My wallet hurts, but I think I'll get over it (eventually).
I have wanted a nicer 110 14 inch bandsaw for a while and there were a handful of competitors. It seems like most well known makers make good ones in the price range I was looking at, and opinions are split on lines like user friendliness of adjustments and overall build quality. The Laguna and Rikon were a tight race, but ultimately the Laguna just seems to have much stronger advocates for it- about the closest level of devotion I see are Sawstop advocates- although few people are unhappy with their Rikon 10-325s and 326s. I found too many complaints about the similar Jet models such as poor build quality, and the 17 inch grizzly would need a 220v outlet that I'm too lazy to run- or to swap it to 110v and use a 30a breaker, which is currently occupied by my dust collector (I really do need to run some extra outlets in my garage). Price wise it beat most of the other options once shipping and taxes (or lack thereof) were considered as well.
I've never owned a bandsaw before and only barely used one, so what should I be looking to add, modify, or know about? Most of what I do will be curved cuts, cleaning up rough wood, and relatively little re-sawing. I'm interested in getting into turning down the road so cutting green logs isn't out of the question, but it isn't a current priority.
I'll see how long the factory blade lasts me before I feel the need to diversify- but how many blades should I expect to want to keep handy? A low TPI resaw blade, a higher TPI thinner blade for tight work, anything else?
Are there any other accessories you deem necessary? I purchased the mobility base (it hurts to pay $175 for some casters and a few pieces of sheet metal, but it wasn't much more than a standalone base...). I did not purchase the factory light because paying $115 for a work light sounds stupid.
I have wanted a nicer 110 14 inch bandsaw for a while and there were a handful of competitors. It seems like most well known makers make good ones in the price range I was looking at, and opinions are split on lines like user friendliness of adjustments and overall build quality. The Laguna and Rikon were a tight race, but ultimately the Laguna just seems to have much stronger advocates for it- about the closest level of devotion I see are Sawstop advocates- although few people are unhappy with their Rikon 10-325s and 326s. I found too many complaints about the similar Jet models such as poor build quality, and the 17 inch grizzly would need a 220v outlet that I'm too lazy to run- or to swap it to 110v and use a 30a breaker, which is currently occupied by my dust collector (I really do need to run some extra outlets in my garage). Price wise it beat most of the other options once shipping and taxes (or lack thereof) were considered as well.
I've never owned a bandsaw before and only barely used one, so what should I be looking to add, modify, or know about? Most of what I do will be curved cuts, cleaning up rough wood, and relatively little re-sawing. I'm interested in getting into turning down the road so cutting green logs isn't out of the question, but it isn't a current priority.
I'll see how long the factory blade lasts me before I feel the need to diversify- but how many blades should I expect to want to keep handy? A low TPI resaw blade, a higher TPI thinner blade for tight work, anything else?
Are there any other accessories you deem necessary? I purchased the mobility base (it hurts to pay $175 for some casters and a few pieces of sheet metal, but it wasn't much more than a standalone base...). I did not purchase the factory light because paying $115 for a work light sounds stupid.