Delta Bandsaw Question

[Woodman2k]

This is a question for the people who are familiar with only the Delta 14" bandsaw made in the 1960's and 70's. I have a early one and the guides were worn to the point of replacement. I had a set of bearing type guides that slide into the sleeves like a regular bar type guide. They will not fit by about .010" in both directions and after all this I want to know if over the years ,had delta made more than one size guide holder. They are very close but with minimum casting material I don't want to push/stress them trying to persuade them. Any help will be appreciated to the fullest.

 

[JRedding]

I have a Rockwell / Delta from 1974 (believe the model is 28-200), so a bit later in that run, but am not aware of them making 2 different size holders over time, and don’t recall them offering bearing guides as an option at that time. I suspect the guides you’re replacing may have been aftermarket guides and perhaps they replaced the holder as well? Carter is the bearing guide replacement company I’m most familiar with these days, but their system replaces the original holder (I went to cool blocks which work well so never spent the money to upgrade to bearings). Otherwise, I’d say it might be the bar on the new guides and agree I wouldn’t want to force it given the risk to the holder and then having to find one.

 

[Woodman2k]

I have a Rockwell / Delta from 1974 (believe the model is 28-200), so a bit later in that run, but am not aware of them making 2 different size holders over time, and don’t recall them offering bearing guides as an option at that time. I suspect the guides you’re replacing may have been aftermarket guides and perhaps they replaced the holder as well? Carter is the bearing guide replacement company I’m most familiar with these days, but their system replaces the original holder (I went to cool blocks which work well so never spent the money to upgrade to bearings). Otherwise, I’d say it might be the bar on the new guides and agree I wouldn’t want to force it given the risk to the holder and then having to find one.

John,
This saw had graphite guides that I maid from edm electrodes. I bought the bearing guides to try . They are nothing more than 4 pieces of steel that look like keystock. They have 2- 5/8" bearings on one end and are designed to slide in like the original guides but they are .010 too big. Thanx for the reply.

 

[bob vaughan]

The dimensions of the Delta guide holders haven't changed since they first came out in the late 1930s.

As to guide material, I found that steel was the most friction-free. I did some testing years back when the phule blocks first came out.

As to roller side guides, on green wood or sappy wood like pine, they had a tendency to emboss wood on the side of the blade and make a mess. Whenever I could, I'd replace the side guides with steel blocks. I still haven't figured a good way to do this on my 20" saw, but I'm working on it.

 

[Woodman2k]

The dimensions of the Delta guide holders haven't changed since they first came out in the late 1930s.

As to guide material, I found that steel was the most friction-free. I did some testing years back when the phule blocks first came out.

As to roller side guides, on green wood or sappy wood like pine, they had a tendency to emboss wood on the side of the blade and make a mess. Whenever I could, I'd replace the side guides with steel blocks. I still haven't figured a good way to do this on my 20" saw, but I'm working on it.

View attachment 224236

View attachment 224237

Bob, I was actually considering ceramic guides but made a set of steel out of some 1/2" keystock and that will hold me over. I have a 16" and a 18" Laguna that do the majority of cutting. I really wanted the delta for cutting non ferrous metal. Take care and have a great holiday.

 

[bob vaughan]

Keystock steel will work fine but won't last like HSS or high carbon steel like what came with the original USA-made saws. You might have to dress the guides with a file every five years rather than having to grind them every ten or so years. It seems to me that using a softer steel for the guides would result in little more than an occasional petty annoyance.

Aggressive use by an inexperienced operator is probably the biggest risk to the guides. Below is the guide set of an Asian import band saw.