New Tool - HF Portable Bandsaw and review

[jgedde]

Went to our newly opened HF store today. They had a variable speed portable bandsaw on sale for $79. It comes with a blade, but it says it's for wood only. They had a 3-pack of 14 TPI metal blades by Morse (decent stuff) for $19.

I took it home, immediately took off the installed balde and installed a Morse. This thing breezed through 2" dia W1 tool steel like butter! Stainless was also no problem. On either it showed no signs of struggling.

The main downside? It's as loud as hell! I took it apart and relubed the geartrain as the chinese grease had run out of the gears. I also found that the non-driven pulley uses a bronze bushing which was for intents and purposes, dry. I relubed everything with Lithium based moly grease and it's a bit quieter and runs quite a bit faster.

For $79 + $19 for blades it beats a hacksaw anyday! How did I ever do without one of these? For those of you who don't have a horizontal metal cutting bandsaw, can't justify the cost of one, or don't have the room, this baby is a beaut.

It doesn't seem to badly built for a Chicago Electric and now that it's properly lubricated should last a while. My theory seems to be holding up that name brand tools are slipping in quality and the chinese stuff is getting better.

I give it 4 stars. +2 for the price, +3 for the performance, and -1 because it's so noisy.

http://www.harborfreight.com/portable-variable-speed-bandsaw-47840.html

john

 

[Pauls77]

Thanks for the review John,
I might pick one up too, looks handy.

I hear there are stick-lubes for bandsaws, that might help it along in metal cutting applications.
Anything powered beats a hacksaw for sure.

It's nice having a HF nearby isn't it? Fun place.

See ya,
PaulS

 

[jgedde]

Love to have a good brand one, but they are $$$.

Yep. That's the problem.

I've had my Milwaukee Sawzall for 25 years and it works well. A Milwaukee bandsaw is big bucks.

The HF bandsaw cuts way faster through metal. I guessing that's the case since the blade is so much bigger to dissipate the heat and runs slower from a single tooth's point of view.

Thanks for the feedback,
John

 

[kevin]

HF Portable Bandsaw horizontal/vertical stand

So - I finally decided to buy a HF portable bandsaw because:

- favorable comments like this thread
- 20% off coupon
- aching arm from using the hacksaw

I should also note that I immediately replaced the blade that comes with the saw and purchase a 24 tpi metal cutting blade. After purchasing the bandsaw, I built a (no welding required) horizontal/vertical stand. I now have a benchtop horizontal bandsaw - fits my workshop and my budget, and is well sized for the kinds of projects I do. So far I pretty happy with my purchase - I can cut a 2-1/4" steel bar in under two minutes, and with the stand the cuts are cleaner and straighter than hacksaw cuts. You can see more pictures and plans of my bandsaw stand here: https://sites.google.com/site/lagad...thes-mills-etc/tools---portable-bandsaw-stand

 

[hman]

That's a very pretty blade cover!:thumbsup: When I first saw it, I almost thought "Wow! A bandsaw made of wood!"

Maybe you could give it a coat or two of varnish, so it doesn't discolor with use. Might even add a drawer pull on the face of the curve, so you have a handy handle ...

 

[kevin]

Thanks - I coat all of the wooden parts with wipe-on polyurethane (it's clear-coat, so you can't see it). There's a handle on the other side of the bandsaw, but's it's not all that convenient so I may try your drawer pull idea (although the cover is only held on by two screws, so that might be a concern).

Speaking of wooden bandsaws, have you seen this: http://woodgears.ca/bandsaw/nagel.html

That's a very pretty blade cover!:thumbsup: When I first saw it, I almost thought "Wow! A bandsaw made of wood!"

Maybe you could give it a coat or two of varnish, so it doesn't discolor with use. Might even add a drawer pull on the face of the curve, so you have a handy handle ...

 

[ridgeway]

I have a HF 4x6 horizontal/vertical saw and would be impossible to live without! Especially if you needed to cut 2-1/2" round stock! I couldn't imagine cutting it with a hacksaw, lol.

I actually found mine on craigslist. Its about 15 years old and the guy never used it. I picked it up for $125. Still using the original blade on it. Its a Taiwan version...i'd imagine the brand new ones are China made.

Very nice creation, Kevin!

 

[hman]

Speaking of wooden bandsaws, have you seen this: http://woodgears.ca/bandsaw/nagel.html

Now THAT's what I'm talkin' about!:LOL:

Quite the beauty. I just hope the "backbone" is strong enough to hold the required tension on the blade.