Help with a Powermatic 143 Band Saw

Just brought this beauty home a couple days ago. Was a great Craigslist Find. The saw is in good shape. Just to have a good starting point I replaced the two belts and I changed the oil in the transmission. I found the manual online, but I find that it does not have as much info as I had expected. The paper tag on the inside of the machine shows it was quality inspected in 1966. They do not build them like this anymore.

The saw is missing the Taper pin, table insert, miter gauge, fence and a blade.

I found the taper pin online but did not want to pay the ridiculous price of $33 for the insert. Or the $$$$ for the original fence.

Can anyone suggest a fence setup that would work on this machine. I have heard Kreg and a couple others but do not know how compatible they are.

Also has anyone found a replacement table insert that will work for this saw.

Last question is on the blade. The machine says 94-96 inches blade. I plan on only cutting metal with this saw. The majority of my cutting will be 1/8 and 1/4 steel plate. Steel tube with walls of .065 to .120 and some occasional aluminum. I dont know a lot about blade selection and was overwhelmed by the choices. I was thinking a Bi-metal and looking at Lenox or Starrett. If someone could suggest the teeth setup for this type of cutting and If I should be on the high side of the blade length for this machine or the low side. On the width I was thinking I would get a couple sizes for straight and contoured cuts but not sure what widths are best or what this machine can handle.

I've got one, mines Green
What is the taper pin for? If it's a hole in the side of the table, just use a bolt with the threads cut off. IIRC, it's 3/8"
Table insert ~ you make
Miter gauge ~ why?
Fence ~ why?
Blade ~ Don't spend a lot. maybe a 14 and 18 pitch high carbon to start with.
JR

Ya the taper pin is for the hold where the blade goes into the table to align the two halves. I measured it at .33 so I could just make a replacement was not sure if it was something special?

The Miter gauge and fencer were just for more accuracy on repeat cuts and cleaner straight cuts.

I have been reading on the blades and was thinking about a 1/2 10/14 bimetal? Any recommendations on a speed setting?

JRIowa said:

...What is the taper pin for? ...JR

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My saw was made in 1970 and I think I got it at an auction around 1980.

The taper pin is to fit the taper reamed hole that keeps the table from warping. The hole was drilled and reamed before the blade insertion slot was cut in the table, right through the center of the tapered hole. The slotting would allow the stresses in the table from milling the top to cause it to warp. The taper pin keeps the front and rear parts of the table lined up in their original position so the table remains flat. The pin has a square head for twisting it loose, but I do not need that feature. I stick a flat screwdriver into the slot above the pin and gently pry the slot open. The pin comes out with finger pressure and can be put back the same way.

The insert is a zinc die casting. Diameter is 2.25" and thickness is .125" and there is a slot .125" wide by 1.5" long. The right side of the slot has a 45 degree bevel on the bottom to allow tilting the table. You could make a replacement from aluminum or brass.

I have a Craftsman miter gauge from my previous saw that fits the Powermatic, and think I used it for mitering some angle iron years ago. I took a lot of trouble to fit a Rockwell 14" rip fence to my saw, and might have used it a couple of times for wood but never for metal. I bought the Rockwell because there was a local dealer and I did not know where to get Powermatic parts back around 1980 (pre-Internet).

The thinner the metal, the finer the blade. Your .065" can be cut with 32 TPI and I would use 24 TPI for .125" and 14 TPI for .25" steel. If you use a too coarse blade in the saw for your material thickness, you will strip teeth off your blade. I use flex-back carbon steel blades, which are the cheapest. They work fine. Bi-metal will last longer and can be run faster, so they make sense for someone who needs to work fast and do a lot of sawing. I have a blade welder and buy 100 foot coils of blade. I do not have to wait days to get a new blade. I have bought special blades from Do-All and they gave quick, high quality and inexpensive service.

You want to use 96" blades. That gives you a tiny bit more life for no cost. The real reason is to allow you to cut and re-weld the blade for inside cuts. Each weld slightly shortens the blade. Half inch blade is a good all-purpose width. If you do curvy cuts, you need narrower blades as the cut radii decrease. Cutting thick steel will give rather short life with very narrow blades, so always use the widest blade you can, though I do not think you need to go wider than 1/2".

I made two modifications to my saw that have proven very useful. First, I mounted a Moffatt machine lamp. Rockwell used to sell them and I think mine came from the Rockwell dealer. You can get almost the same Moffatt lamp from Shopsmith. Second, I replaced the blade tension knob with a little crank. Changing blades takes several turns of the crank and that knob made it a tedious operation.

Larry

Great info! Thanks Larry

Nice score. I'm using bi metal haltbar and lenox band saw blade.

+ 1 for Lenox bi metal blades

I've been happy with the Laguna blades.Bimetal

What speed are you guys using for the Lenox Bi-Metal blades?

re: Table insert -- I prefer plywood or plastic for these anyways... you inevitably hit them with the blade's teeth when dialing in the tracking on a new blade, and when using a typical soft metal insert, you just made metal chips next to your woodworking and dulled the new blade.

catalytic said:

re: Table insert -- I prefer plywood or plastic for these anyways... you inevitably hit them with the blade's teeth when dialing in the tracking on a new blade, and when using a typical soft metal insert, you just made metal chips next to your woodworking and dulled the new blade.

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OP said, "I plan on only cutting metal with this saw." Wood and plastic are not good choices for an insert in a metal saw. Metal-cutting blades will not get dull from contacting a zinc, aluminum or brass insert. My old Craftsman saw came with soft steel blades that could be resharpened with a file. Blades were too cheap to bother, of course. Those blades could certainly be dulled by hitting metal while running at wood-cutting speed. Even that saw had an aluminum table insert.

Larry

Well I found a table insert and the original taper pin along with a couple blade guide bearings and installed those items. Then gave it a quick retro green hammertone paint job. It looks nearly good as new. Should be a great saw. I ordered a couple bi-metal Lenox blades for the saw still waiting on those to come in. But I do not anticipate any problems. This was a great Craigslist find. Well worth the $200 I have into it. Thanks for all the help and info.