FAQ's on Band Saw and Mill/Drill

[NICOLAS LIN]

I've had a RF 118 bandsaw ( bought through Harbor Freight) since 1980 and except for the guide bearings and an occasional saw blade have done nothing to it. It is recognized by the hobby community as a workhorse and I see it on local Craigslists for about what you can buy them new from Harbor Freight. The saw has many mod's catalogued here on the Hobby Machinists site. For me it was one of the first machine tools I bought in prep to start doing metal work.

I also have a RF30 sold by Enco made in 1988. I bought it used and it looks like it's been through several owners. I've only had to replace one lead screw nut even though it was roughly used and barely maintained. Many of us here have these mill/drills and even though they are not highly regarded by some mine serves its purpose well for what I do. I knew I needed something bigger than small benchtop mills but didn't want to deal with the size and weight of a Bridgeport class of mill.

The RF30 was cheap to buy and cheap to maintain. In recent years for some unknown reason it seems to have appreciated in price to over what Harbor Freight wants for one new. Even with all its drawbacks it's still being sold by several importers.

Hi, C-Bag:
It's Nicolas again, need your help to fill the questions survey at below link, we're doing user's opinion collecting and try to get better idea to design new model, i hope you or someone who own a samll bandsaw can help to fill it

5”x6” Small saw User Opinion Survey

Hello all my dear friends: We are a manufacturer of 5x6 saws in Taiwan, and we hope to collect suggestions from real users on 5x6 mini saws for mechanical design in the future. Please assist in completing this survey, thank you for your help . The following questionnaire will collect your...

docs.google.com

 

[C-Bag]

Hi, C-Bag:
It's Nicolas again, need your help to fill the questions survey at below link, we're doing user's opinion collecting and try to get better idea to design new model, i hope you or someone who own a samll bandsaw can help to fill it

5”x6” Small saw User Opinion Survey

Hello all my dear friends: We are a manufacturer of 5x6 saws in Taiwan, and we hope to collect suggestions from real users on 5x6 mini saws for mechanical design in the future. Please assist in completing this survey, thank you for your help . The following questionnaire will collect your...

docs.google.com

I did it Nicolas under the first name Antone. I had a hard time with a lot of the questions because I've modified or fixed what I didn't like about the saw over the 40yrs I've had it. The basic saw is a wonderful design, thats why it's so copied. It's rugged (cast iron) and the perfect size for most medium and small work and used to be in the hobbyists price range. Personally function and price (not to expensive) are the main concerns. And IMHO the worst part of the present design is the wobbly legs. I don't claim to be any kind of an economic guru but doing a major redesign would add a lot to the cost of the design and put it out of the range of most hobbyists.

 

[ARC-170]

Suggested FAQ's for the RF milling machines:
I know that some of this is answered in the specs, but putting it more than one place can't hurt.

1. What diameter and grade of bolts do I use for mounting this to a table?
2. How much does the machine weigh?
3. What is the maximum amount of material that can be removed with an end mill in various material (ranging from Inconel to plastic), both when face milling and side milling.
4. What is the biggest drill bit diameter this machine can use?
5. Where do I find parts? Are there authorized repair places that you partner with?
6. Do these come in metric and SAE/English units?
7. How do I mount DRO's?
8. Does it come with all the wrenches and tools needed to change the belts, the collets, etc? What other accessories does it come with?
9. What sizes and types of belts does it use?

Is this what you are looking for?

 

[Larry$]

I bought one of those little bandsaws about 30 years ago. The name on it is Delta. It has not been used a lot but it works. The stand & wheels are terrible. The upper blade guard is super flimsy. I had to file the castings to get the blade guides to move far enough to work. I would put a knob or handle on the stop instead of an allen screw. I've done that. It could use a better way to adjust the down force. A common mod is a bigger table surface to use when vertical. It has to be a quick on & off so the saw can be used horizontally. The real advantage of this saw is it's small space required and it's cheap price. When it comes to small space requirement having it easy to move helps, the terrible wheels don't. Also if you try to move it while in the vertical position it is back heavy and very unstable. Positioning the wheels a bit further back would help that. I know you should put it in the horizontal position but that requires removing the add on table or some how blocking it up. If these add much to the cost, let the hobby guys do the fixing.