Cruising the Craigslist "Free" section again and spotted this 16" bandsaw about 6 miles from here. Couldn't pass it up even if only for scrap.

Looks like it got dropped on it's head at some point, the cast aluminum upper blade guard is all stove to hell and patched back together with fiberglass band aids. Upper wheel was broken and brazed back together. Got a little wobble in it, but not horrible. Will need new tires on the wheels. Everything else looks good, just needs a good cleaning.

The Walker-Turner label on the motor makes me wonder if perhaps W-T built some of the Craftsman stuff or if it's not the original motor. Original paint appears to be blue. Can't find any data plates on it, but if I was to guess I'd say late 40's to early 50's

Waiting on my registration at Vintage Machinery to be okayed, hope to find out more there. Plan "A" is to see if I can gear it down enough to make a metal cutting saw out of it. I already have a wood bandsaw.

I smile at the marketing label: "Equipped with ball bearings"

That must have been what was high tech back then.

I personally am NOT knowledgeable. But, I do have a good friend who owns his own woodworking company and he’s usually a wiz with old and new machines/hand tools.

I can reach out to him if you’d like.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: davidjinks,

My dad had a number of Walker-Turner tools in his shop, and still has a WT Bandsaw.

I think his is a 12 or 14 inch, not a 16, but it looks exactly like that.

quote:

Originally posted by davidjinks:
I personally am NOT knowledgeable. But, I do have a good friend who owns his own woodworking company and he’s usually a wiz with old and new machines/hand tools.

I can reach out to him if you’d like.

Oh, yes please! Any source of information, parts sources, manuals, etc. greatly appreciated.

quote:

Originally posted by ArtieS:
My dad had a number of Walker-Turner tools in his shop, and still has a WT Bandsaw.

I think his is a 12 or 14 inch, not a 16, but it looks exactly like that.

Cool! I was kind of hoping that might be the case. W-T has a great reputation.

Even so, the Craftsman stuff from that era was good solid equipment too.

In an advanced Metals class in college we built bandsaws one semester. The particular saw had a gear reduction for cutting metal. We did the math and I think the 1725 rpm motor was reduced by 30:1 for cutting metal. Wood was more like 4:1 reduction.

Might be useful information.
At least something to start with.

quote:

Originally posted by Chris42:
In an advanced Metals class in college we built bandsaws one semester. The particular saw had a gear reduction for cutting metal. We did the math and I think the 1725 rpm motor was reduced by 30:1 for cutting metal. Wood was more like 4:1 reduction.

Might be useful information.
At least something to start with.

Useful indeed. Thank you!

quote:

Originally posted by PHPaul:

quote:

Originally posted by davidjinks:
I personally am NOT knowledgeable. But, I do have a good friend who owns his own woodworking company and he’s usually a wiz with old and new machines/hand tools.

I can reach out to him if you’d like.

Oh, yes please! Any source of information, parts sources, manuals, etc. greatly appreciated.

I will text him the pictures you posted (with your permission of course) and see what info he has.

It’ll be tomorrow(ish).

quote:

Originally posted by PHPaul:


Even so, the Craftsman stuff from that era was good solid equipment too.

I think originally he had the band saw, a combination disk/belt table sander, and a 6" jointer.

I have dad's 10 inch Craftsman table saw from 1946 built into a saw table. Saw and extensions are cast iron, 1.5 inches thick. 220 volt 3 hp motor, belt drive. Thing is absolutely amazing.

Nice find. Looks a lot like the band saw we had in the original shop when I was in high school in the late 70s. They built a new shop that we used during our senior year and replaced it and most of the old stuff that had probably been there in the old building before my started high school in the early 50s.

Regarding manuals, those for some old machines have been scanned and placed online. I found the manual for my wife's sewing machine (an old, metal Singer that her grandmother had originally purchased new) online so we could service it correctly and I was able to identify 1947 as the year of manufacture from the serial number. My wife's been using it for occasional new projects as well as repairs since she gave her much newer "plastic" machine to our daughter several years ago.

I live part time in Madison, Wisconsin, and a church was sold nearby. They must have had crafts at some point and got rid of the equipment. I picked up and restored an old Rockwell scroll saw that weighs about 150 lbs. They drug it into a snow bank beside the road. It sat several days before I picked it up.

Below is a similar example:

http://vintagemachinery.org/ph...detail.aspx?id=13256

I posted pics on the Old Wood Working Tools forum on Vintage Machinery.

One responder says definitely W-T, and probably 1937-1940ish.

I'll start tearing it down today for cleaning/inspection/lubrication.

I would take it just to save it from being thrown into the scrap heap.

Walker Turner made nice tools back then and I would would say is even better now then some new stuff.

If you go the vintagemachinery.org the have a company listed that provides ball bearings to fit or extremely close to the originals.

I finished taking it apart and inspecting it today.

All but one of the bearings are good, but I'm going to replace the main drive shaft bearings anyway because I have it apart.

The lower blade guide bearing is pretty iffy and likely unobtainium. I have it soaking in the hopes that a good clean and relube will make it serviceable.

I have WTB's up over at Vintage Machinery for the upper wheel and a blade guide insert.

Took the end bells off the motor, blew it out good, lubed the weights on the start switch and it starts well and coasts down normally.

Pretty much everything else looks like clean it, lube it and put it back together. There is a fair bit of "junk drawer" hardware where bolts/nuts/washers/screws fell out or got lost. I'll replace everything with as near original as I can get my hands on.

quote:

Originally posted by PHPaul:
Cool! I was kind of hoping that might be the case. W-T has a great reputation.

Even so, the Craftsman stuff from that era was good solid equipment too.

Agreed. I have an old Craftsman drill press I figure is from that era, in "Craftsman Blue", and it's a pretty darn good machine.

 
No top wheel?

PHPaul just out of curiosity what kind of lube are you using on the various parts. I would guess that what was used that long ago is not what is commonly used now..

quote:

Originally posted by henryaz:
 
No top wheel?

It's there, I'd just taken it off prior to taking that picture.

Attempting to find a replacement as it was broken and brazed back together. Has a pretty significant wobble in it now.