Antique 36" Crescent bandsaw... soliciting opinions for purchase

[marinosr]

I don't know much about old arn, I'm not really in the market for a bandsaw, and I certainly don't have the space for this one, but...

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www.kijiji.ca

This beauty popped up in my suggested Kijiji ads, about an hour away from me. It sure does look like a beauty, and at $650 (= $485 USD) it seems like a hot deal. But I really have no idea. What do y'all think of it? If I go and look at it, what are the critical things I need to check for? It looks dead simple, like a bandsaw stripped down to only its most necessary parts. If I get it, I would certainly get some thin wheel and blade guards fabricated for it... looks scary as-is.

I'm moving back to the States in a year and I'm looking to have a shop that can handle this, so I was thinking of putting this in deep storage until then. I have no idea how I'm going to broach the topic with my amazing tolerant-but-to-a-point wife

 

[Ed D]

You might want to check in over at owwm.org (old woodworking machines). It is a great community of "old arn" lovers and restorers. Start a conversation over there (the same post would work well) and you are sure to get some good suggestions and more information about your saw. )Of course, I need to say there is plenty of the same interest and expertise here. Good Luck, that is one fine lookng saw!
Ed

 

[marinosr]

You might want to check in over at owwm.org (old woodworking machines). It is a great community of "old arn" lovers and restorers. Start a conversation over there (the same post would work well) and you are sure to get some good suggestions and more information about your saw. )Of course, I need to say there is plenty of the same interest and expertise here. Good Luck, that is one fine lookng saw!
Ed

Unfortunately OWWM specifically forbids any discussion of price, any linking to a classifieds or auction site, etc. Otherwise I would def post there.

 

[Mike Davis]

I would not like to run a saw that large without blade guards.
You could fabricate some out of sheet metal or even plywood.
I'm not sure if the VSD will work with our 220v.
Then there is storage and shipping, customs, etc...

Probably minor hurdles but things to consider.

If it was here, I could check it out under power, bearings are good, I had room for it, etc.
I would definitely buy it for that price.

 

[Roy G]

If you can visit it, check the guides, the tires and if it is babbitt or bearings on the wheel axles.

Roy G

 

[Henry W]

I'm not sure if the VSD will work with our 220v.
Then there is storage and shipping, customs, etc...

Mike - the London Richard refers to is not one most of us think about first (unless like me you grew up near the 'other' one); the London he refers to is in Ontario Canada, about an hours drive from where Richard lives now (as I recall the Kitchener Waterloo area of Ontario).
Canada shares an electrical system/network with the US, same basic configuration. So the VSD should work perfectly with our 220V.

Customs? Not sure about moving personal possessions - I have done this move from Can--> USA once without any Customs payments needed.

 

[Mike Davis]

Mike - the London Richard refers to is not one most of us think about first (unless like me you grew up near the 'other' one); the London he refers to is in Ontario Canada, about an hours drive from where Richard lives now (as I recall the Kitchener Waterloo area of Ontario).
Canada shares an electrical system/network with the US, same basic configuration. So the VSD should work perfectly with our 220V.

Customs? Not sure about moving personal possessions - I have done this move from Can--> USA once without any Customs payments needed.

Sorry, I thought he is in England.

 

[marinosr]

Ha yeah sorry that's London, Ontario Kijiji. There should be no customs issues, because the saw was made in the good ol' US of A, so I'm just repatriating it to its country of origin.
The bearings are indeed babbitts, and that's one thing I'm concerned about, because I have no idea how to evaluate them. It will be a hard pass if I need to re-pour the babbitts, but what indicates a bad one?

 

[McRabbet]

That is a beautiful classic industrial bandsaw that indeed needs adequate guards for the wheels and the drive belt. The motor appears to be a modern replacement and it has a new paint job, so someone has loved it already. Many are scared off by Babbitt bearings, but to check them, see if the wheels show any indication of axle looseness (grab each side of a stationary wheel not under blade tension and see if it has wobble from side-to-side or up-and-down). Also check to see if the wheels are in the same plane and not toed in or out. Many years ago, I helped a colleague here in western NC re-pour the Babbitt bearings on an old Crescent Jointer and after 2 attempts, we were successful (it was documented in a thread here more than 10 years ago). For the money, it appears to be a good value, but be aware that it will be very heavy. Be certain to check if it is a 3-phase or single phase motor before you buy.

 

[McRabbet]

I did a little searching and found the original thread from early 2006 where I helped Steve DeWeese (Steve D) with the restoration of his old Crescent Jointer. Sadly the picture links are gone, but I found a few key pictures from my Odds 'n Ends Album. Here are three key ones:

CJ1 - Crescent Jointer Restoration

• McRabbet
• Mar 28, 2006
• steved

Shimming the lower bearing block - not dam at end cap of "Babberite" compound to stop...

CJ2 - Crescent Jointer Restoration

• McRabbet
• Mar 28, 2006
• steved

Replacing bearing cap bolts before pour.

CJ3 - Crescent Jointer Restoration

• McRabbet
• Mar 28, 2006

Babbitt metal overflow from pour

 

[zdorsch]

I’ll second what Ed said about checking OWWM.

You can certainly ask about what to look for and any shortcomings of that machine. You can even include a picture—just don’t post the ad like you mentioned or price evaluation. You’ll probably get a solid “get it” response, and “if you have to ask, it will be gone,” response, but folks that actually use those machines will be invaluable for information and will probably respond.

If nothing else someone one OWWM has information about rebuilding that saw along with possible manuals/advertisements.

Here’s an idea for guides (less than elegant):

YaBSS (Yet another Bandsaw Story) - Crescent 36" - Old Woodworking Machines

 

[marinosr]

Nice pics and thread Rob. Thanks!

I've sent it over to OWWM to get their advice too.

 

[marinosr]

I'm really considering this hard. Amazingly, my wonderful spouse agreed in principle to the purchase, but now my big worry is this... if this turns into a 1200 lb. white elephant, my credibility with her will be COMPLETELY ruined.

Another question I had, which I also posed on OWMM, was this... assuming I can fashion an appropriate guide, is it a problem to run a thin blade on such a large bandsaw. Say, even 1/4"? If I get something this big, I certainly don't want it to be a one-trick resaw pony, because I really don't need that much capacity.

 

[Mike Davis]

If it can't be repaired (which I seriously doubt) you can sell parts for more than the cost.

Pretty sure 1/4" blade is no problem. Most folks leave it set up for ripping just because it takes time to change the blade and settings.

 

[marinosr]

Sold out from under my feet Maybe saved me from a bad decision though haha.

 

[Mike Davis]

Can't spend much time contemplating these days.

 

[Robert LaPlaca]

I did a little searching and found the original thread from early 2006 where I helped Steve DeWeese (Steve D) with the restoration of his old Crescent Jointer. Sadly the picture links are gone, but I found a few key pictures from my Odds 'n Ends Album. Here are three key ones:

CJ1 - Crescent Jointer Restoration

• McRabbet
• Mar 28, 2006
• steved

Shimming the lower bearing block - not dam at end cap of "Babberite" compound to stop...

CJ2 - Crescent Jointer Restoration

• McRabbet
• Mar 28, 2006
• steved

Replacing bearing cap bolts before pour.

CJ3 - Crescent Jointer Restoration

• McRabbet
• Mar 28, 2006

Babbitt metal overflow from pour

Good grief, look at the diameter of the cutter head on that crescent jointer, what a beast.

 

[McRabbet]

After we finished that restoration and Steve fired it up with a 5 HP single phase motor, that big cutter head did sound like a low-frequency siren! It really hummed, but it was perfectly balanced and at 12" wide, it could remove some substantial wood