Bandsaw BS1400 problem

[Wood_Junkie]

So, I went to make a very simple straight cut, just to trim some excess off some pine stock (didn't feel like firing up the table saw) and I'm almost immediately greeted by a burning rubber smell. I shutdown and opened up the top section to find the tire had wandered off the upperwheel and was rubbing inside. Only about 5" of the circumference was off center and "wobbling".

I pushed that section of tire back into the center of the wheel, made sure the blade was aligned in the center and properly tensioned and fired it up... and watched as the tire veered off the wheel in under 5 seconds. What gives!? This happened about a half dozen times in a row before I finally gave up in exasperation.

Anyone else had a problem with this? My bandsaw, which is barely a few weeks old (at least in my possession) is now basically useless. Should I glue the tire in place? Is this a known problem?

Thanks in advance for any advice or insight.

[American and Proud]

Just do a "search" theres PLENTY of problems you'll find.
Click my ID hit read all posts, and do the search , some have had decent luck with it alot have NOT.;) search search search.:eek:

[Wood_Junkie]

Took some digging but plenty of people have apparently had this problem. Ordered some (matching) orange urethane belts from Rockler and plan to install them this weekend and put that bandsaw back into use!

Thanks.

[Rafael]

The tire does not get glued on. They should fit extremely tightly, so much so that they are a big pain to put on. I'm surprised it came off without breaking.

[BadgerDave]

.......Ordered some (matching) orange urethane belts from Rockler..........
Wood_Junkie,
It's too late now but in the future try checking at the Woodcraft in the Westgate Mall for stuff like this. I'm betting they would have had these in stock and you could have been back up and running already.

Their prices are on a par with those at Rockler and you'll save the freight charge. The staff is very knowledgeable and friendly also.

[scrambler28]

Yup, I got the Ridgid saw as a Christmas present. I spent 3 hours putting it together very carefully checking for any vibration problems as I assembled it. Got it all put together perfectly, fired it up and the tire walked right off the top wheel. Yesterday morning I took it back apart, put in the box and returned it. I don't think I should have go to buy aftermarket accessories just to make a brand new saw operable. After returning it I went down the road and ordered the new Craftsman saw. I pick it up on Friday.

[dskelton]

Had this same saw for what I'm sure was more than the warranty period before I tried to use it, and had exactly the same problem. I figured, at least for me, since the garage was 20F the problem was the band stretching with the cold.
I bought a set of the Rockler bands, and was curious who else had tried it, and how it worked.
Dean

[Rafael]

Scrambler,
Sounds like your wheels were not coplaner, an easy adjustment would fix that.
I'll bet the craftsman comes with cheap tires too unless you bought their top of the line model. From what I've seen, all low end bandsaws come with near worthless tires.

[scrambler28]

Wheels were co-planer. The tires should not come off regardless if the wheels are co-planer or not. The tire was physically loose, I checked it by hand.

For $80 more the Craftsman is steel framed, 8" resaw, cast iron wheels, 4" and 2 1/2" dust collection ports, closed stand, 1hp motor, huge cast iron table, no vibration, work light, tires that don't fly off the wheels, trunnion that doesn't look and feel like it's made out of plastic and just the overall quality of the machine is better. If anyone is considering the Ridgid bandsaw, I strongly suggest you look at the Craftsman first, it makes the Ridgid look like a toy by comparison.

[amcnerl]

scrambler,

I just ordered the Craftsman saw. Now that you've had yours a while, how do you like it? The only draw back that I have read is the Craftsman uses a 99 3/4" blade which is non-standard. I am curious of your opinion.

Thanks..

[Woussko]

Doesn't the Craftsman band saw have some adjustment for band length? If not, stay far away from it. If that saw can't be adjusted over the range of 98-102 inches, there's no way I would buy it. Look at others.

[amcnerl]

If there is any adjustment, it's not advertised. I just ordered it on Friday and will not have it till the end of this week. When I read thru the book I'll let you know what, if anything, it says.

[Rafael]

AFAIK most bandsaws in that class do not adjust for blade length beyond a trivial amount.

[scrambler28]

I have no clue what Rafael is talking about, but I really like the Craftsman saw. After, Putting them both together I can honestly say the Ridgid is a toy. The CM saw tensions just like any other bandsaw does. It does use 99 3/4" blades which Olson makes and you can buy them from a few places on the internet, plus Sears also sells them. Lots of people order blades from places such as Timberwolf that consider all blades custom sized anyway, so blade size is a non-issue. The saw is quiet & vibration free. I love the huge cast iron table. The owners manual is pretty much worthless though, so get yourself a good bandsaw book. The light attached to the saw is kind of irritating, it doesn't seem stiff enough to stay where you want it. The fence is O.K. it works, but there's better ones out there. Overall this thing has to be one of the best values out there in the 14" bandsaw market.

[amcnerl]

scrambler28,

I picked up the saw this evening. I'll set it up tomorrow and try it out. I did dig out the manual, I have to agree it's a POS. I was hoping to read some specs but there are none. I'm glad to hear you like the saw. I did some research thru the internet and found a couple of places to order 99 3/4" blades. As you say they're considered custom built. As far as BS books go, any 1 you would recommend? Thanks...

[swampyankee]

Find a used copy of this(there's tons around) http://www.onlinetoolreviews.com/reviews/bandsawhandbook.htm
Should cost about ten bucks
Also, there is tons of free info on the web on settinng up and using the Bandsaw(some times too much).

Here's some links to get started.
http://www.laymar-crafts.co.uk/linkc.htm
http://home.vicnet.net.au/~pwguild/aa-tnt.htm
http://www.woodworking.org/WC/GArchive99/2_24matband.html
http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/SkillsAndTechniques/SkillsAndTechniquesPDF.aspx?id=2190

[amcnerl]

swampyankee,

Thanks for the links and the book recommendation. I'll check them out today.

BTW, I assembled the Craftsman 14" today and it's really nice. Haven't used it to much yet but seems like a quality tool. Ran some test cuts and was impressed. I think I may need to put on a better quality blade tho.

Thanks again..