Vintage Berlin Machine Works Co Resaw Helped Albany Woodworks Get It’s Start.
Having large timbers up to 18″ by 18″, we needed a way to saw these into lumber. Richard and his friends decided they wanted equipment that followed the same ideal as the wood. So they set to work finding equipment that could be recycled to make up their saw mill. Friends got together and found an 1890’s Berlin Machine Works 3″ band resaw.
(Above) Original ad for Berlin Machine Works Co. They originally specialized in planers before breaking into other types of equipment.
A resaw is a large band saw for cutting timber along the grain to cut larger sections into smaller sections or veneers. Berlin Machine Works was a very well known woodworking machinery company that changed its name during WWII to P.B. Yates Machine Co. The name change was to disassociate any relation to the Germans during the wartime. The company created and patented multiple inventions used in woodworking processes still to this day. Currently, the original company operates as Yates American Machine Company in the company’s original starting location of Beloit, WI.
(Above) A band saw blade. These blades are quite large, typically 8 inches wide out of 16 gauge steel.
The piece of equipment was a valuable addition to the Albany Woodworks shop because it would increase productivity and efficiency. The vintage saw was still in excellent condition, and after two weeks of assembling, the saw was ready to begin its new life at Albany Woodworks.