New owner of Rikon 10-305 bandsaw

Somebody gave me an almost-new Rikon 10-305 10″ bandsaw.

The previous owner thought that the motor had gone bad and was unable to repair it.

The issue turned out to be that both of the lower wheel bearings were bad (one was completely seized).

In addition, of the 6 ball bearings used to guide the blade on this model, 2 were barely able to turn and no doubt contributed to the feeling that the motor was flaky.

I will order a complete set of replacement bearings, etc, but in addition, if anybody has experience and any other tips etc for this saw please let me know.

Any idea why so many of the bearings would have failed? The ones on the wheel are 28×8 #6001 bearings. They had rubber seals. When I popped the seals they were caked with a combination of sawdust and ?? (maybe lubricant). The smaller blade guide bearings have metal seals and I didn’t mess with them. The saw has no signs of rust or any other damage and looks to have been properly cared for.

Link to the model on the Rikon page:

Model 10-305: 10″ Bandsaw

The model looks very similar to others sold by Craftsman, Grizzly, etc.

Thanks,
Gabe