Question for Craftsman 22401 owners

[Texas splinter]

I am in serious need of a larger bandsaw and have been looking at the Craftsman 14" 22401 bandsaw. I like everything I see, execpt for the blade tensioning system.
I love the roller bearing blade guides, fairly large table, comes with a miter gauge, etc. but , from the reviews I have read on it, there seems to be no way of adding a "quick tension release" system to the saw.
I have read rave reviews of the saw here, but no one has mentioned using the know on the top to set (and release- and reset) the blade tension.
Any comments from you 22401 owners/users?

I am also looking at the Craftsman 15" laser drillpress, anyone know anything about it?

[LCHIEN]

I ...

I am also looking at the Craftsman 15" laser drillpress, anyone know anything about it?

from an old post about the hitachi BR16M that was on sale at lowes last year:

Curiously I was at Sears today and they have a Craftsman model 22925
that is under all those craftsman badges, a Hitachi B16RM. 15", 12 speed
only a couple of bolted on parts are different (laser, table extension). They wanted $289. Anyway, maybe sears parts has a spare key, you can find the number under this part.


Is that the one? Ton of info about it and reviews here if you search for it.
we (as a group) must have bought 50 of them/

[onedash]

I have that bandsaw (since Christmas) I have resawn quite a bit of bubinga so far and some lyptus. I have only the included blade and the 3 pack of Craftsman. So I did all the resawing of bubinga with the 1/2" blade. With the stock 3/8" blade it cuts fine through everything I threw at it. with the 8" bubinga though it was pretty slow going and im not sure how smooth of a cut I should expect but a couple passes through the planer and its good to go.
I don't detention it. I went back to setting the tension per the guage after hearing that most of them are fine. Before I was cranking it as tight as it would go. There is no noticable difference in the cut either way. Not sure if thats good or no big deal. I bought mine on black friday for $380 I think. I haven't let is sit for to long though without using since I got it. I guess if I dont plan to use it for a while I will loosen the blade. A bigger know would probably be better but when going by the guage its not bad.
This is my fist BS though so nothing to comare it against.

[Texas splinter]

Craftsman 15" drillpress

from an old post about the hitachi BR16M that was on sale at lowes last year:

Curiously I was at Sears today and they have a Craftsman model 22925
that is under all those craftsman badges, a Hitachi B16RM. 15", 12 speed
only a couple of bolted on parts are different (laser, table extension). They wanted $289. Anyway, maybe sears parts has a spare key, you can find the number under this part.


Is that the one? Ton of info about it and reviews here if you search for it.
we (as a group) must have bought 50 of them/

The one I was looking at (and the only 15" drillpress listed on the Sears web site) is a 20451. it is a 12 speed described here:
http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/produ...cemldffidfjm.0
The current price is $300 on sale. (Ok, $299.99)
I do not know anything abut the Hitachi, so it may be the same unit, with a different number.
Anyway, thanks for the response.

[hermit]

Ironically, I have recently purchased both of the items you are talking about right before Christmas. I was a little reluctant to have all this Craftsman stuff in my shop, but with the discounts I got, I couldn't pass. I got the BS for about $375 and the DP for $209. I wish I would have gotten the tablesaw with the Bies fence, but I didn't research it enough to do it at the time. I could have had it at $700.

Anyway, the bandsaw is great, for as much as I've used it. The stock blade isn't bad, but I went right to the phone and ordered a couple Timberwolfs from Suffolk for it. Once you use one of those blades you never go back to anything "stock". The saw requires a special order length, but its no big deal, you just order it. The tensioning knob is a bit tough to use, especially with a 1/2" blade. I don't know if its the size of the knob, the position, the spring or what, but its a lot harder to tension than my old Jet 12". I ended up making a crank and bolting it to the knob. The table is large, which really caught my eye, and comes with a half decent fence. I was using a homemade one on my old one. The bearing guides are nice, but take some fiddling to get set right, but you only have to do it when you change blades. The saw has a noticable difference in power, with the 1 hp motor as opposed to my old 1/2. I am pleased so far with it.


The Drill press is good also. I just recently put the laser on it. Didn't really see a need for it figuring it was a little "gimmicky." When I did put it on, one of the screws stripped out in the plastic and I had to replace it with a larger size. No biggie, since I wasn't planning on using it anyway. Other than that it is a strong piece of machinery. Seems solid and powerful. I made a platform to put it on to raise it about 6". I was used to a benchtop Delta mounted on a stand, and the floor model ended up being at a lower height than I was used to. The keyless chuck didn't help because its longer, so the table has to be lower. I made a table and fence for it too, now its all set. The table mounting system is nice because you can swivel it at the column AND at the end of the arm. My old Delta only swivelled at the column. Maybe most DPs are like that, I don't know. The keyless chuck had me worried at first, but actually is darn nice and holds the bits tight. It comes with a light which is a plus too.

All in all, both pieces are worth the $$. I was researching the DP before that at their reg price of $299 and it was a good deal at that. The BS caught my eye in Popular WWing with a review, and at that price its a pretty good deal. If you think you need larger resaw capacity you might want to look the Grizzly that can take a riser block. I liked the tablesize of the Craftsman and its a steel bodied saw not cast iron.

BTW, the DP is in the latest Crafstman Club catalog (which I just got today) for $249, and if the BS isn't on sale now, ask about it. It routinely goes on sale for $429 and they'll probably honor that price. They did for me, then I had some additional discount opportunity.

Have fun ,
Todd

[coach]

I've had the 22401 since back in September. I had the 14" Harbor Freight for a couple of weeks before that.

The 22401 has seen extensive use in my shop on an almost daily basis. I have resawn up to 6" (the capacity of my jointer) and have also used it for ripping construction pine.

I studied long and hard about which band saw to replace the HF with. When it came down to it, I wanted to try the Euro-style steel frame saws. If I would have considered a "C" body saw again, it probably would have been the JET deluxe model.

That said, I have no regrets, and haven't had a single problem. I will tell you that the roller bearings are rather cheap, but they are a very inexpensive upgrade. You can find replacements at most skate shops that will be a huge improvement as far as noise and grease not popping out of them.

[Texas splinter]

Hey guys, thanks a lot for the responses to my question. That's why I LOVE this fourm. I am probably about a month or so from buying any new tools. The shop is at the "taping and bedding" stage right now, all the joints and screws have at least one coat of mud, about one-third have a second coat.
Have much, much sanding to do, then more mud and more sanding, then prime and paint.
Then I will be putting some cabinets in, along with the tools from my old shop.
The new tools come in at about that time.