Davis & Wells 20″ Bandsaw

deerchasellc | Posted in Power Tools and Machinery on February 11, 2006 09:58am

I just purchased a Davis and Wells 20″ bandsaw. It is probably older than I am (45) and is one heavy chunk of metal. I’ve been told that w/ some new guides & tires and proper tuning it can be a first rate saw. Anyone had any experience with older bandsaws? I’ve stripped it down and have removed all of the old paint. I have a few bearings to replace on the lower shaft. Appreciate any suggestions.

Replies

John_D | Feb 11, 2006 10:34pm | #1
There are likeminded peole here at fine woodworking, but there is a great collection of them at Old Woodworking Machines. There you may be able to find a manual for your saw, pictures of other examples, etc. Also, there are very generous people there who will be able to help you with all your restoration tasks. Great place.

I just looked and they don't have any Davis & Wells bandsaw manuals on their site where they show Davis & Wells stuff. If you have the manual, and offer to scan it and add it to their collection, I'm sure you'll get a warm welcome. :)

My goal is for my work to outlast me. Expect my joinery to get simpler as time goes by.

Edited 2/11/2006 2:45 pm by John_D
gb93433 | Feb 11, 2006 10:58pm | #2
You can have a band saw re-tired by a company which works on printing press rollers. Just call a newspaper office to find out who they use.

PeteBradley | Feb 12, 2006 01:00am | #3
That may be, but replacing tires is a pretty straightforward job, and 20" band saw tires are readily available.Pete

gb93433 | Feb 12, 2006 01:19am | #4
Davis and Wells has a website at http://www.davisandwells.com/

I have dealt with them in the past.
JeffHeath | Feb 12, 2006 04:07am | #5
deer

I have an affliction for old woodworking machinery. Most of the machines in my shop are of the same vintage. I had a 36" Tannewitz bandsaw, but just sold it last week. It was over 9 feet tall, and had an absolutely gigantic footprint, and just took up too much space in the shop. You will find than if your bandsaw is tuned properly, it will perform better than just about anything available today at 2 to 3 times the price.

I'm still mourning the loss of my Tanny, but will be happy ( I hope) with my new MM16, which is about 1/4 the size, and about $1500 less than what I sold my Tanny for.

Jeff
user-7355235 | Jan 18, 2020 12:46pm | #6
I retrofitted my 20 Davis wells band with Laguna guides and am very happy with the results!