Rocon or Shop Fox band saw?

patrickcues

patrickcues

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I need some opinions from cue makers on here. I need to know if any of you have used a Ricon or Shop Fox band saw? I am looking for pro's and con's of these 2 saws. Ricon is a 18" band saw. Shop fox is a 19"

Thanks for the help!!!

DOUG
 
Rikon or Shop Fox

Laguna Italian
I wish I had one. Neighbor has ones and watched him slice maple veneer . 040 thick from a 12 inches wide slab.
Bandsaw are one tool you get what you pay for. I have a jet 14
and it works pretty good, but sure doesn't track like the Laguna and I've spent a lot of time tuning it including the upgraded carter guides.
 
I have no personal experience with them, but I too have heard nothing but good things about Lagunas. If I had that much money to burn that's probably what I would take the chance on. Hope to have one Myself one of these days, but most of My days are the ones Momma warned you about.
 
Rikon all the way.
Much better quality than the Shop Fox. Base is solid, solid and no vibration while cutting, it is my favorite if you can't afford a Laguna as Steve Klein said.
 
I bought a sears 12" on sale a few years ago. Good Price and a well built unit. I then ran into the Rikon at Woodcrafters....same size, and ironicly enough, It looked identical right down to the knobs to close the panels, but was $100 more. Been very happy with the Sears, just wish I had the money at the time for the 14". Only issue, as expected with Sears stuff, odd size for the blades. 89-1/2". gotta get the custom made blades, but oh well.
Dave
 
Dave38 said:
I bought a sears 12" on sale a few years ago. Good Price and a well built unit. I then ran into the Rikon at Woodcrafters....same size, and ironicly enough, It looked identical right down to the knobs to close the panels, but was $100 more. Been very happy with the Sears, just wish I had the money at the time for the 14". Only issue, as expected with Sears stuff, odd size for the blades. 89-1/2". gotta get the custom made blades, but oh well.
Dave
Click to expand...

I bought the Sears 10" for small stuff and it looks identical to the 10" Rikon.
I have the 14" Sears with the wood slicer blade and it cuts very good.
Sears here in GR had it on sale last week for $449, alot less than
than I paid a year ago.

EDIT:

Today it is on sale for $399.
 
Last edited:
Yeah, I did some research on the "Craftsman" 10" band saw a couple of years ago. Of course, Sears doesn't manufacture anything, they use OEMs. You can identify the OEM of Sears tools by the first part of the model number. In my case it is 000097303 and a little searching on Google revealed it was made by the parent company of Rikon.
So I called the guy on Craigslist and ran over and picked one up for $100.
:thumbup:
Gary
 
patrickcues said:
I need some opinions from cue makers on here. I need to know if any of you have used a Ricon or Shop Fox band saw? I am looking for pro's and con's of these 2 saws. Ricon is a 18" band saw. Shop fox is a 19"

Thanks for the help!!!

DOUG
Click to expand...

Doug,

The Rikon is the better saw. Is it the model with a blade tension release? That feature saves a lot of stress on your blades. They will stretch over time and the urethane tires that cover the wheels can get flats on them when the saw sits under tension for long periods of time.

Dick Neighbors recommended the book "The New Complete Guide to the Band Saw" by Mark Duginske. It's well worth the money.

HTH

Gary
 
GBCues said:
Doug,

The Rikon is the better saw. Is it the model with a blade tension release? That feature saves a lot of stress on your blades. They will stretch over time and the urethane tires that cover the wheels can get flats on them when the saw sits under tension for long periods of time.

Dick Neighbors recommended the book "The New Complete Guide to the Band Saw" by Mark Duginske. It's well worth the money.

HTH

Gary
Click to expand...
Thanks everyone for the input! I already have a Delta 14" band saw for doing the little stuff.

Gary

I will check that book out. Thanks for the input. Both of these saws we are looking at run around $1800. delivered. Both have tension releases also and tilting tables.
 
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