I discovered very quickly that my hand-held, battery operated jigsaw was not going to be a good substitute for a real metal cutting bandsaw.  With good metal cutting bandsaws beginning in price around $1600, I quickly became discouraged.  Not only was it not very affordable, I also really did not have sufficient space for a full sized bandsaw in my little shop.

YouTube is a miraculous world for educating one-self and finding others with the same problems you are facing.  It should not come as a big surprise that many before you experienced the same problem and found a solution.  What is surprising, is that so many would take the time to film themselves so that others like myself can be inspired to either follow their lead or develop our own solution customized to our needs and tastes.  Thank you YouTubers!

YouTube showed me that a relatively inexpensive portable bandsaw could be adapted to a DIY vertical table top configuration that fit my budgetary and space restrictions perfectly!  So off to Harbor Freight for a $129 portable bandsaw that has a 10 amp 120 VAC motor.  I also bought a pair of 14 tooth, 1/2″ Hercules band saw blades.

The next day I went to SouthCo metals and purchased a 12″ x 14″ x 1/4″ thick piece of steel.  They were nice enough to cut it to size for me and not charge me for the cutting.  This came to $18.  While there I went through their junk bin and got three extra pieces of metal that they only charged me $5 for.  The larger piece immediately became useful.  So I was very happy with this purchase.

I decided to use 1-1/2″ angle iron for the base which I easily cut and welded.  The thick 1/4″ table top took a lot of time to cut and grind so it would fit.  I watched Adam Savage build his using a different base style.  He used cardboard to mock up the table top so it fit the portable bandsaw perfectly.  This little trick saved my bacon and another trip to SouthCo to purchase another top piece after screwing up on the first. 

I was genuinely surprised at how often I had to modify the cardboard layout to fit around the bandsaw and be properly supported.  I was also surprised at how long it took to make the cuts, countersunk holes, and grinding of the actual plate.  My self-proclaimed one-day build quickly turned into two and then three days.  I’m learning, metal fabrication is a slow and lengthy process!

I was also in for another surprise.  While welding, I really got to see heat warping big time.  It was a good lesson to experience.  I had already witnessed a little of it on the initial chassis frame construction, but when I welded 1/8″ and 1/4″ steel together, I found I really pumped in a lot of heat.  So much so that the top plate warped a little and my table legs ended up nearly a 1/2″ out of square in just 8-1/2″ of leg height!  I was shocked!  It was easy enough to fix by adding a cross member which I planned on anyway. 

To finish the project I scrounged up two metal electrical boxes, a left over power chord, a light switch, and a power plug.  I then wired it so the portable bandsaw received its power through my added plug which was controlled by the light switch.  The switch was located on the front of the table assembly with the power plug and chord at the back and out of the way.  I then zip-tied the bandsaw variable speed trigger to full speed so when I turned on the table switch the unit ran.  An adjustable speed setting on the bandsaw enables me to adjust to a suitable speed.

I also purchased a battery powered light with a goose type neck.  It magnetically attaches to the frame and facilitates adjusting the light it to an optimal position. 

I was very pleased with the final result.  Rather than spending thousands, I spent less than $170 and got exactly what I needed (not including the movable light).

While it only has a 5″ deep throat, it will not be good for cutting larger size pieces, but that was an acceptable compromise given the huge cost savings and preserving my restricted shop space.

I am super satisfied with the end result.  I have already cut a few pieces of steel and it worked perfectly!