I’ve recently acquired a Grizzly G0636X “Ultimate” 17″ saw and am trying to figure out what Carter stabilizer to put on it. The Grizzly people have no clue, and the Carter people have told me that a Jet1 should be what I need. But I’m a little skeptical and just want to be sure before I order it.

I’ve seen Al’s posting at http://70.169.135.35/showthread.php?t=46050 and support bracket and mechanism for the guide system looks identical to what’s on the G0636X. But the stabilizer there does not appear to be a Jet1.

I do know that the stud for the guide assembly on the G0636X is a 20mm one (flat on one side). I know that the Jet1 would fit this, but I’m not confident that the guide disk could then be moved over far enough to seat the blade in it. The Carter folks have suggested that I might also use a 380 adapter with a CTR4 stabilizer, but that seems excessive if there’s really a stabilizer that would fit it.

Any thoughts or experience on this?

Gary,

I don’t see the specific model I got from Carter – in fact, I went through 3 different iterations as I tried to fit the stabilizer to my 17-inch Grizzly. However, the best fit today seems to be either their CTR1 for 14- to 18-inch band saws ( http://www.carterproducts.com/product.asp?product_id=28&cat_id=14 ), or their GRI1, for the Grizzly 16-inch machine.

When you call them, request to talk to the Engineer. THAT was the only way we finally resolved the issues I was having fitting the stabilizer. The critical part was getting the offset from the holder to the blade. Once they made the correct holder, it was a piece of cake to install and adjust.

One other thing to keep in mind: You must make sure that the stabilizer will fit, without using their conversion kit. I had to buy their conversion kit, simply because it was an older Grizzly band saw. For a newer saw, like yours, you might be able to get by without buying the kit.

Maybe all you will need is one of the offset brackets? http://www.carterproducts.com/product_list.asp?cat_id=17

Yeah, I don’t see any reason to buy their conversion kit. And you’re exactly right that the critical issue is the offset from the holder to the blade. That’s what concerns me about the Jet1 recommendation since the blade aligns just outside the vertical tangent to the 20mm stud on the RIGHT side (as you face the saw) and the Jet1 brracket clamps the stabilizer axle (for lack of a better term) under the LEFT side of the stud. So even if the axle is long enough to just make it, I’m not sure how comfortable I’d be with that since the blade running in the guide could induce some torque on the axle at that stretched distance.

Unfortunately, they don’t seem to have the dimensions of these products online. At least I can’t see them. But I think I’ll email them and ask. That would tell the tale for sure.

Gary,

I called Carter, and spoke with Christina. She stated that the Jet1 is NOT the model to get. This is the info she provided:

Stabilizer for the band saw: Carter’s CTR-5

Offset Bracket: GRI U1, U2, U3 (these are a part of the Carter Conversion Kit)

It might be best to call them back, and either talk to Christina, or to one of their 3 design engineers, to confirm this information.

Well, I have yet another recommendation from Jeff at Carter, with whom I’ve been communicating.

His recommendation is the CTR4 stabilizer combined with the 348 offset stud. He also sent me the engineering drawings for both the JET1 and the CTR4.

It does look to me as though the combination of the CTR4 and the 348 will give me more than enough adjustability to do the trick.

Kristina’s suggestion may work as well. But the CTR4 and 348 combo offers a somewhat beefier (3/4″) set of supports over the CTR5 (7/16″).

Oh, well. It looks as though this is going to cost me on the order of $120+ rather than the $80 I had hoped for. And I wouldn’t be surprised if in another year Carter has a stabilizer more specifically for the G0636 saws. They are super 17″ saws (5 HP!!!!!).

Now I just need to put the good blades on it and stop playing with the one that came with it

Gary,

Glad they got you all sorted out! Carter has truly terrific support people. I must talk to them, to see if they are interested in giving discounts to Sandal Woods Members and readers.

Dump the stock blade and get the Resaw King from Laguna, for the big work. For that class of band saw it is not worth messing with less than the best blades.

Of course, if you are going to use the Carter stabilizer, I recommend the 1/8″ TimberWolf blades from Suffolk Machinery. You get a feeling similar to working on the scroll saw!