Has anyone tried RISER for HF 14" bandsaw?

[davidtu]

Here is the part#, description:

24536 RISER BLOCK KIT $52.20

Plus 8.99 freight charge, delivered.

I have an old 1.5HP "Jet" BS-14 -- the quotes are b/c this unit was apparently made in Taiwan by Elephant (http://www.elephant.com.tw/index-1.htm) back in 1983. Popeye mentioned that it looks identical to the HF 14" Bandsaw, thus my query.

Also, if someone has the HF 14", can you tell if it was made by Elephant? (clues on mine included Elephants on the top and bottom cover knobs, and also written on the belt)

Any thoughts?

[Ken Massingale]

No elephants on my HF, David. But, way back when I was assembling it I would have sworn it was made by monkeys!

I have a Grizzly riser on mine, as do many others. They have 2 models that will 'fit'. If you want I'll dig up which you need to order. The price is about the same as what you posted.
ken

[LCHIEN]

i don't have a riser or a 14" bandsaw, but here's some general info that has been kicking around for a while

1. the HF riser is frequently out of stock and backordered - takes a long time to get (which is why people like Ken have a Grizz riser on their HF saw.
2. several risers will all fit the 14" saws, they're basically alike but the contents of the riser kit also include some parts to replace and extend the upper blade guide assy and guard. Those parts vary in being round rods or hex rods of varying diameter and don't wll interchange leaving you with a custom rod to find.

[dkhoward]

I have the HF 14" 4 speed bandsaw in my shop with the grz riser installed. As Loring said, mine came in and everything fit except the down rod which holds the upper blade guide assembly. It was a few thousandths to big to fit into the bandsaw frame. I found a machine shop locally and took the old guide rod (which had a flat index milled on one side) and told them I needed on of these except 16" long. In about 10 minutes I walked out with a new piece and the guy only charged me about 25 bucks. I know it is an extra expense that I probably could have avoided, but it was worth it to me.

[barrym]

More Info On Grizzly Riser

I recently went through this on my saw, trying to find a riser kit that worked with the minimal amount of hassle. Here's a link to some additional information on the Grizzly riser kits:

http://www.bt3central.com/showthread...ly+riser+block

BTW, for a lot of Grizzly's products they have manuals in PDF format that you can download. Since a lot (most?) of this equipment is made in China or Taiwan and rebadged for different "manufacturers", downloading the manual can help determine if the Grizzly product is the same as another's.

Also, if you have a question on a Grizzly product, my experience is that they will promptly respond to emails.

[davidtu]

Thanks for all the info and links, guys.

Looking at the Grizzly pics, tho, its hard to tell the shape of the guide rod. It looks like it (and people's comments indicate) its round w/ one flat side. My saw has a hex guide... are any of these rods hex?

Thanks!

[barrym]

The one I got (see post above) is round with a groove, not a flat. Not sure, but I think Ridgid may use a hex guide. If you have a Home Depot near you, they carry Ridgid. I understand the Ridgid riser block kit is expensive though. Another route would be to find a block that fits (seems like those are pretty interchangeable), and find the right size hex steel bar stock at some place like McMaster Carr (http://www.mcmaster.com/) Search for hex rod at the McMaster Carr site.

[davidtu]

(http://www.mcmaster.com/) Search for hex rod at the McMaster Carr site.

Barry, that's a great site... thanks! Sounds like a reasonable way to go... tho I will look a little further for a matching kit.

Two questions:
1) is Low Carbon Steel good enough for this? Says its for General Purpose, I assume the guide bar fits this description
2) how long are the bars w/ the riser kits? is 12" good?

[LCHIEN]

Barry, that's a great site... thanks! Sounds like a reasonable way to go... tho I will look a little further for a matching kit.

Two questions:
1) is Low Carbon Steel good enough for this? Says its for General Purpose, I assume the guide bar fits this description SURE
2) how long are the bars w/ the riser kits? is 12" good? since the travel = resaw height it needs to be somewhat more than 12" to allow for clamping it.

see answers in red

[davidtu]

Darn! I raced back inside to update my question before anyone saw it! There is no beating Loring tho!

I just noted that the existing bar is already 10" long w/o the riser! So, I assume I'd have to add another 6" to it then? 16" sound good?