Need Advise-help, Old Band Saw

I was given an old Ryobi 9 inch band saw that still runs but did not have a blade on it. It looks to be in good shape, all the wheels are good, etc. I want to see if I can use it to cut aluminum, round rod, plate, etc. Nothing real big or anything but faster and easier than doing hack saw with a bad back and shoulders.
First do you think it would work for that, Second would be what blade would I need for it. It can handle a 3/8 blade,

Any assistance would be appreciated.

I have a small Ryobi bandsaw and it will cut fairly thin aluminum ok — maybe up to about 1/4" flat and maybe 1/2" rod or square. I get best results with a fine tooth metal cutting blade. I don't use it too much except to cut fairly small stock blanks.

kvt said:

I was given an old Ryobi 9 inch band saw that still runs but did not have a blade on it. It looks to be in good shape, all the wheels are good, etc. I want to see if I can use it to cut aluminum, round rod, plate, etc. Nothing real big or anything but faster and easier than doing hack saw with a bad back and shoulders.
First do you think it would work for that, Second would be what blade would I need for it. It can handle a 3/8 blade,

Any assistance would be appreciated.

Click to expand...

Many people have adapted wood-cutting band saws to cut metal. The Ryobi brand is a fairly good one and if the construction of the saw is rugged enough to withstand higher blade tension, then converting the saw could be an interesting project.

You will need to reduce the speed of the blade as well as installing a blade intended to cut metal (more teeth, less "set" than wood-cutting blades). Reducing cutting speed usually entails the addition of a counter-shaft to provide speed reduction from the motor to the wheels of the saw. This isn't necessarily simple but is effective and probably a fun project.

You may be able to replace the motor with one that can operate at lower RPM. Two options might be variable speed DC motors and variable phase AC motors. Both will exhibit less torque when they are operated at less than design RPM but the AC motor is preferred. Either option would be fairly costly, over $100 for new motors and controllers I suppose, but would be a simpler installation than making a counter-shaft configuration.

The counter-shaft configuration not only doesn't sacrifice torque but increases it. You need to consider how much time and $$$ you want to invest in a conversion compared to how much a new (or used band saw from eBay). If you decide to make the conversion, it would be cool if you photographed your progress and posted it

edited to add: I missed the "9 inch" part of your band saw description on my first reading. If this is one of the three-wheel configurations, I doubt that it's worthwhile to make a conversion.

This is just a personal opinion based on ownership of a small three-wheel band saw that I gave away some years ago. The saw was not particularly sturdy and it had a tendency to break blades because the blades had to flex more than in a conventional band saw with large wheels.

I will note that it wasn't a Ryobi brand for whatever that may be worth.

I've done a Delta 14" band saw with as big a secondary pulley as I could get and it worked pretty good. It was a major project.

The Ryobi is a direct drive and I doubt it would be worth the effort. The little Ryobi band saw is not very fast. I've had no problems cutting aluminum with it. I've cut small diameter steel rods with it and it seemed ok for that but I wouldn't tear out across a wide cut.

The Ryobi I have is a newer model 9" with two wheels. It is actually a very nice little band saw and cuts very well. I never liked the Delta. I spent hundreds of dollars trying to upgrade it and it still wouldn't cut straight or square and it was stupendously heavy.

I needed a bandsaw that would cut 5 1/2" material when I was putting styrofoam insulation in the shop ceiling. I purchased a Steel City 10" bandsaw because it was inexpensive and would make the cut. It has turned out to be a pretty nice little bandsaw. It is 2-speed belt drive and has lots of nice features and seems fairly well-made. It's light weight and easy to move around, not requiring big heavy casters.

Amazon has one used for about $280 shipped. I can't find any new ones, so they may have discontinued it. It does have a down side beside probable parts unavailability. A very non-standard blade length that is very hard to find. It has a goose-neck light but it is useless as the goose-neck won't hold any position. But, it takes care of saw-business very well, cutting straight and square.

Franko said:

The Ryobi I have is a newer model 9" with two wheels. It is actually a very nice little band saw and cuts very well. I never liked the Delta. I spent hundreds of dollars trying to upgrade it and it still wouldn't cut straight or square and it was stupendously heavy.
View attachment 99963

Click to expand...

Sorry to hear your unhappiness with a Delta 14”. I think they are great. I have two of them, both with the built in back gear set-up. Simply moving a pin puts it in back gear and you’re ready to cut metal. I have had one of them for around 45 years and I’m still waiting to change the tires on it. I also have a 20” Powermatic that I use primarily for re-saw. I agree with randyc, if it’s any kind of 3 wheeler I would move on to something else. Those things can’t even track a blade when they are turned off…Good Luck, Dave.

Ooo. That Powermatic is a sweet saw. I have a Powermatic PM2000 cabinet saw, and I love it.
They have a Powermatic drill press that I drool over every time I go into my local Rockler store.

My Delta was probably just a lemon. It happens.

Well I just picked up a Delta 3 wheel bandsaw at an estate sale for $50. The reason I bought it was it's designed to cut both wood and metal. After putting new tires on it and buying a regular and a bimetal blade, it seems to be working as intended. Cuts metal like a dream.
I understand what you say about breaking blades since there are 3 wheels instead of only 2, and they are smaller in size, so the blades will be bent more severely and more often. Hopefully the guys at Delta did their homework and designed for infinite fatigue life on blade flexing. Guess I'll find out.

Here is my craftsman 3 wheel, that i converted to metal cutting, make my own blades, fine and course (do all material) and i'am running a 1 hp thread mill motor on it (variable speed) works good

When picking a blade for a metal band saw, you want at least 3 or 4 saw teeth engaged in the material at all time. Ss if your cutting only thin stuff, get a blade with more TPI.