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I am looking to pick up a Rikon 10" bandsaw w/fence and either a Rikon 34" Radial Bench drill press OR a Rikon 1/2hp 13" bench Drill Press (16 speed). I believe the radial drill press only has five speeds with the lowest being 600 while the other Rikon has 12 speeds down to 200). Any advice here? From what I understand a circle/rosette and wagner safe-t- planer require lower speeds, although I can optionally use a router for the former task.

As I live in an apartment I really don't have space for anything other than bench tools, am thinking of adding a Rigid spindle sander later also and some kind of small dust unit/vac. As you can tell I'm trying to get the biggest bang for buck as far as space and cost go.


Any experienced opinions would be appreciated. Please feel free to tell me if this plan is wacky. I am a space confined hobby builder.

William-
Unless you are 'definitely' planning on using a circle cutter for rosette work (needing the throat depth to get to the center of an untrimmed soundboard, for example) , I would advise against the radial drill press if you are short on space. (I own/use a radial drill press.) BTW, the Safe-T planer needs high speed (3000rpm-ish), not low speed. The Safe-t planer is the most power-hungry, along with hole cutters and the like. For simple hole drilling in headstocks and bridges, a very small benchtop drill press would probably do the trick, and they are light enough that you can move them easily out of the way.

Dust control should be one of the first things on your list if you live in an apartment, I think. Festool vacs and tools are expensive but get very high marks from most users. 'Normal' shop-vacs are annoyingly loud and not a good option if you want to get along with the neighbors.The alternative would be to adopt a strict hand-tool approach to building, but this is difficult in practice.

Cheers
John

Hey William,
The 10" Rikon band saw is basically the same saw as the Craftsman 10" band saw sold at sears. I brought the Craftsman at the Rego Park Sears a couple of days ago for &199.99
They had 2 when i purchased mine, so there's a good chance that they may still have one more.
That way you can save $60.-$80.+ shipping cost (depending on where you purchase It ) If you buy the Craftsman. I'm also working out of my apartment in NYC and the band saw is not as loud as my jigsaw.

-Ron

Hi William, I also have a Rikon 10" and a 34" Radial Drill Press to save space in my small workshop.

If money is not an object I would buy a 14" bandsaw. It really does not take that much more space than a 10" and is much more versatile. Grizzly has some good deals on 14" bandsaws. I am not that happy with my Rikon 10" since I can't tension the blade very much and the machine vibrates more that I would like it to. I plan to replace it as soon as I can afford it. It also does not have much power and not every store carries the 70 1/2" blades.

My radial drill press is a Grizzly, basically the same as the Rikon. I have the floor model. One thing, it really takes up more space than what you would think, since it is so long. If space is an issue, I would buy a 12" model. The radial drill press is not very rigid and is more prone to vibration. This is not good if you will be using a Safe-t-planer or circle cutter. I use a safe-t-planer all the time on mine but I had to replace the drive belt with a link belt to cut vibration. Now it does the job well, but sometimes I wish it had a 3/4 HP motor instead of the 1/2 HP it comes with. And yes you have to use the fastest speed with the Wagner (2900 on my radial drill press)

Good luck,

_________________
Luis Fernandez de Cordoba
www.guitarrasfdc.com

Thanks for the tips fellas,

Been a while since I started this thread. Would love a 14" band saw but I don't really have room for any floor standing tools.

Ended up with a Jet 10" bandsaw, which is on top of on of my wide file cabinents, and an old bench mount CM 13" drill press I picked up for a song. Hope to add a belt/disc sander and will probably stop there until I get the dust control/space issue under control. Really could use a thickness sander though...

Setting up a mini-workshop in an NYC apartment is quite a challenge.

William,

I live in Brooklyn, but I have a detached garage, so I keep my big tools out there. I understand what you mean about space though. I have to do most of my work in the house because of humidity and temperature concerns. I just picked up a thickness sander that stays in the garage. If you need some wood dimensioned, shoot me a PM and maybe you can swing by.

Tony

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http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

Hey William,
I didn't notice that this is an old thread. Anyway...It is a challenge to set up a shop in a NYC apartment. It is not only challenging, but It can also be frustrating, because I find myself being concerned about disturbing my neighbors. Also, I sometimes rush to use a noisy tool before my neighbors come home, or I have to wait to use a power tool until I assume that everyone is awake and have left their apartments for the day. The stress of not being able to use my tools comfortably sometimes shows in my work which isn't that great to begin with.

To remedy this problem I'm presently looking to rent about 150-200 square feet of industrial Space. Space may be limited, but I'll be able to make all the noise that I want 24 a hours day space.

-Ron

Ron,
Not sure where you are located, but a place called The 3rd ward in Williamsburgh Brooklyn, has a community shop you can rent the use of for like $300 a month or so.24 hour access last I checked.

_________________
http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

Hey Tony,
Thats good to know. I'm in the "the Bronx" Thanks.
-Ron

No problem Ron. Hmmm...Ron...from the Bronx? You're not the Ron from "Jersey Shore" are you? Nevermind.
Here is a link to 3rd Ward's website.
Enjoy.
http://www.3rdward.com/visit/

Seems like a decent wood shop. I spent so long looking for ANYONE nearby who could thickness some wood for me that I found just about every place in Brooklyn. Finally got disgusted with the unwillingness of people to help and bought a Grizzly 10-20 drum sander. Now all I have to do is set it up and I am all set.

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http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

Hey Tony,
I've never been to the Jersey shore, so no, I'm not that Ron.

I know how you feel trying to get someone to thickness sand plates for you because i went through that too and I offered to pay.
I may find myself going through it again soon with my current build. I hope to get a thickness sander this year If all goes well.

The 3rd ward looks interesting. It looks like they have a decent shop. Thanks for the link.

-Ron

No problem Ron. You are wecome to come use mine once it is set up. I am still in the process of making space for it in my garage right now.

_________________
http://www.CostaGuitars.com
PMoMC

thats very generous of you. I may just take you up on your offer. thanks.

-Ron