I got an older version of the ubiquitous 4×6 cheapo bandsaw when I bought my milling machine. It was an Enco brand, but is still more or less the same as all the others out there. There are tons of improvements that can be made to these saws.

Key features of this build:

New Stand –

The wobbly sheet metal and toy-wagon-wheel stand that is typical of these machines is infamous. I welded up angle-iron for nice stable base. A critical point for any new stand is to out-rig the wheels on the motor side. The motor and the arm are sufficiently heavy, that when the saw arm is flipped up the center of gravity shifts right enough that the saw can flip over if the wheels are only under the body of the saw. The wheel on the right side have to stick out enough so that they are beyond the motor when the arm is up.

VFD and 3-Phase motor

This probably seems like a pretty silly modification and overkill for this saw, but I had the parts, so why not? I don’t use the variable speed that much, but one huge advantage of the conversion is that the 3-phase motor runs stone cold, while the original Chinese motor ran hotter than a pistol. I used to drape cold rags over the old motor on long cuts to keep the thing running.

“Baking Sheet” Chip Tray

A simple addition was a couple of strips of angle welding on to hold an old baking sheet that catches swarf. The tray slides out for cleaning.