~~~ Earlier ~~~
I've got the larger (and the smaller) Harbor Freight horizontal band saws. The smaller one is no different than any other el-cheapo 4x6 horizontal. Well I did modify it to handle 8 inch wide stock, but otherwise no different. The bigger one (7x12) is quite good.
The Super Cut blade for the smaller band saw is a stock item and holds up as well as any big name brand blade I have used. I don't even consider anything else for it any more. I actually have a spare on the wall behind the saw.
A week or two ago I was in the local HF import store and saw they had 93 inch (93-1/2) blades in stock. I was excited. No more having to order blades and waiting for somebody to cut and weld it, or ordering blades off eBay and hoping they did a better than average job at the blade welder. Sure I might decide I still want Lennox M42 blades, but I wouldn't have to keep a spare on hand all the time any more. Just pick up a cheap blade locally and be good to go while waiting for a better quality blade to arrive.
Well, a couple days ago my blade broke. It was pretty worn (dull), and it gave hints of breaking (ba-bump, ba-bump, ba-bump) days before it actually separated. Just to make sure I took a quick look at the saw where I had written the correct blade size with a paint marker. 93-1/4 (okay I can adjust that much) x 3/4.
Yeah, NOPE! All the 93-1/2 stock blades at harbor freight are 1/2 inch wide, and unlike a vertical bandsaw you cant adjust a horizontal for a narrower blade. CRAP!
Atleast, I still have the smaller saw. Now to figure out how to swing a 12' piece of stock around so I can cut it on the 6' roller table (end butted up to the wall) its mounted on.
~~~ A Few Hours Later ~~~
Just for the heck of it I decided to check online to see if Tractor Supply had one. They had a blade called a "Hard Back" metal cutting blade in 93 x 3/4. My saw will adjust that far. 24.99 and in stock. I figured that's pretty cheap so I can risk it until some good blades come in. Out of curiosity I checked some out of area stores and the price was $3 higher online.
When I checked out at the store the price was 7.49 on clearance, so I went back and bought them all. Four blades. Even if they only last half as long as name brand blades I'll be money ahead. They are a little finer pitch than I like, but I run coolant so chip welding and clearing isn't an issue.
That saw mostly gets used for aluminum. I cut most of my stainless on the little saw with oil.
The kid (young adult) working the counter seemed to have a real work ethic, but what can I really tell in a two minute interaction.
~~~ Notes ~~~
The Tractor Supply store I went to now no longer shows any in stock online, so their inventory control is decent. The other store in the area shows no stock. Looks like clearance price is not available online. In store only. No hint of the clearance price on-line. If there is a Tractor Supply along your regular route it might be worth a check in store, and it looks like store availability is kept mostly up to date so you can check if they have any before stopping in. I did not look at any of the other blades.
If they are basically just carbon steel blades $7.49 each is still a steal IMO.
