Scheppach Basato 3h

Anthony Bailey takes a look at a sturdy and adaptable bandsaw

Sheppach are well known for their Basato range of bandsaws, and the 3h is compact but promises a lot, especially for the money.

The cutting capacity is large, 207mm under guides and a 306mm throat width coupled with a 1.1hp motor. The case shape is similar to the other Basato machines and seems very rigid which is important for accurate cutting.

The standard blade is a 12mm wide skip tooth blade suitable for most work. Blade changing is very easy, turn the door locks open the door and the microswitch disables the power if you haven't turned it off at the socket.

The fence bar has four quick lock levers, and there is a quick release lever on the rear of the case for the blade tension making for fast changeovers. There is a tension setting knob and a knob to raise and lower the guard.

The blade can be 'tracked' manually which is useful and the above and below table guides have fine adjustment, both having thrust rollers behind the blade as well.

The table can tilt fully from 45 degrees to minus 17 degrees by lowering the table support rod, and there are two cut speeds.

On test

There was no unusual vibration and the machine was rigid and stayed put. All the controls are easy to access and use. The straight fence is nicely made and it's a well behaved machine that cuts material easily. It only begins to struggle on very deep sections where you need a coarse tooth blade and a reduced feed speed.

The verdict

A keenly priced but well made, reliable piece of kit. Looked after it should last for a long time and perform most tasks with ease.