Hawk G4 Questions

[R.Edwards]

I currently own a Dewalt 788. It's a good saw overall but I would like to have a saw with a more vertical stroke so that making sharp turns in thin material would be easier. I find the oscillating motion of the blade to be very,very aggressive. I can't get the accuracy I want in material up to 1/2" hardwood with a blade larger than a #1. When I use a spiral blade on intricate portraits, the blade cuts in completely different fashion depending on the direction the wood is feed. Straight feed into the front of the blade is very aggressive, into the side is less so but makes a "wider" hole due to the front to back motion of the blade.Pulling the wood into the back of the blade is slow cutting with a "chomp,chomp" type of jabbing movement. DW788 please don't take offense as I think this is a fine saw overall and more talented hands than mine can overcome these stroke differences without problem.
I have looked into all the higher end saws and have determined that in order to maintain the ability to top and bottom feed, (I bottom feed on smaller pieces and top feed on larger ones such as 8X10 or larger portrait pieces), and get a saw with a more verticle stroke, my only choice is the Hawk G4. I'm wondering if some G4 owners, (Rolf are you listening ), could answer a couple of questions about the saw.
Does the stoke adjustment work well enough to give a near perfect verticle stroke? How good/bad is vibration in the saw? When top feeding, do you have a lot of problems with the lower blade clamp filling with sawdust? Any other considerations you can pass on could be appreciated.
Thanks,
Ralph

[workin for wood]

I don't know that the Hawk is your only choice, and don't have knowledge about the delta. I own the G4. I can adjust to straight up and down or agressive oscillation. Vibration is quite low and can be lower depending on your bracing and what the saw sits on as well as the speed you are running. There is a hold down piece that can hold the arm in the down position for top feeding to make it easier to insert the blade into the lower holder. The lower holder can be removed by simply pushing down and pulling out at the same time, so if it did get dust in it you can knock it out in a second flat, although I can't say I ever get dust in mine, or it's so minor it is a mute point. The aluminum table is a real bonus as you don't need to worry about rust. The safety hold down device is too big and clumsy to use, not that you even need it anyhow. Motor has tons of torque for sure. Customer service is 5 star, everyone will agree on that. Tension is easy to adjust and has a quick release in the front, that's nice and handy. Blade holders could be better, yet they do have some better ones, so I guess depends what they send. If the spring on the tensioner at the back breaks, it's a pain to replace. I've had it happen twice. no problems having them send a new one, but saw is down till the new spring arrives. The fancy metal plate that says G4 is covering the access hole to the screw for the spring, so you have to pry the plate off which destroys the metal plate. I drilled out the plate so I no longer need to remove it, I just drilled a hole through to the hole in the actual machine..why didn't they do that, I dunno. I like the G4. Could use some neon strips on the arm to brighten things up though, which I was sure to pass on to the CEO of Hawk. I always need more fancy lights and switches even if they are pointless.

I do not actually have a G4. I have a Hawk 226. On mine there are two places to put the blade clamp of the front one is for cutting thinner woods and the back one for thicker. According to what I've seen on the DVD and web site the G4 takes this quite a bit further. The blade can be adjusted farther foreword and farther back then what I can do on mine. Even on my RBI I am able to make tight cuts in thicker would. I made the logical choice of upgrading from the DeWalt to the RBI. That is all I am going to say about that because people seem to get mad if I say anything negative towards their precious DeWalt. I'm not sure but I believe the eclipse has a close to perfect vertical stroke. That is the information I got out of Patrick Spielman's book the new scroll saw handbook on page 74.
The RBI actually does not have a perfect vertical stroke, it cuts foreword on the down-stroke and backs off a little on the upstroke in order to remove sawdust and keep the blade cooler. It sounds like what you are looking for would be more in line with eclipse though. But I would encourage you also to call RBI and just chat with them, they're very helpful and are happy to answer any question you may have.

Red Beard

[R.Edwards]

Guys,
Thanks for the replies so far. Words of experience like yours are really appreciated. As far as the Eclipse goes, I have seriously been considering it for a long time but have eliminated it due to a couple of reasons:
1) It's a bottom feeder only. I recently did a portrait type piece with a couple of hundred cuts some of which weren't much bigger than the diameter of the 2/0 spiral blade. This required a lot of tiny drilled holes. These holes on the bottom of the piece quickly clog up with sawdust making them that much harder to find.The Eclipse upper arm does not raise making it difficult to raise a larger work piece up and tilt it so as to see these holes while remaining seated. Bottom feeding would require standing up then squatting down to look under the piece to find the hole to feed the blade into,standing back up to adjust the tension, make the cut, then do it all over again.To me, that's more time spent doing slow speed aerobic exercise than scroll sawing. I know Jeff Zeffino does this on his eclipse, but he must be in much better shape than I.
2) The eclipse requires a wrench to release the blade from the lower clamp. This seems sorta like buying a new Rolls Royce with a straight shift transmission.
Ralph

Good Point, well maybe look into getting a Hawk G4 for Christmas

[R.Edwards]

"Red Beard loves to be colorful. It is not to show off just to have fun. I like being different. It is OK to be different isn't it?"

Red Beard, It's perfectly alright to be different as long as those extra 3 arms don't get in other people's way.
And Jeff, I agree with you on the racing strips and lights. One of the bells and whistles on the Eclipse I'd like to see on the G4 is the time clock. So much cooler than just checking the clock to keep up with time spent on a project. Maybe add on some 21" chrome wheels to make the saw mobile.
Ralph

[Rolf]

Ralph,
I think Jeff about covered it. The vertical stroke is not perfect but it is close.
The top feed , bottom feed works great it just takes a little practice to get the blade centered in the clamp but after a bit it becomes secon nature.
The stroke length is still only 3/4 inch ( I may have misunderstood your "I would like to have a saw with a more vertical stroke")
But the height under the arm very roomy, that is why I bought the G4 instead of the Hegner. (also Hegner only a bottom feeder)
Spiral blades are very controlable on this saw. Plus the variable speed range is very broad.
A club member has the RBI226 and I had a chance to do a side by side comparison. One of the main differences is the bottom clamp location. On the G4 it is in front of the bottom angle adjustment and very easy to get at, on the 226 it is behind.
I have never regreted buying my Hawk and would do so again.
Jeff I never broke a spring? I probably just jinxed myself.

[R.Edwards]

Rolf,
Thanks for the reply. You understood me correctly. The oscillation of the Somerfield design saws is significant. If I place a block of wood against the back of the blade while the saw is running, the wood is "bounced back and forth". I would imagine on an Eclipse the wood would just set there like it will if it's placed on the back of a running band saw blade. If you try this on your G4 while set for a verticle stroke I bet you don't get much movement.
You say that spiral blades are very controllable, that's great to hear! Do you notice any significant difference in the way it cuts when the wood is pushed in various ways into the blade?
Thanks again for the input. I'm almost ready to "throw the money down". Just need to finish "doing my homework" on the saw.
Ralph

[Rolf]

No significant variation on the kerf.
I do prefer the "New Spirals" from FD they have a tighter twist

[R.Edwards]

I've tried the "New Spirals" from FD. On the Dewalt saw they make very little difference in the way they cut. Probably due to the oscillating stroke. Also they are a little larger diameter than same # size regular spiral. I'll sure give em another try if I get a G4.
Ralph