Anyone actually using a Rigid BS1400?

What are you going to use it for? Resawing 10" stock might not be its'
strongest suit, but it will work fine on 6" stock. It actually took
home a FWW award about a year or more ago as a good value. I think you
are spot on when you consider the price/performance. If you are into
lots of bandsaw work it might not be the best match. As a good tool to
use now and again for things like cutting open jewel boxes, odd pattern
cutting, tenons and so forth I am confident you will not regret it.
Yeah, the riser block and fence options are pricey. If you need those
things it puts you into Jet territory. If not, I would give it a go...

[email protected] wrote:

> I got some HD gift cards and I saw this unit for $299 at HD. Just
> wondered if anyone had any practical experience with this particular
> saw. And yeah... I know that there are better saws :). Who actually
> makes this saw for Rigid?

I was considering this bandsaw until I found an old used Craftsman at a
garage sale. Also, they seemed to have disappeared from my local HD,
probably can be special ordered. The last one on the floor was marked
down to $349 from $399. Now you say they're down to $299? I was going
to put it on my HD card so no payments for 6 months. I did this with
the Ridgid 6" jointer, which BTW has worked great for me. I also have
the Ridgid 3650 table saw and am happy with it also. My only concern
with buying Ridgid tools is the availability of buying accessories for
them. With the bandsaw I was considering the addition of riser blocks
at some point and read here on this NG that they want some outrageous
amount of $ for them. Then I also read that someone tried out the
Grizzly blocks and they bolt right on, just a different color- who
cares? I wasn't too concerned about the 3/4 hp vs. 1 hp as I wasn't
planning on resawing for eight hours a day, only an occasional use. As
for buying used, it can be the way to go if you happen to find the
right tool. The Craftsman I bought is a 12" model that was mounted on a
rolling cart. The motor is only rated at 1/4 hp but it has done
everything I've asked of it so far. It was only $25 buy I had to
replace the tires, blade, and added cool blocks which added about $70
to the price. It then required a couple hours of tinkering and tuning
to get it to an acceptable working condition. Only complaint is only
about 5" of resawing capability. Again, if you buy used make sure you
can find parts in case you need to replace something.

Dale

[email protected] wrote:
> I got some HD gift cards and I saw this unit for $299 at HD. Just
> wondered if anyone had any practical experience with this particular
> saw. And yeah... I know that there are better saws :). Who actually
> makes this saw for Rigid?
I have had one for a couple of years. I am satisfied for what I have used
it for. That includes cutting some small bowl blanks and cutting 3 inch
thick oak. I have not used it yet for any resawing and I did not get
the riser kit.
I have had no problems with tracking and like the cool blocks it came
with. I have a set of band rollers (the Harbor Freight $5 knock offs)
but have not tried them yet. Dust collection is so so but I am not sure
if that isn't the case with most saws in this class without modification.
At the time I looked at various other models at Woodworkers Supply when
they still existed. The Delta and Jet were more expensive, were not in
stock and were packaged in a way that would not fit into my car. They
also had a Reliant (sp?) - thought it was junk. The Rigid was in stock
(although I had to go to a second HD) and packaged differently.
Basically having the open stand to assemble was actually a plus for me
because the Delta closed base box was too big for the car. I think the
stand is adequately rigid and you can put a shelf on it.
John

I wanted to use up my $150 in HD credit and figured it migt be worth a
shot. I don't see myself doing much in the way of resawing, and
frankly, I could probably get by with a 12" unit. I just don't want
something with an aluminum table and _no_ power, so I figured stay
away from those smaller bench-top units from Ryobi, Craftsman, or even
Delta.

Probably better off waiting for a used saw to come along.


On Sat, 22 Jan 2005 19:51:36 -0600, tzipple <[email protected]>
wrote:

>I played with one. It was OK. A bit light and loud. More vibration that
>I like. It has only a 3/4hp motor, which is pretty small for a real 14"
>saw. Cutting smaller stuff would be fine. Resawing 8" maple would be
>possible, I imagine, but slow.
>
>On a budget, I would wait and get the Grizzley 14" for $125 more. You
>only buy this kind of tool once every 10-20 years if you buy well.
>Personally, I hate tools that are OK... too good to replace, not good
>enough to enjoy and use easily for all of my needs. This is one of those
>tools. OK, but not good enough to enjoy using. The Griz is closer to
>being a tool that I would want to use for a deacde or two.
>
>[email protected] wrote:
>> I got some HD gift cards and I saw this unit for $299 at HD. Just
>> wondered if anyone had any practical experience with this particular
>> saw. And yeah... I know that there are better saws :). Who actually
>> makes this saw for Rigid?

I played with one. It was OK. A bit light and loud. More vibration that
I like. It has only a 3/4hp motor, which is pretty small for a real 14"
saw. Cutting smaller stuff would be fine. Resawing 8" maple would be
possible, I imagine, but slow.

On a budget, I would wait and get the Grizzley 14" for $125 more. You
only buy this kind of tool once every 10-20 years if you buy well.
Personally, I hate tools that are OK... too good to replace, not good
enough to enjoy and use easily for all of my needs. This is one of those
tools. OK, but not good enough to enjoy using. The Griz is closer to
being a tool that I would want to use for a deacde or two.

[email protected] wrote:
> I got some HD gift cards and I saw this unit for $299 at HD. Just
> wondered if anyone had any practical experience with this particular
> saw. And yeah... I know that there are better saws :). Who actually
> makes this saw for Rigid?

I have one with the 6" riser block, and it is a pretty decent saw.
Blade changes are a little bit of a pain, but I don't do that very often.
Blade tracking is good. I have been going to get a set of Carter Guides for
it and that will improve it even more. (I just found out they make guides
for Ridgid.) I sawed 1/8"x 6" cocobolo veneers with it consistantly.
I built a larger table for it from some plans I got at
www.plansnow.com which has a regular fence, one for resawing and a
built in circle cutting jig and I have had good luck with all of it. I do
want a larger saw for heavier resawing but for basic bandsaw work it is
pretty good buy for $300. (Build your own fence etc., the parts from ridgid
are pretty high and the homebuilt one I have has a lot more functionality.

>>[email protected] wrote:
>>> I got some HD gift cards and I saw this unit for $299 at HD. Just
>>> wondered if anyone had any practical experience with this particular
>>> saw. And yeah... I know that there are better saws :). Who actually
>>> makes this saw for Rigid?
>









--
Michael Burton
Thunderbird Hardwoods
Llano, TX

mhburton at tbird-hardwoods dot com