Laguna bandsaw vs. all the rest
I am thinking of buying a bandsaw, not happy with my smaller 14″ capacity and am wondering what others have found with the Laguna, General or Agazzani???
Thanks for any help. I am doing mainly ripping, resawing and cutting bowl blanks out of 6″ thick wood.
joe clark
Replies
Joe:
You will find a lot of threads and discussions on bandsaws here.
I have a Laguna LT16 HD that I am very happy with. I added the driftmaster fence and I am very pleased with that.
Laguna appear to have made a big effort to improve customer service, although I had no complaints and found them very helpful.
Yes, it's expensive, but I have never once felt that my saw is inadequate.
You should also use the resaw king blades.
Hastings
Check out post # 47012.1. I reviewed my new Laguna LT16-3000 yesterday.
Jerry
Frosty
"I sometimes think we consider the good fortune of the early bird and overlook the bad fortune of the early worm." FDR - 1922
What made you choose the LT 16-3000 over other possibilities, such as the LT 14-SUV or LT 14-3000?
I'm trying to choose which model to buy myself. Thanks.
I had an LT14 that I liked very much. But as I needed greater capacity and would have to change, I asked my son if he would like the 14". He said, "I'd like that". So now I had an excuse to upgrade. I don't recall the 14 -3000 being on the website as I 'shopped' and in addition to the saw capacity I wanted extra throat capacity so I went with the 16".Two days ago I happened to see a Steel City saw - don't know the model but I would guess 18". It looked pretty good. No granite table.Frosty"I sometimes think we consider the good fortune of the early bird and overlook the bad fortune of the early worm." FDR - 1922
Have had a LT18 since 2001 and not a single problem. This was the earlier version before the ceramic guides became standard and the 12" resaw height. I have since upgraded to the guides and use a Resaw King for the tall stuff. I would not hesitate to get another Laguna should a UFO crash into the shop and I need to get another one. While I love my LT, there are other really good bandsaws on the market worth a look, such as Minimax, Agazzani, Powermatic or one of the Asian imports.
For what it's worth, I recently got a 17" Shop Fox bandsaw. I used it last week to cut turning blanks out of walnut logs. I used the entire capacity of the saw (12") with no particular problems or evident strain on the motor. It did make a heck of a mess though. So far, I'm really happy with it.
I'd definitely include Minimax in your search.
You should also consider the MiniMax's. I have the MM16/ 14 3/8" of resaw (the newer versions will resaw 16"). I have nothing but praise for this machine and for customer service from the company. They are a little pricey but are worth every penny.
How do you get service from MiniMax?I have an FS30 combo jointer/planer. I can not reach anybody who will even talk to me about reordering parts for my machine.Frosty"I sometimes think we consider the good fortune of the early bird and overlook the bad fortune of the early worm." FDR - 1922
Martin Ranta Parts Specialist MiniMax USA, INC. 2475-B Satellite Blvd. Duluth, GA 30096 (866) 975-9663 toll free phone (770) 813-7880 fax [email protected] http://www.partspronto.com
I have had the Agazzani B-20 for five months and it is outstanding. I suggest you call Jesse at Eagle Tools and talk to him. He tells it like it is and provides marvelous customer service.
I chose the Agazzani over Minimax and Laguna because of superior customer service, crating for shipping that results in no shipping damage, a two position fence that is far superior to others, works with both 1" and 1/4" blades without work arounds (not true of some others), a blade tension gauge that is very accurate (not true of some others), no reported electrical switch problems (many reported electrical switch problems on one brand, quite expensive to fix), dead flat table (reported non flat tables for one brand) and commercial grade construction.
The Agazzani is a dream to use. Right out of the crate using a 1" Lenox Woodmaster carbide blade, I can rip using the fence to within 1/32" of a line without blade drift. I use the Agazzani to do most of my rough ripping now and then take off the final 1/32" on my Unisaw.
Read all the band saw posts on this site and Saw Mill Creek before you buy. There is a wealth of experience to profit from.
I've had an Ag B-18 for almost a year and also couldn't be happier. The service and crating were excellent (the crating turned into a log sled and small garden shelter). I've posted my impression in Knots elsewhere.
Thought about Laguana but wanted to buy european rather than chinese, and to support a small dealer. The real truth is you'll probably be happy with any and will boil down to what's most important to you.
Enjoy!
Chris C.
Laguna bandsaws are made in Italy if I'm not mistaken.
I know that at least some of Laguna's bandsaws are made in China. I'm not sure which ones though...Chris @ http://www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com and now http://www.flairwoodworks.com)
- Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
Hey Chris,
If so, that's a recent development. I bought a LT16HD in '06 and, at the time, all their saws were made in either Italy or Bulgaria.
Edited 6/13/2009 2:43 am ET by pzaxtl
A lot of people like Minimax.
John
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