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Overall, it's all I expected and more. Both the miter guide and the rip fence are sturdy.
It was easier to add than I expected, but you do need a helper.The saw is heavy enough to be extremely stable with no vibration, yet quiet. I got the riser with the bandsaw.
The lever tension control works nicely. The blade guides adjust easily, both upper and lower, but the lower are not so easy to access.
The on and off is within easy reach; the light is a welcome accessory. The 1 1/2 H motor seems fine on 120V power.
Couldn't be happier with it.
I picked it up at the carrier on the 3rd at noon. After adjusting the guides and getting everything tight, I turned it on.Very quiet saw, I'm impressed. Threads and holes were all very exact and lined up well. It made it through just fine, good straight resaw, even with a 3/8" cheap factory blade.The guides are all right they adjust well and all that but,I will change them out for Carters.The back of the blade runs on the side of the thrust bearing. Great service Grizzly.I had it together within a couple of hours, riser block and all. All the parts were fit and finished very well. I ordered the saw on the 2nd at 10am. I set the fence for about 3/8"I took it slow.
I also believe this saw to be too small to exert enough tension for a 3/4" blade anyway, so I will stay with 5/8" or 1/2" for resaw work. It passed the nickel test right off the bat.I had a 2*6 By 8" piece of scrap oak. Overall I am very satisfied with this machine. The wheels were coplaner right out of the box. I drove into my drive about 1pm when the UPS guy showed up with the riser kit. I also believe single guide bearings are not wide enough to stabilize a 5/8" resaw blade.
The table was flat. (Riser block did not change this).The only blade I had was the 3/8 105" that came with the riser kit. The manual says it can take a 3'4" blade, way too big for single bearing guides. The delivery service could not of been better.
You cannot contact the people you need to talk to directly. All of my problems were actually for the G7944 Drill Press. If you have a problem and you call customer service they are very nice and understanding, they tell you that someone will contact you to solve your issue but they never do. The problem with Grizzly is this. The GO555X is a much better saw than the Jet or others that are in the same price range. Now that I have this one and can compare it to the others, there is no comparison. Why the 5 stars you ask. This was frustrating and avoidable but I truly believe that if I did not strong arm them I would still be waiting.
I am glad I did. It got to the point that I cancelled my payment through my credit card. I was worried about spending this much money on a saw I had never seen. After they resolved my issues with the drill I decided to give them another shot. This went on for weeks for me. Then all the sudden I was a priority with a manager at Grizzly. I went to my local Woodcraft and tried all ot there bandsaws out. Just be ready to deal with customer service if it comes to that.
This was my first band saw, so I did a ton of research. I also purchased the 6" riser kit which went on without any issues whatsoever (but it does take two people to install it). My primary concern was that there'd be a bunch of issues out of the box that'd be a pain to deal with (wheels not coplanar, vibration etc). Well, I can happily say that EVERYTHING worked perfectly out of the box. In conclusion, everything fit together well, there was no vibration, the table's straight as an arrow and it everything seems to work perfectly. I couldn't be happier, thanks Grizzly.
Once attached to my dust collector, I no longer needed to sweep / vacuum up the area around the saw.The saw was easily set up, with only minor assistance needed to lift the saw on to the base. I've had this bandsaw for a few weeks now and have been using it to cut bowl blanks for woodturning and a few veneer pieces. I used a block and tackle with a 3/8" eye bolt attached to a convienient hardpoint in the frame. It has performed flawlessly. Only minor adjustment was needed on the tracking of the upper wheel, which is easily performed via an external knob.The 4" dust port works reasonably well, only a small bit of sawdust is left on the table which may be swept towards the blade with a bench brush after cutting is complete to send it to the dust collector. This way all I needed was someone to steady the saw while I hoisted it up and moved the base into position. I had the saw base on a mobile base to help move things around.If you do not have some burly friends to help, get the lift gate truck delivery option.
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