9 in. 2.5 Amp Benchtop Band Saw

Short answer - Works Great. Good Quality. Fair Price. Long Answer - I have had several Bandsaws. I am not a professional woodworker, however I do appreciate quality work, be it my own or by some one else. If you have experience (meaning knowledgeable use) with Bandsaws you already know they are not "Plug-N-Play" right out of the box. So for the novice, If you have never used one then you should know they require proper set up and adjustments. These need to be done before you first plug it in and each time you change blades especially when the blades are from different manufacturers. Also from time to time as a general maintenance routine. READ THE MANUAL and set it up correctly. You will be glad you did. These are marvelous machines and will give you great flexibility in woodworking. You will see videos on You Tube showing unboxing to assembled in just 10 to 20 minutes. THAT DOES NOT include the time to make the needed set up. I checked this machine and found the table was square to the blade (amazing). The normal adjustments were made (per the manual) and it worked perfectly. Hooked it up to a shop vacuum and started right in re-sawing 2" high x 1/8" thick wood for a project. Picture 1- Very little sawdust after 45 minutes of use, Good design to keep the bottom wheel clean (very important). Picture 2 - After 10 second clean up with air hose. Like new again. Keep your tools clean and in good working order and you will get great results. Picture 3- Showing blade tracking position after use. Right on the mark. Picture 4- I think I got the odd duck. The hole for the table adjustment knob was drilled and tapped to high. This prevented the table from being mounted when the knob teeth were engaged. Picture 5- Easy Fix. Reamed out the hole in the plastic knob. Fixed. Hey. These are inexpensive machines and you need to expect some minor flaws. I have paid a lot more and got a lot less. A good wood worker will not blame their tools for a bad job. If the tool is not working as it should, fix it or replace it.

Saw works wonderfully just as I expected. Great even with inch thick cedar....you just have to be patient and work it to your advantage.

I have experience with several bandsaws including common 9" consumer-grade bandsaws like the Wen, Ryobi, & others. If you're considering the Wen, I suggest you try the Ryobi. I've both, & the Ryobi is definitely superior. If you need to be sold on the general concept of having a bandsaw, I'd say: get one. They're super handy, allow you to easily make cuts that neither miter nor reciprocating saws allow, in a tight space. Both straight & intricute scrolling cuts are possible. Tables tilt & miter gauges are included so you can make intricate & obtuse cuts, or straight. So the tool in general is fantastic. Here's where the Wen comes with technical support (as does Ryobi). For me this is a must. You can buy bandsaws for more money that don't come with technical support. I try to never buy products without some sort of support because you never know what you're going to run into. The complexity of products and the oft poor manufacturing quality control make this a must for me. I often rate manufacturers by their support. Wen falls down: Noisy. Not only is it a noisy machine, mine has a tic periodically, like a wheel rubbing or hitting against something every revolution, except the tic is much slower than the wheel speed so I have yet to sort it out. No Blade Tension Release Lever. You can't release tension to change blades, you have to back off the tension adjuster all the way. Blade tensioner has limited range: Mine's at maximum tension and it's still not taught enough. Blade centering is hard to see because both the blade & the rubber on the wheel are black, making the whole thing hard to see (compared to Ryobi with light urethane on the wheels that the black blade is easily seen contrasting with.). More assembly is required for the table. The table assembly isn't well thought out, requiring more time to put together and you have to dial in the angle pointer yourself. Tilting the table is a sloppy affair, not smooth. Two bolts have to be undone to loosen & tighten table for angle adjustment. Fit & Finish is Inferior. The table of mine came covered in oil & was a gooey mess. The upper wheel door wouldn't close properly requiring me file the door so it'd close. Various parts weren't fastened properly (like the vacuum port). There were metal chips and sharp edges everywhere. The knobs that close the doors, while likely to last a while, or carved backwards so that turning them clockwise opens, counter clockwise closes. Good things compared to the Ryobi: The base of the unit that bolts to the work-bench is both straighter & stronger. comes with a rip-fence. Considering these cost between $25 & $35, this is a significant upgrade. The Wen's base is flatter & straighter. It comes with a rip fence. Both these are a big deal, but overall the machine is just noisier, less refined, with a lot of little things glossed over.

Overall, I am pleased with this saw. Opened the package, inspected all the contents for possible damage; everything looked good. Assembled the band saw per the instructions; no issues. Using the manual, ensured table, blade and tension were set correctly. Everything looked good from the factory; nothing required any adjustment. Performed a test cut on piece of 1/4" pine - everything worked. Next did some cuts on a cedar 2x4 that was handy. Did some cross cuts and rips about 8" length wise. Also performed some curved cuts in the cedar and some pine. Don't have any hard wood on hand at this time. Looking forward to using on some projects. Going to mount it on a plywood base so it can be clamped to my workbench for extra stability during use. Hooks right up to my shop vac for dust control.

Good power for a small band saw. Cut through 1" board with ease. Fits easily on a work bench. Packaging was good. Arrived at home with some damage to box but no damage to equipment. Nice 1/4 turn knobs to open unit to get to internals. Supplied fence has a tight fit & holds it's position. The miter gauge has a slight wobble (1-2 degrees) but still works well. Instructions are full size and contains an exploded view for ordering parts. Saw table held in place by two knobs and holds it's position. Good for the DIY'er.

A Band Saw for the simple DIYer. This came 99% assembled. It was pretty accurate out of the box, but can be easily adjusted to align perfectly. The detailed instructions are all you need. I cut some wood to build out some kitchen drawers. It was much quicker than using my handsaw! The quality on this is much better than competing brands. Everyone that has seen it at our house it totally jealous. It is a must-have for anyone that does home projects! I will be purchasing the dust collection attachment to help keep the garage clean.

Rating provided by a verified purchaser

Rating provided by a verified purchaser

Overall a very good bandsaw. Keep in mind it is dirt cheap and entry level but it cuts and tracks reasonably well, study and well built. I gave it 4 stars and not five because the table was not very flat and I could not get a 3/8” blade to sit and cut correctly. I tried two different brands but 3/8” blade was a fail. The 1/4” blade worked fine.