Pete & Guzziguy: Thanks for the responses.
I neglected to mention that there will be a lot of overage on this project, and we will want to resaw some of it in half to produce 3/4 trim for the rest of the room, etc... We ordered all 8/4 on purpose, in order to have more ability to pick and choose though the lumber. I am going to commit an act of sacriledge here on Machine Junkie (Forgive me Pete, for I am about to sin), but what I am looking for is a functional bandsaw, not a bandsaw restoration project. (Sorry, but I needed to say it) With that in mind, would you deign to touch the Mini Max MM16 16" with your 10' pole? Among other features, it has 25 lb ea. cast iron flywheels that you seem to prefer, Crzy.
One other question, even if you think I'm passing up a great oportunity to spend the next two months with a can of naval jelly, a wire brush, and a respirator: the 4.8HP model (230V, 60Hz S-1 rated) has a running load of 3.6KW. Based on a Honda chart I have for various electrical draws for everything from blenders to grain silo elevators, it looks as if the starting load will be about three times that much. Does this sound correct to you? It matters because we are using homemade power up here, and that gets to be a lot for our system.
Thanks, -DP
Here's the link:
http://www.minimax-usa.com/index.php?pa ... &Itemid=26
Band saws...what do I need
Moderator: crzypete
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DenaliPilot
- Posts: 63
- Joined: Thu May 17, 2007 8:22 am
- Location: Denali, Alaska
Last edited by DenaliPilot on Tue Dec 18, 2007 4:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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DenaliPilot
- Posts: 63
- Joined: Thu May 17, 2007 8:22 am
- Location: Denali, Alaska
Follow-up from talking with Mini Max USA: The 4.8hp motor on the MM16 has a start capacitor as well as a run capacitor, lowering the start-up demand to a more reasonable 24 amps. Run loads are between 13 and 20 amps, depending on how big a railroad tie you are horsing through it and how dull the blade is 
The Mini max is a far better looking saw. I am familiar with the blade guides, and they are not my favorite, but they are certainly a step above the ones on the Laguna.
As to the recommendation of an older machine, I am aware of your situation. It is possible to buy machines that have been restored rather than buying the rust buckets that I prefer. This was my recommendation. At the price ranges you are looking at there should be quite a bit available. The one caveat for you is finding one that has enough HP to do the sawing, which is single phase.
Bandsaws do use a lot of amps at startup, You might be dimming those lights.....
One thought for a three phase machine would be to power it with a VFD (Variable frequency drive) and program it for a long ramp up. This would solve the single/three phase issue and help minimize the amp draw.
Pete
As to the recommendation of an older machine, I am aware of your situation. It is possible to buy machines that have been restored rather than buying the rust buckets that I prefer. This was my recommendation. At the price ranges you are looking at there should be quite a bit available. The one caveat for you is finding one that has enough HP to do the sawing, which is single phase.
Bandsaws do use a lot of amps at startup, You might be dimming those lights.....
One thought for a three phase machine would be to power it with a VFD (Variable frequency drive) and program it for a long ramp up. This would solve the single/three phase issue and help minimize the amp draw.
Pete
DP-
I rely on Crzy to make the argument for a used saw so I will focus on the new saw. I have a few questions that have to do with quality of cut issues. Are the wheels balanced and are they crowned? Balanced wheels produce a smoother sawing experience. The crown helps maintain accurate tracking even during aggressive cutting. These issues are not necessarily addressed just because a saw is new so it is worth asking.
My final question has to do with the 16" minimax vs the 20". It looks like they have the same motor and controls so the difference is in the capacity and the weight of the machines? The type of cutting that you have described will benefit from having a properly tensioned blade. We will talk you though the set up and tracking later but you should be aware that you will want to tension the hell out of a 1/2" blade. I would want to hear their sales pitch about the amount of tension one saw can handle vs the other.
I rely on Crzy to make the argument for a used saw so I will focus on the new saw. I have a few questions that have to do with quality of cut issues. Are the wheels balanced and are they crowned? Balanced wheels produce a smoother sawing experience. The crown helps maintain accurate tracking even during aggressive cutting. These issues are not necessarily addressed just because a saw is new so it is worth asking.
My final question has to do with the 16" minimax vs the 20". It looks like they have the same motor and controls so the difference is in the capacity and the weight of the machines? The type of cutting that you have described will benefit from having a properly tensioned blade. We will talk you though the set up and tracking later but you should be aware that you will want to tension the hell out of a 1/2" blade. I would want to hear their sales pitch about the amount of tension one saw can handle vs the other.
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DenaliPilot
- Posts: 63
- Joined: Thu May 17, 2007 8:22 am
- Location: Denali, Alaska
Hi Nektai,
Thanks for the thoughts. I know that the Mini Max wheels/ tires are NOT crowned. They frame this as a selling feature, claiming that it results in more surface area contact w/ the blade, and therefore better traction to drive it.
As for the blades, I am looking at 1" Woodmaster and 1-1/4" Timberwolf carbide tipped blades. Both are supposed to give very smooth cuts, and the carbide supposedly outlasts steel blades by up to 10x. They are spendy ($160 and $250 respectively). The salesman I've been talking with is steering me toward the Woodmaster because it is a better price and because the greater thickness of the Timberwolf (a strong 1/16th) results in more waste.
I had not looked closely at the 20", but will do so. Too bad it costs so much more.
-DP
Thanks for the thoughts. I know that the Mini Max wheels/ tires are NOT crowned. They frame this as a selling feature, claiming that it results in more surface area contact w/ the blade, and therefore better traction to drive it.
As for the blades, I am looking at 1" Woodmaster and 1-1/4" Timberwolf carbide tipped blades. Both are supposed to give very smooth cuts, and the carbide supposedly outlasts steel blades by up to 10x. They are spendy ($160 and $250 respectively). The salesman I've been talking with is steering me toward the Woodmaster because it is a better price and because the greater thickness of the Timberwolf (a strong 1/16th) results in more waste.
I had not looked closely at the 20", but will do so. Too bad it costs so much more.
-DP
DP
You are heading into unfamiliar territory. I would advise that you talk to the blade people about tension. Hopefully they will give you numbers that will let you have a conversation with the Minimax people. You should also verify that the guides are designed to accommodates such a wide blade.
The sort of work that most of us make requires no more than a 1/2" wide blade with 3 tpi. When properly tensioned I have seen one guy cut veneer 22" tall.
N
You are heading into unfamiliar territory. I would advise that you talk to the blade people about tension. Hopefully they will give you numbers that will let you have a conversation with the Minimax people. You should also verify that the guides are designed to accommodates such a wide blade.
The sort of work that most of us make requires no more than a 1/2" wide blade with 3 tpi. When properly tensioned I have seen one guy cut veneer 22" tall.
N
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DenaliPilot
- Posts: 63
- Joined: Thu May 17, 2007 8:22 am
- Location: Denali, Alaska
Well, you pays your money and you takes your chances. Today I set up our new mini-max MM-16 bandsaw. So far I'm suitably impressed, although I don't claim to know all the finer points like you all do. With the 1", 1.3 TPI carbide-tipped blade it was resawing shop scraps just as fast as I could feed them through it. Here's the funny part, though: They're made in Italy, so the instructions are a translation from the original version. We got the optional "Mobility Kit", which is a set of bolt-on wheels and a Johnson bar that hooks up to the opposite end of the base for maneuvering it around. This is a direct quote from the instruction manual: "Note: Always be careful where you place your Johnson." I had to stop cleaning off the cosmoline I was laughing so hard. Figured I needed to post that on MJ to help keep all you guys on the straight and narrow...