- Joined
- Jun 23, 2011
- Messages
- 786
Sharon,
The HF bandsaw can perform well with a bit of TLC which it definitely will require. Mine took a whole weekend's worth. This included disassembly, refitting (like you see with yours, etc).
Mine had a very serious problem too. Within an hour or so after getting her up and running she stopped dead. It seemed like the motor was seized. What was really the case was that they reversed the output gearbox seal and bearing spacer (yep, the seal was in between the bearings - duhhhh). This allowed the worm gear to jam. It took a few hours to get it all apart and fixed. I could have simply returned it for another saw, but after I had put so much time making it right I couldn't bear the thought of a new round of issues to fix.
John
The HF bandsaw can perform well with a bit of TLC which it definitely will require. Mine took a whole weekend's worth. This included disassembly, refitting (like you see with yours, etc).
Mine had a very serious problem too. Within an hour or so after getting her up and running she stopped dead. It seemed like the motor was seized. What was really the case was that they reversed the output gearbox seal and bearing spacer (yep, the seal was in between the bearings - duhhhh). This allowed the worm gear to jam. It took a few hours to get it all apart and fixed. I could have simply returned it for another saw, but after I had put so much time making it right I couldn't bear the thought of a new round of issues to fix.
John
So after considering a stationary yet small bandsaw and not being impressed with a used model on CL I decided to just get a new one. since they are all the same (or so one would think) I decided to go with the least expensive alternative - HF. to be fair, I wasn't excited about this, but given that I knew the risk, I chose to take it for the savings factor.
so picked up this bs at a local store, drove it home and managed to get it into the basement and all assembled. the user manual is pure crap - no way around it. I had to use grizzly's manual to be able to put this one together as the HF manual is clearly of a different model as the instructions call for threaded holes in the casting where there are clearly not, and also does not include any references to some of the parts (like the angled corner support brackets for the base).
Using the grizzly manual I put this thing together. I like the grizzly manuals - very clear and informative. wish I could get the grizzly white version of this saw but it's 2x the cost (and for good reasons I guess). the base is actually surprisingly stable - up until you add the wheels - thats when it loses the stability all together, but still is decent for most small cuts.
the motor started fine, no rubbing of the pulleys against the cover, and while feed spring has a "TING" moment as you lower the saw for a cut to it, all seemed well - or so I thought.
While trying to adjust the blade guide I discovered that the blade guide won't pull out as it should (floor model at the store pulled out smoothly). a bit more force and with some resistance, it eventually came out revealing this:
View attachment 39495View attachment 39496
it looks like it was even ground at the factory to make it 'fit' (which it still doesn't really) as the grinding marks are perpendicular to the pull direction of the part (in which case if it was "scratched" from pulling it according to it's normal operation, the scratch marks would be length wise and not width wise).
the bolt seems to be off center as well, which might suggest that this part was simply not made right:
View attachment 39497
this thing will NOT go in and out freely, and I do not like the idea of having a faulty part on a brand new machine, regardless of who's the supplier. really bums me to have to repack this, drive it to the store and have it replaced, rinse- and repeat the whole process. might have to open the next one at the store to make sure it's ok, but I can't really inspect it all at the store... ugh... buyers beware - Quality Control is definitely low here.
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