Hi John,?
I have a Grizzly G9742 5¡± x 6¡± swivel head band saw.
In reference to some of your specific design elements,?
3. ¡®Blade tracking independent of setting squareness¡¯
? ? My saw has that. Adjust the vertical plane with the blade guides, and then adjust the blade square to the ?fixed jaw by adjusting the swivel head.
4. Bow weight is fixed on my saw. I control feed rate/pressure with the hydraulic feed control. I have not needed more weight. The hydraulic down feed was one of the reasons I chose the saw I did.?
12. The fixed jaw On thIs Grizz is non-adjustable. Angles are set & cut by swiveling the head, which is easily & quickly done, and changed back to 90 degrees. The swivel head is another reason I chose the saw I diid.?
In reference to accessories,
My saw has a hydraulic down feed.
My stand is quite rigid, another reason I chose this saw. I move my saw around , as well as in and out of my shop. It has two wheels, and two rubber feet. There is also a slide out handle, for wheeling it around, like a wheel barrow.?
My saw has a rapid release moveable jaw.
All the goodies I have, which are not on standard 4¡± x 6¡± saws, come at a price. My saw was a little over double The cost of what a HF saw was when I bought it. ?
We live in a price driven market. Proof of that, is the amount of HF saws that are sold. Basically, some folks will pay for a few added features, like me. Some.....will not.?
Other things,
Something not mentioned, is the v-belt that comes on these things. They remind me of the old fiberglass belted tires, that when cold, go thump thump thump vibrating your brains out for 10 miles.
That, and I think the belts they are made out of recycled whale blubber, as they don¡¯t last that long, which is actually a good thing. I put on a Gates V-belt, and only adjusted it once at installation, and a second time when I repaired the motor mount plate, which cracked. Nothing a little welding and a couple pieces of flat-bar didn¡¯t fix.
Agreed. The blade tensioner knob is junk. On mine, the threaded rod was about a half inch too short, so when changing blades, it was barely engaged with the block, and finally failed. I made my own new knob, with a bit longer piece of B7 all thread.?
Other Bill
