While at Rockler today, I asked one of the employees if he could plug in a Jet BS and show me what nominal vibration was like. MAN, mine is not that quiet or stable when it runs, I was dissapointed and decided I had to do something. Without anything to relate it to, I thought my BS might be running like it was supposed to (I bought it 7 months ago)...
I believe the model number you're fishing for is the 28-299A (Limited ed.
14" bandsaw) I didn't totally remove the vibes, but I did get rid of the sway, which was my primary objective. As long I am not mesmerized by the saw wagging back and forth I can do my work. I think the 1.5 HP model of 14" BS might be inherently more prone to vibrate and on the same frame they sell a 1/2 HP and 1 HP motor. Perhaps its just too overpowered for that frame ???I have a friend whose a fellow "worker in wood" and if he's reading this I'm sure he'll volunteer one of his spare motors for me to try out. :-)
1) Didn't bother putting a nickel on the table... The bandsaw had a front-back shimmy of about 1/4 inch when running under no load. Very distracting, made me dislike even using the tool, but under load I didn't notice it that much. I jimmied the bandsaw back and forth, and it does seem square and solid on its footing. Its on mobile base but is seated solid (no twist, weight distributed equally on both sides).2) Went to Rockler, bought link belt. Even though I thought it wasn't the primary problem I thought it could be a contributing factor...
3) Took off blade, left belt on to drive lower wheel. Sway wasn't as bad, but I could tell the vibes were still there.4) Took off belt, ran motor alone. Shallower vibes, really hummed unless I held the tension screw still. A higher frequency since no load on motor.
5) I didn't remove the motor cuz its heavy and a bitch to mount alone, so I took 4 toilet washers (those thick cloth reinforced ones) and put them between the feet on the motor and steel rails its mounted to one at a time with bolts loosened. Running the motor this way seemed slightly better - maybe just psychological.6) Put the motor pulley in parallel with the upper pulley, put the link belt on, turned the sucker on. Ran much smoother, no sway, passed nickel test. I heard the motor, felt SOME vibes with my hand, but the nickel didn't budge so that was good enough for me.
7) After putting the blade on and running it again, I decided for kicks to see whether the rubber grommits on the motor mounts did the trick, or if it was the link belt. Changed link belt for original V-belt. Sway came back, and seemed no better than before I put rubber washers in. I think the belt did cause a majority of the problem with it swaying.Hell, maybe I should bolt my bandsaw cabinet into the concrete floor (to maintain alignment) then bolt the motor into a thick wood base (bolted to floor). The motor would not be physically connected to the saw, only the belt would connect them. :-) Vibes aren't likely to transmit through a belt, only the motor mount if its connected to the saw base. Just an idea. I tend to get crazy ideas when I get no satisfaction from an expensive tool.