*Phenomenal portaband. Worth the wait in replacing my stolen previous model **MyBest.Tools** Variable speed, with an adjustable governor, adjustable shoe, and locking articulating forward handle. It's beefy, but feels just incredibly well built and solid, will eat through strut, emt, rigid, all thread, whatever, all day.*
There is another option: carbide disks made for metal cutting. In the shop workflow, they end up being like a compromise between a regular abrasive chop saw disk and a band saw. Personally I like band saws better, but there is a case to be made for those circular saw disks. Replacing or switching a band saw blade (if you work with some very dissimilar materials) is a hassle compared to just switching a circular saw blade.
I have the Hafco (Australia's Grizzly, same machines different colour) version of this saw's bigger brother, the built in coolant system makes a massive difference. I also have the smaller version of this in permanent vertical mode for blade profile cutting, works well. Just make sure your grub screws are snug in your pulleys, they come loose and the key can fall out and chew your wheels out.
I have this same saw ( marketed under the " Northern Tool " brand ) and I love it ... The pivoting head is the feature I bought it for ... Bought it new on clearance for like 275.00 and never looked back ... I use the Olson 18t Hardback blades and they seem to last a long time ... For different materials I use either the abrasive chop saw or the " cold " cut chop saw ...
Got the Shop Fox version a couple of years ago. It had a well-known problem with the blade not going down far enough to finish the cut. I found an old fellah out there who made a plate to lay on top of where the vice goes to raise the workpiece. Work pretty well and doesn't produce nearly as much of a gruesome mess as the abrasive chop saw.
That's a fair review. I have had several Grizzly tools as well. This saw being one of them. My only complaint with this saw is the motor vibration otherwise, it is a great saw that cuts extremely accurate with the appropriate blade. A new blade from Lenox will also do wonders.
I got pretty much the same one. I can give you two tips: first: the variable pitch bi-metal blades (I got some lennox ones) are great. second: replace the transmission fluid in the gear box. New bearings (6200Z) in the guides are also helpfull :-)
Walter, dump the little 1/2 Chi-horse motor and get a US farm duty 1 hp motor instead w/ the same shaft size, get bi-metal blades in a straight 18 tooth and 10-14 tooth blades from Industrial Blade in CA. Great prices and quick shipping, and expert help. The little time it takes to change over to the correct tooth size for the material will offset broken teeth and slow cutting or excessive wear. Time is money, yes, but let's not be lazy. Long-long time viewer, even read one of your books.
I've been using a table or vice top Porta band for small cuts and it's a big time saver and no frigging sparks and dust. Great video as always. I'm still looking forward to the Hawaiian shirts though😋
It’s funny you didn’t compare this saw to its previous designs Which as near as I can tell isn’t actually any better Yes you get a hydraulic piston to manage feed rate but at a cost to being able to use your saw vertically while the old spring tensioner wasn’t perfect it works fine (for 30 years) and it still has auto shut off and a better base to stand on for outside the shop cutting Ya not worth the aded cost sorry to say I’ll stick with the bandsaw design that was around before harbour freight
Good honest evaluation of Grizzley. Do you have any experience with their Belt Grinder? I started with a 1 x 30 which can only take me so far, and wondered if Grizzleys 2 x 72 inline "knife grinder" was decent for $700. Again, not top of the line with all the bells and whistles, but value/price?
Great review! I'm debating the Grizzly VS Jet option for this saw. Have you had to order any repair parts yet for the saw? If so did Grizzly have the parts you needed? Looking at the Jet site it seems like a lot of the repair parts for their version don't have any availability.
I’ve noticed that although they all look the same, the assembly can differ based on brand. They all use the same cast iron mold, but there can be a huge difference in quality baed on components and the precision in assembly. So one should not judge a brand based on a review of another brand, even though they look exactly the same on the surface..This goes for a lot of Chinese made metal working machines (lathes, mills, etc.), not only the band saw.
Wait what? You did a sponsored video for them and they never paid you? That's pretty lame of them. I'm surprised you still give them business after that.
One point worth mentioning. This saw, while slower, provides a significant increase in safety. As a mentor at a local high school, I was watching student use a chop saw to cut aluminum (a high speed wood chop saw no less). I was lucky to intervene as a student was holding a piece of aluminum by hand with their thumb over the cut line. Came within seconds of a devastating injury. Teachers agreed to phase it out in favor of this very model. Now, with minimal training and oversight, I have confidence in the student's ability to cut materials safely.