1940s 16” WT wood cutting bandsaw

by Bengt Robbert
(San Diego CA, USA)

I purchased this tool a month ago, it sat in a woodworkers shop in Pt Loma, San Diego, CA for a few years. The prior owner bought it at a garage sale a few years ago.

The table is highly polished, waxed, zero rust. The motor was kaput. I had an electric motor shop rebuild it, new on/off switch, internal run switch, internal lead wires, bearings and capacitor. I also had the leads switched, it now runs on 220VAC.

There is a blade guard on the yoke side of the saw, one of the 3/8-24 bolts was stripped. Both were replaced with grade 8 bolts.

It cuts horribly crooked. I’m replacing the cracked tires with urethane units, and have adjusted the upper blade guide. The lower blade guard, however, seems to be a replacement unit and does not align properly with the blade. I need assistance to remedy the situation.

The original base is also long gone, replaced by a welded space frame with lockable wheels. The problem with that design is that the vbelt is exposed and the motor gets dusted with sawdust. If someone else has designed a belt guard with dust protection I would appreciate seeing it.