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Still love it though. Gave it 4 out of 5 because I wish the vise could be adjusted for angle cuts, ie 45 degree.
The band saw mounts to the pivot arm at a single point with a single bolt, which is normally the front "T" handle. Granted, better than hand held, but not acceptable to me. The ability to cut steel without all the problems of an abrasive cutoff saw, at a reasonable cost.
The single bolt attachment to the upper case of the saw is not rigid enough. A nice concept, flawed in execution. The result is that a small lateral pressure on the saw handle deflects the blade as much as 1/8 inch.
The concept seems good. I considered shims to effect a "kluge," but then there remains the second major flaw. Returned.
Unfortunately, my unit arrived with multiple flaws. The pivot arm appears to have been improperly cast or machined, so that the setup geometry as specified in the manual was impossible to obtain.
Or, having a variable degree setting (like a miter saw) would be AWESOME. After it is set, you can take the band saw off and reattach later, no adjustments needed.The only thing that would make it better if it could also cut 45 degree cuts as easily. (I've made a jig to hold the stock for 45s). After I purchased the Milwaukee bandsaw, I realized that most of the cuts I wanted were true 90s. ;-) Now I just secure my Milwaukee band saw in the arm and I'm good to go. Trying to get consistent true cuts by hand is frustrating, especially when you are creating a lot of expensive scrap metal in the process. When you first receive it, you need to get it adjusted for a true 90.
The clamp can be a pain to use. It works ok. Takes a while to get everything square.
To me, this is the only way to use a saw like the Milwaukee. I like the table and it makes for perfect cuts with the saw. You must set up the saw to be at 90 degrees to the vise and square to the flat part of the table.Use a machinists square to set it up.
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