Crescent bandsaw: Durham $500

[Sully]

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[eyekode]

Hopefully I will go see it Saturday .

 

[Sully]

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[CarvedTones]

Hopefully I will go see it Saturday .

A little deviation from your latest leanings, which seemed to be more toward hand tools?

A 3HP bandsaw - wow! You can probably throw timber through it. :gar-La;

 

[eyekode]

A bandsaw is wonderful compliment to hand tools .

 

[MarkE]

A bandsaw is wonderful compliment to hand tools .

I agree. :eusa_danc

 

[CarvedTones]

And the next best thing to having a giant bandsaw to go with your hand tools is having a friend nearby with a giant bandsaw.

according to my wife, it's actually better than having one...

 

[eyekode]

Funny thing is a big bandsaw really doesn't take up much more room than a little bandsaw.

I have talked to the gentleman that owns the saw and I will check it out tomorrow. I have 2 concerns:
1) Direct drive bandsaws typically need a really slow motor (600-900 RPM or so?) which would be very hard to replace. So this one better be working well with no odd noises.
2) Moving the beast. But last I heard NCWW''rs like to help move large iron objects, maybe I can get some help .

Salem

 

[FredP]

Funny thing is a big bandsaw really doesn't take up much more room than a little bandsaw.

I have talked to the gentleman that owns the saw and I will check it out tomorrow. I have 2 concerns:
1) Direct drive bandsaws typically need a really slow motor (600-900 RPM or so?) which would be very hard to replace. So this one better be working well with no odd noises.
2) Moving the beast. But last I heard NCWW''rs like to help move large iron objects, maybe I can get some help .

Salem

seeing that it's 3PH it will prolly outlast all of us!:gar-Bi If you add a VFD you can have variable speed.:widea:

 

[CarvedTones]

Moving the beast. But last I heard NCWW''rs like to help move large iron objects, maybe I can get some help .

I could likely help unload but am less likely to be available for the whole round trip. Sully's estimate puts it right at the top of my trailer's capacity, but if you don't have another option you could use it (and yes, it has new tires/wheels since the "Sanford incident" ). Anyway, if you get some loading help in Durham (Travis?), I would help at this end.

 

[eyekode]

I checked out the bandsaw this afternoon. The cast iron is in great condition. It was in much better condition then the pictures suggest. Both wheels spun smooth and almost silently.

So why didn't I buy it?

The motor would run without load but would bog down with just the band. It reminded me of when I miswired my 3 phase motor. But the owner said he used to have it running.

Anyway he is a nice guy and my guess is it is still a very good deal. But I don't have the expertise to fix it or know where to find a replacement motor. Note the motor didn't have aplate or anything to identify the wiring.

Salem

 

[TracyP]

I checked out the bandsaw this afternoon. The cast iron is in great condition. It was in much better condition then the pictures suggest. Both wheels spun smooth and almost silently.

So why didn't I buy it?

The motor would run without load but would bog down with just the band. It reminded me of when I miswired my 3 phase motor. But the owner said he used to have it running.

Anyway he is a nice guy and my guess is it is still a very good deal. But I don't have the expertise to fix it or know where to find a replacement motor. Note the motor didn't have aplate or anything to identify the wiring.

Salem

Based on that post you made the right decision:icon_thum

 

[Sal Buscemi]

What size was it? How was he supplying the 3-phase power?

Sal

 

[Sully]

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[eyekode]

Sal, he had 3 phase in his garage :0.
He claimed it was 3HP but there was no plate.
Salem

 

[eyekode]

Sully,
It looked relatively complete. The lower wheel guard had a hack on it to keep it closed. And the back of the wheel guard on the top was just sheet metal. I am not positive but I think the top bearing block was ball bearing because it didn't seem to have two halves. But I honestly dont know. I do know it was very large and moved super smooth.

It is direct drive. I did not know how it was coupled. As for weight, sorry I am nit good at estimating that kind if thing.

As I said the overall condition was better than I expected. For example the allthread that tensioned the blade was flawlessly clean. The only other negative I can think of is one of the lower blade guides needed new bearings and the rubber in the wheels had some cracks and was flat (no crown).

I don't know what blades he was offering but the blade on there was at least an inch thick (probably more).

 

[Sully]

Hopefully Sal will buy it, thereby removing the temptation. :rotflm:

You said the motor bogged down when the band was on it. Did the motor actually turn over with the band on the saw, or did it just hum?

 

[eyekode]

Sully,
If he spun the wheel while starting it he could almost get it to run. Without tension (or the band on it) it would run but spin up slowly. With too much tension it would just hum. As I said it was like when I goofed wiring my other 3 phase motor and it wasn't running on all coils. But as he said it used to work I wondered if there was a motor problem as opposed to being miswired.

I would expect a 3HP (or even 2HP) motor to snap up to speed quickly. Something was obviously not right. (I realize this is a slow turning motor, it has to be for direct drive bandsaws with big wheels).
Salem

 

[Sully]

I agree that it sounds like it could have been single phasing. It could be a simple power problem (loose wire, broken wire, blown heater in the starter) or something not so simple internal to the motor.

 

[Sal Buscemi]

From the pics and the size of the motor, it looks to be a late 40's 32", but the wheel guards don't match up. All the other ones I've looked up had the solid cast covers. But that would put the weight closer to 1500-1800 lbs which doesn't seem right either.

Sal