Brilliant Budget Bandsaw Challenge - Part 1

Aside from the assortment of primarily old hand tools, the other woodworking friend I appreciate is my Bandsaw.

I didn't know what to expect from the diminutive machine I ended up with. I'm used to buying and using industrial quality bandsaws along with other machines, and I feared the small bandsaw might be a disappointment. How wrong I was!

Before purchasing I had seen a new bandsaw in the discount supermarket I frequent (Lidl) for £100. It looked lightweight and flimsy. That's fair enough, what do we expect for that kind of price? So, to the used market!

Could I find a sturdy used bandsaw for about £100? I have to be honest, at this price point we're asking a lot. But the BBB Challenge had begun. eBay, Gumtree and Facebook marketplace were my destinations for finding a bargain bandsaw.

There's plenty of generic advice about bandsaws out there. “It must be a minimum of 14”, any smaller is a joke”, “Full cast iron construction”, “It'll need to cut at least 8” deep material” etc.

Here's some feedback from a professional workshop. It's actually quite rare that we rip material in excess of 3” deep. A 14” wide cutting capacity, although a reasonable goal, isn't strictly required and there are work arounds. And sure, who doesn't like cast iron. But likewise, who doesn't like 3 phase power, natural light and more free time for woodworking? Instead I put my pragmatic hat on.

As with any purchase where you're looking for a used option, you have to take your time. A browse at lunch time is a better use of my time than reading the latest doom and gloom rag so no hardship there.

I first looked at the DeWalt/Elu DW738 (oh how I miss the quality of Elu power tools). It has a 6” depth of cut but alas. They were all too expensive and too far away for a viable collection.

The same was true of Kitty, Sheppach, Electra Beckhum. I even tried Startrite! Well, we can dream, right? As a last ditch effort I looked at Record. I was a couple of weeks in and a Record Drillmaster DMB65 turned up on eBay for £100 starting bid.

There's not much I could research about the saw online. I couldn't tell you about the the history of the Record machines either. I know they've now morphed into Record Power. Critically it was metal. Yes, the table, fence and wheels are aluminium but the rest is steel and the spine looked to be a very sturdy lump of steel.

I forgot about it, failed to bid on it but thankfully it went unsold. I dropped the seller a line and agreed £100. I bought it when fuel prices were at there highest. It's fair to say I spent about £50 on petrol even though I drove my 20 year old Toyota estate like a Grandma.

The bandsaw had been used for by someone who made prosthetic limbs. No, not wooden Pirate peg legs, but it looked like plastics and non ferrous metals had been worked. It was a reassuringly heavy bandsaw! I was able to put it in the car without prolapse or slipping a disk, but only just. So that’s the purchasing done. We’ll take a closer look at it next time so you can get a feel for my purchase and it’s features.