Grizzly is larger, heavier, it has a slightly more powerful motor. The fence looks cheap and its not wired for a standard electrical outlet.
The Jet has a higher base price but actually costs less after sale and free freight. Am I cheating myself out of the power and blade capacity if I buy the Jet. Or am I getting a really nice machine suitable for making coffee tables, chests of drawers, etc that is also is of a higher quality in design and material?
Replies
If it's not for a production shop keep the few extra bucks in your pocket. My rule of thumb is "if it does what it's supposed to it's a keeper.
Mikaol
I was in the market for a new bandsaw a few years ago, in your price range, and went with the Laguna. It's miles and miles better than my old saw. Couldn't be happier.
Assuming both saws will function as designed and that you have the electric service for them, it comes down to what you want to do with it.
The main diffs are resaw and throat capacity.
Shockingly, the Jet 14" has more resaw according to the specs I found.
The Grizz has aluminum wheels, not as much mass spinning and helping as cast iron. (I'm not sure what the Jet wheels are, but the Grizz states AL)
If you are mainly using it to break down larger stock the extra 3 inches of throat are VERY attractive.
I'd vote for the Jet, but I would not give up my Laguna SUV.
I can't comment on the JET but I bought a Grizzly G0513 nine years ago and it has performed flawlessly.
In year 2 of ownership I bought the fence upgrade kit and the ball bearing guide kit. So now I have the same fence and guides as the G0513x2.
With a 1/2 inch 3TPI blade, I've resawn 10 inch tall oak - no problem.
My only regret is the cost of my saw plus the two upgrades is equal to the cost of a G5013x2 but I still don't have the cast iron wheels or the cast iron trunnion. If only I'd paid the extra $200 when I bought the saw!
Mike
Depends on what your doing. If you're ripping 8/4 hardwood you're tasking a smaller motor.
Resawing is going to be better on the bigger if only from a power standpoint. With a carbide blade it will be hard to beat for that.
Mike, you make a great point. Years ago I thought saving money on entry level stuff was smart, and I could upgrade as needed. It never worked out. Being wiser now, I start out closer to the high end than the lower. I haven't had to upgrade or add on to anything for a long time. It's cost me less in the long run.
Never met anyone who wanted a smaller and less powerful bandsaw. Does such a creature exist!?! ;-)
Seriously, the 17" will give you more service years without wishing for more of this or more of that. There are a smattering of reports of folks breaking carbide blades on 14" machines if you ever take that step. There are plenty of folks using them successfully so, I don't know what the failures are about but, tight bend radius certainly comes under discussion.
Yes you will need to provide adequate power for the large motor but, you should really provide a dedicated breaker/outlet for the 14" as well so that's a push. I guess I could add that while I have a pair of 17" machines a 14" machine and a 10" machine, the 17" resaw and the 10" curve-cutter get the lion's share of the work around here. Good luck.
I am really impressed by the thoughtfulness of all the replies on the forum.
I went with the Jet. I will use the $100 i saved on freight towards a carbide tip Lenox tri-master blade.
Since everyone was so generous with their replies I uploaded pictures of the shaker end table that convinced me to add the band saw too my shop. Personally I think disasters like this are pretty funny as long as no one got hurt.
Story: I am a rank amateur and it took hours to properly size and square my stock and even more time for the joinery.
Then I tried to cut leg tapers with a pull saw... it was a total disaster. It was well after midnight and the babies and wife were asleep. I put-in all my shop time very late because its the only time I have to myself.
Imagine the frustration! I needed to put my tools down and go to bed. That was not what I did. I took out the 8" jointer.....
The result is an end table that makes me laugh. The chicken legs probably only accentuate the mutilated front leg. I signed the piece and plan to keep it in my office as a reminder of what happens when I lose patience. The real cherry on top was that I dropped the table when I was fiddling with the burn pen. The drawer front came down directly on a bench dog and left a distinctive dent just off of center ...awesome
I plan to use the band saw to make another (better) cherry end table. Then I will use the Joinery and proportions to scale up and make a cherry writing desk for my wife's office.
It's a bit more money but the Harvey 14" is very well made, has some great features and the 3 horse motor is a big upgrade. As stated before, I would lean towards saving a few more weeks/couple of months and get a premium piece of equipment that will be a pleasure to use for the rest of your life.
The Harvey is a beautiful machine. Do you really think that the two options that am considering are machines that will leave a lasting disappointment?
There is another recent thread about the Harvey Vs the laguna. They are almost identical.
The Harvey doesn't have much of a track record. For that amount of money, I'd want others to experiment first. There are just too many excellent machines out there to gamble.
I'm sure any machine you choose will work and won't leave you feeling disappointed. That being said, having a tool that's a real pleasure to use for life for a very similar price is worth it to me.
The Harvey has a few differences from the Laguna 14 Bx (I think that's the closest one) including the guides, a couple inches more resaw capacity, a more powerful motor and few other small niceties. Harvey is new in that they only started selling machines under their own name fairly recently but have been making equipment for other companies for a long time.
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