Band Saw and Drill Press Size?

[Legolas]

Hi,

I'm thinking about picking up a band saw and drill press for
my build. What sizes should i need? 9", 10" or larger?

Thanks, Mark

[johnnparchem]

How much space do you have and what do you want to do with it. I have a 17" drill press (an 81/2" throat) That allow me to drill holes in larger jigs. I have a 14" band saw, that is large enough for occasional somewhat wasteful resawing, but great for all of the profiling work I do including cutting out necks from a neck blank.

[Legolas]

How much space do you have and what do you want to do with it. I have a 17" drill press (an 81/2" throat) That allow me to drill holes in larger jigs. I have a 14" band saw, that is large enough for occasional somewhat wasteful resawing, but great for all of the profiling work I do including cutting out necks from a neck blank.

Hi,

With the band saw I would like to cut the top and back woods to dread shape. Eventually,
I'd like to learn how to cut out a neck from a blank. With the drill press I'll be using it for
rosettes and the holes on the headstock for tuners. i just don't want to get something and
regret it later. I have my whole basement but I really don't want a bunch of huge tools
swallowing the space up. This is my first build so I'd like some affordable tools that will
make certain things easier.

[johnnparchem]

With the drill press to understand the size you want, figure out how deep into a plate you need to drill and double that number.

I really like my 14" band saw. I can profile a top or back without having to flip it upside down as the 14" has a deep enough throat to work with the plate.

[Legolas]

With the drill press to understand the size you want, figure out how deep into a plate you need to drill and double that number.

I really like my 14" band saw. I can profile a top or back without having to flip it upside down as the 14" has a deep enough throat to work with the plate.

Hi John,

So, for a dread, to do the rosette and cut the sound hole I guess i need at least a 12" drill press?
Because the upper bout of a Martin dread is about 11 1/8"?

I like the idea of the 14" band saw.....

Thank you!

[johnnparchem]

With the drill press to understand the size you want, figure out how deep into a plate you need to drill and double that number.

I really like my 14" band saw. I can profile a top or back without having to flip it upside down as the 14" has a deep enough throat to work with the plate.

Hi John,

So, for a dread, to do the rosette and cut the sound hole I guess i need at least a 12" drill press?
Because the upper bout of a Martin dread is about 11 1/8"?

That is how I understand it.

[Legolas]

With the drill press to understand the size you want, figure out how deep into a plate you need to drill and double that number.

I really like my 14" band saw. I can profile a top or back without having to flip it upside down as the 14" has a deep enough throat to work with the plate.

Hi John,

So, for a dread, to do the rosette and cut the sound hole I guess i need at least a 12" drill press?
Because the upper bout of a Martin dread is about 11 1/8"?

That is how I understand it.

Thank you for the help!

[cooltouch]

I have a 14" bandsaw with riser blocks that does everything I need it to do, including occasionally resawing. First thing I did when I bought it was order the riser block kit and install ceramic blade guides. I also have a table-top Delta drill press that's plenty big enough for cutting soundholes. Remember that your Martin 11-1/8" upper bout width is from edge to edge, but when you're cutting the hole, you only need half that width -- about 5-1/2" from the edge of the bout to the center line of the sound hole. Thus, even my smaller drill press works just fine for this sort of job.