I am dreaming of a nice band saw. Its use will be 95% resawing. I made the mistake a while back getting the Delta 9" band saw (I call it my scroll saw). My budget is around $1000.
I do not think I will need the extra 2", but am looking for something that will cut through hard maple up to 6-8" thick.
What are your thoughts? I think the Jet comes with fence and roller guides.
Those that have the Laguna, I have heard they give deals, anyone want to share some pricing on the LT16 or HD16?
Apparently some of the earlier Jets had a vibration problem but the latest release seem to have addressed that problem. Anyway, the Jet seems to be good enough for Tom Plamann. You may or may not be up to Tom's level of expertise. Take a look at his site and his comments on his new Jet BS.
I don't know about deals, but resawing is about power. Jet = 1.5hp and probably over rated. Laguna = 2.5hp and probably under rated. Of course, if you absolutely can't wire 220, then you have no choice, you'll have to go with the Jet. Check the wheels. I don't know what Jet's big bandsaw wheels are made of, but the Laguna's are cast iron (There's a reason they offer a foot break as an option). All the Jet bandsaws I've seen have aluminum wheels, which are not as good as cast iron.
Take a good look at the table support. I think the Jet will be too lightly built for 6-8" maple. There are also a fair number of comments in past news articles indicating the saw lacks power.
I just got an LT16HD after going through the same thing, I can say it feels (and looks) signifcantly better built than JET (Granted it's more expensive) it has basically the same motor that my unisaw has. The table support is beefy and the table itself is beefy (weights about 50 - 60lbs itself) The laguna guides are great and the fence is better than the JET.
I didn't get a break on the price, but they gave me a a full set of blades when I bought the saw, plus a break on the mobility kit shipping was reasonable (less than taxes for me) I don't think the Jet would have enough power for 6-8" thick hard maple, 5" oak killed my 1HP Jet, I had to push it throught at a snails pace to keep from stalling it. On the other hand, the Laguna powered throught some 5" oak like it wasn't there, it didn't even seem to labor. I think the cast iron wheels help it keep it's power, but it does take it a few seconds to get up to speed. Overall I am very happy with it, and also with thier customer service, my fence arrived with a small gouge and they are sending me a new one.
The Jet is OK but a little on the light side. If that's the sort of bandsaw you want then I would opt for the Minimax S45 instead (decent but light weight, made by Minimax). Now, if you're looking for a heavier duty bandsaw, like the Laguna 16HD, then do yourself a favor and get a great one; the Minimax MM16 or MM20 (the MM series is made by Centauro). The Minmax MM16 is a superior saw to the Laguna (wheels, frame, guide mechanism, etc) and the pricing is similar. If you really want to resaw then look at the Minimax MM20, it has a 4.8hp motor, 20" throat, and 16" resaw capacity. It makes short work of wet wood (i.e. bowl blanks) and is large enough to properly handle a 1" carbide bandsaw blade (bandsaws under 20" have a tendency to break the backs of carbide blades).
I purchased a Jet 18" about 3 months ago. I purchased the saw because I was looking for a bigger beefier table then the various Delta and clone 14". The saw was easy to set up and has worked fine from the first day I used it.
I like the table and fence system seem ok. The motor is 1.5 hp and is
115/230 switchable. The wheels are cast iron (if I remember correctly). The Laguna and the like are beefier saws but for me it wasn't worth the extra money. Given your budget I think your choices are to find a bigger used bandsaw or go with the Jet.
I would not hesitate to buy this saw again. If you decide to get a jet purchase some high quality resaw blades it it should be able to handle what you need.
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