Delta band saw and Carter guides

Keye

Keye
Corporate Member
Returning to making saw dust after 20 plus years of hauling our horse's around and doing a lot of mountain riding.

I bought a Delta 14" band saw in 1994. Bought a riser for it, seemed like a good idea at the time. The band saw sat unused most of the time. Returning to making saw dust does not mean returning to making furniture, lot of boring reasons why. In my searching around for what I wanted to do I discovered the band saw. I have been watching videos and reading about the band saw. Dang but I have wasted a good piece of equipment for a long time.

In watching the videos on youttube and the Carter web site I have a question. Carter offers a guide kit for saws without a riser and one for saws with a riser. Why does a riser make a difference? Boy I hate to ask this question. Someone told me not knowing is ignorance not dumb. Regardless. this question sure seems dumb.
 

pcooper

Phillip Cooper
Corporate Member
Boy I hate to ask this question. Someone told me not knowing is ignorance not dumb. Regardless. this question sure seems dumb.

I'm glad you did, I didn't know there is a difference, but never had to ask. So now if someone gives an answer, we'll both know. I tell my students all the time that a question not asked is a bad thing, for if you do ask, someone else will appreciate it. :)
 

Gotcha6

Dennis
Staff member
Corporate Member
I'm glad you did, I didn't know there is a difference, but never had to ask. So now if someone gives an answer, we'll both know. I tell my students all the time that a question not asked is a bad thing, for if you do ask, someone else will appreciate it. :)
I may be out in left field about this, but here goes:
A riser kit infers that you are planning on doing resizing of large stock or making thin veneers. In any case, you will probably be using a blade >1/2" in depth to help maintain a straight cut, and more likely you'll use a 1" blade . Consequently, the guide blocks need to thicker to contact the entire blade face to help hold it in alignment.
JMTCW
 
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Raymond

Raymond
Staff member
Corporate Member
A riser kit will include a longer blade guard along with the guides; you will want that blade guard - just to save some parts of your hands.

No such thing as a dumb question, except for the one you didn't ask and you end up getting hurt.
 

Roy G

Roy
Senior User
Keye, why are you checking out Carter guides? When I had a Delta 14" I was satisfied with the guides that came with it. I didn't have a riser block but I cut some thick stock and found a good cut is mostly dependent on a sharp blade with the correct number of teeth per inch. YMMV.

Roy G
 

Pop Golden

New User
Pop
I really like Carter stuff. On my Delta 14 inch I have the guides, tension adjuster & brush. I will most add a Cobra spring sometime in the future. On my Shopsmith I have a Stabilizer with a 1/8 in. blade. I also have the circle cutter from Carter.

Popo
 

Keye

Keye
Corporate Member
The Carter products are good but way to expensive. I was looking to see what new might have come along since I have been out of woodworking for so long.
 

sawman101

Bruce Swanson
Corporate Member
A riser block used on band saws, is a 6" height addition block added to make the cutting height 12" instead of 6" that is normal on many Delta 14" and similar band saws. Not only does it increase the height of the sawing capabilities to 12", it also requires a blade length of 105" compared to the 93 1/2" length required on the original 6" capacity without a riser block. On my Jet 14" band saw, I added the 6" riser block kit to be able to saw boards over 6" wide. In the scroll saw work I do, I use 1/4" thick boards mostly, and often need pieces 10-11" wide. I work almost exclusively with solid hardwoods, and get my 1/4" thick boards by resawing the thicker boards and then planing and sanding to finish size. However, I did win a Hammer 3800 band saw in the NCWW Spring raffle several years ago. It is a European saw that is roughly 15+" and opens to 12+" high. It has become my resawing machine as I can use 1" bands on it, and it has the power!
A riser block kit includes everything to make the changeover. It requires a longer blade guard both at the front and again at the back of the saw, and will be in the kit. All hardware and complete instructions are included. Having a friend to help when installing the block is a real positive also, although I did mine alone; and no, it wasn't because I don't have any friends, I do, but both of them didn't answer the phone when I called. Must have been real busy doing something in their shops that day.
The riser block kit for the Jet saw is available at Klingspors, and most likely for Delta and Delta clone saws as well. I highly recommend installing the riser block kit on your 14" saw if you're not planning to part with a good sum of buckeroos for a larger band saw. I also recommend using a 1/2" 3 tpi band blade for resawing on those 14" saws.
 
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sawman101

Bruce Swanson
Corporate Member
The Carter Guides are great! That is if they are adjusted correctly when installing a new band. Just one thing about them that surprised me, the bearings are not sealed, and need to be occasionally serviced or they fill with saw dust and seize. Found replacement sealed bearings used with router bits that will replace and fit perfectly on the Carter guides at Klingspors.
 

Mike Davis

Mike
Corporate Member
If you are planing to make small bandsaw boxes with a fine blade and Carter guides you may want to take the riser kit back off the saw and put it back to original conditions.

it will be less expensive to buy blades, it will be more accurate, the Carter kit should cost a little less, and I think you will get more enjoyment out of it.

But, of course if you are making large boxes you will need the extra cutting height.
 

Keye

Keye
Corporate Member
If you are planing to make small bandsaw boxes with a fine blade and Carter guides you may want to take the riser kit back off the saw and put it back to original conditions.

it will be less expensive to buy blades, it will be more accurate, the Carter kit should cost a little less, and I think you will get more enjoyment out of it.

But, of course if you are making large boxes you will need the extra cutting height.
Mike, If I continue with what I am trying to make I need the riser. My desires may be larger than my skill. In an earlier reply I wondered if with large boxes of cherry if the Carter Stabilizer is what I should be using. Do I need the additional support of standard guides and bearings. Folks made these boxes before the stabilizer was developed.

I husr finished making a table for my wife's craft room and a table for my computer room. Needed to reassure myself I can still make something. Ever heard of wormy cherry. I had not until I brought the cherry out of the barn where it has been 20 plus years.
 

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