New To Me, H.B. Smith 36" Bandsaw

[TopRamen]

I got this on New Years Eve of last year, after having been looking for a 36" for a few months.
The guys on the other sites are very helpful, but ofcourse they think I should run a flat belt and vintage motor with it. I really need it up and running asap, and while making my own blade guards and wheel covers is easy enough, the how to power it part is not.
I would like some suggestions on how to get it going WITHOUT making my own flatbelt or atleast making one for cheap, and I'll be running single phase to power it, likely a 5 or 7.5 hp motor, which ever i can find affordably first.
Down the road, when I have time I'll learn to make flatbelts and get a phase converter and all that, but right now I just need to build a proper shop, as my machines have all become part of my living space, and it would be nice to have a decent sized building to home them all, with proper dust management and the like.
I'm pretty poor, but I realized that having a large bandsaw would allow me to do resaw work with free lumber finds, making a decent shop a possible on a budget, so I budgeted for this saw and a small addition to the front of my small house to home it in until I build a real shop. The free lumber is starting to pile up, and I am anxious to begin building.
Yes, I have lots of other smaller equipment, but do to a spinal injury I find it easiest to make cuts on a bandsaw, then make all my pieces to something on it prior to assembly, rather than have to use a bunch of smaller portable tools and wheel my smaller saws outside to do work.
Also, like the saw, I need to source my motor and drive system locally, as I cannot sit in the vehicle for any great length of time to go get things, which means I miss out on a lot of deals which sucks, but that's just the way it is, or else I would have had this up and running already from free and cheap things I've seen on CR.
I'm ok with having to make my own pulleys if someone would suggest the best method of doing so.
I have about 25-30 electric motors on hand that don't have machines, but the largest is only 1.5 hp.
Anyhow, how would you folks power this thing up given my constraints?
It has already otherwise been nicely restored.
Thanks in advance for any and all helpful advice.

 

[Bob Korves]

The photos do not give more than a tantalizing glance, but I think you have a genuine antique there, a real treasure. First, I recommend really strongly that you do not make ANY modifications that change the original machine from what it was when it was built. If there are existing modifications already, leave them alone and think about them for a while before making any changes. Find machinists with good knowledge of antique machines and ask for advice before changing anything. They are not making any more beautiful old machines like this, and they are a history lesson and a tangible glance into the past. It is your machine to do with as you please, but please honor its history and rarity.

Again, it is difficult to see exactly what you have there, and what size blade and pulleys it has, but from what I can see there is no call for a motor as large as 5 to 7.5 HP. What do you plan to use it for? What size are the pulleys and blade? Is there any additional gearing or other speed reduction? Do you have a motor pulley that came with it? What would you like to cut with it? Again, beautiful old machine!

 

[TopRamen]

Wow! Thanks. I'm glad you like it as much as I do, but it was recovered from a factory 16 years ago, and was in good shape, but he had lots more like it, and I needed a local Saw, so it all worked out well.
His Kids chose the paint scheme, but he' is an educated and well versed fellow, so he use his surgical precision to implement his vision upon it. He's a Doctor after all, and coincidentally, the same one that delivered my Son at the same time he was busy going to other states to buy old industry for the good of us all. He is responsible for saving a lot of very unique and last of their kind items. He's one of the few living People that I admire, and would include on my personal Ark, were I ever to be in the position to have to create one.
It was not like the 36" Crescent next to it was not for sale either, and maybe still is, but no, that's not the original paint.
Most of the other ones are either rust colored or green of a drab hue.

 

[TopRamen]

He even told me where he got the parts that he did not think you could get anymore, and since there are lots of machine shops nearby, those things are kept in stock because they were good enough designs to become parts of other things.

 

[TopRamen]

I need to run the saw, and am going to run the saw.
The pulleys have been removed, and I brought the Drive Sheave to a machine shop, and they will get me set up with a new sheave for $86.
V belts.

 

[TopRamen]

The photos do not give more than a tantalizing glance, but I think you have a genuine antique there, a real treasure. First, I recommend really strongly that you do not make ANY modifications that change the original machine from what it was when it was built. If there are existing modifications already, leave them alone and think about them for a while before making any changes. Find machinists with good knowledge of antique machines and ask for advice before changing anything. They are not making any more beautiful old machines like this, and they are a history lesson and a tangible glance into the past. It is your machine to do with as you please, but please honor its history and rarity.

Again, it is difficult to see exactly what you have there, and what size blade and pulleys it has, but from what I can see there is no call for a motor as large as 5 to 7.5 HP. What do you plan to use it for? What size are the pulleys and blade? Is there any additional gearing or other speed reduction? Do you have a motor pulley that came with it? What would you like to cut with it? Again, beautiful old machine!

That's a long story. I'll have to ask myself all those questions again to respond in a properly informed manner.
I can handle that, in the morning after a coffee or two.
A lot of work to do to answer, but likely the best type of work.
Thanks for the list.