Diamond Laser Speedster XL

When making cabochons I love to do freeform shapes.  The classic round and oval cabochons are ok but not exciting to me.  Cutting freeform shapes (pre-forms) can be a challenge.  Using a trim saw you can make multiple cuts then clean up the curves with a grinding wheel.  This wastes a lot of the material.   After trying many different trim saws I knew that I needed to find a better way to cut freeform curves.  I found two possible options, a ring saw and a diamond band saw.  Due to price of the ring saw I decide to try the diamond band saw.

The next step was to decide what band saw to buy.  I always try to do thing cheap as possible (not really a good thing when buying lapidary equipment) so I looked at the Inland lapidary band saw and the Diamond Tech Speedster-XL band saw.  Since I am not a fan of Inland products I was already leaning towards the Speedster-XL.  After reading about the metal inner frame, the extra blade and the three year warranty I chose the Speeder-XL.

Diamond Laser Speedster XL

The best price ($219.00 shipping included) I found for this saw was from the company Timeless Tiffany,  a stain glass shop in Elkton, Maryland.  I placed my order that was shipped the next day and a week later UPS delivered it.  I was so excited to have my new band saw.  I spread all the parts out on the table and started reading the manual and assemble instructions.  That is when I noticed a piece still in the packaging that didn’t look right.  After a brief examination I discovered that it was one of the legs from the saw base that had broken off.  There was no way to fix it and the saw was useless.

I immediately called Timeless Tiffany and left a message about the damage since they had already closed.  The next morning they called and told me they were shipping out a replacement and would have UPS pick up the damaged saw.  A couple days later they called again to let me know there was a delay with shipping and that the saw was being shipped that day.  A week later the replacement arrived.

The first night I assembled the saw which took about 10 minutes then did a test cut on a jasper slab.  It was awesome.  I didn’t have time to cut more that night so the next day I went work on a couple more slabs.  Everything was going well at first then it became very slow at cutting.  The problem was most likely caused by cutting a slab of Snake River Agate, a very hard material, and I being a bit heavy handed when pushing the material trough the saw.  I tried dressing the blade by cutting some obsidian which helped a little but not much.  I next tried dressing the blade with a silicon carbide grinding wheel, 220 grit.  This did a better job than the obsidian but the blade still wasn’t that great.  I switched to the second blade and so far have not had any problems with it.  I am being very careful not to push material to fast, almost letting the blade pull the material instead.

For the most part this saw is ok.  It works but not as well as I was hoping.  With some improvements it could be better.  A metal plate on the bottom to reinforce the legs would have prevented the damage on the first saw.  Second the motor need to be more robust.  It seems to have slowed down a bit but that could just be my perception because of the blade getting dull.  And last is the blade.  I believe that the problem with the first blade was my fault.  I am very glad that a second blade was included with the saw.  When it is time to switch the blade again the replacement is going to cost $83.29.  “OUCH!”  I sure hope the second blade lasts a lot longer than the first one.  A that price this saw will be put aside quickly if the blade does not last longer and I will go back using grinding wheels to cut curves.

The blade that comes with the Speedster-XL is 36”.  Before setting this saw aside I might try using Gryphon blades which are 37”.  This will depend on there being enough tension to use the slightly larger blade.  The cost of these blades form Timeless Tiffany is $97.99 for a twin pack of the regular black diamond blades and $57.39 for one fuser blade which is a heavier duty blade.

SPEEDSTER-XL BAND SAW by DIAMOND TECH FEATURES:

Quiet, dual speed 1/8HP motor – could be stronger

Improved water nozzle and guide mounting block – good

Lower wheel drain – good

Sturdy metal inner frame – good

Large capacity cooling system – still gets used up quickly

Long lasting seamless stainless steel blades – 50/50 still deciding not optimistic

Angle cutting guide – cheap but I will never use it anyway

Easy preset blade tracking and tension – good

3 Year warranty and FREE tech support – haven’t needed yet -  I wonder if they will replace the first blade; I doubt it.

Includes FREE extra diamond blade – great, it saved me right away

Includes FREE extra blade guides – good, haven’t needed these yet