Customer Reviews for WEN 6 Amp 3-1/4 in. Corded Hand Planer

Very nice planer. Love the large platen. I have a shed full of red oak boards approx. 3/4 inch thick. Probably 20 years old, all done at an amateur mill, so it's rough. I've used hand planers for years, decided to try this planer to see if I could smooth out board's about 8 inches wide. It takes a while, a light touch and be patient. Run down the board and remove as little as you can at a time. By my third board, I got the hang of it. Then sanded the surface to finish. For what I'm using this wood for, this planer works fine. I paid 30 bucks for it!! Now if was intend to build something more refinded, I'll be going back to buy a benchtop planer just for the time savings. Good planer for the bucks!

Easily planed the frame of kitchen cabinets instead of sanding which was such a mess. Capable of a really small amount of removal. Took seconds to plane where sanding took days. Smooth as butter and sharp. The motor is a little wide so it counted do the edges at the wall. Worth every cent. Love bed how it simplified my project.

The Wen 20V Brushless Planer is an excellent value in the crowded Cordless Electric Planer market. The #20653 Kit comes with the 3 1/4" Brushless Planer, a 4 Amp Hour 20 Volt Lithium-Ion Battery & Charger, a Rabbet Depth Gauge and a Parallel Guide Fence. The battery has a LED charge gauge and there is a Safety Kickstand to protect the blades when setting the planer down. Wen has figured out how to provide all these features at a price that is very competitive feature for feature. The brushless motor turns at 13,000 RPM and had no problem smoothing out my hardwood test slab. I don't recall the motor even changing pitch. The Depth of Cut Adjustment Knob has positive détentes every 1 /128" and can cut up to 5/64" per pass. I suggest just using the first two clicks for a maximum of 1/64" per pass to keep things smooth & easy. There is a supplied Dust Bag that fills up very quickly. I suggest using a vacuum hose or going without the dust bag. This is a two reversible blade planer for smooth operation. The blades themselves are a standard size and are compatible with many other brand planers. Twelve High Speed Steel replacement blades were less than $20 and six High Carbon Blades were about $12. My only complaint was that the increments on the Cut Depth Adjustment Knob were hard to read. I intend to go back with a fine tip marker and darken the recessed numbers. The only feature that many mid-range planers have that this lacks is a reversible left or right dust port. This has a right discharge only. Many mid-range planers do not come with the Rabbet Depth Gauge or the Parallel Guide Fence that this has. This has the blade-protecting Safety Kickstand on the Aft Shoe and not all have that feature. All in all this is a powerful tool, a great value and deserves the 5 star rating. This is the second Wen product I have owned. The Wen Benchtop Drill Press I bought a few years ago came with a serious manufacturing defect that Wen made good on without hassle.

The WEN 20-Volt Max Brushless Cordless 3-1/4 in. Hand Planer with 4.0 Ah Lithium-Ion Battery and Charger is the best hand planer either battery powered or not that I have ever used. I mistakenly started with what I thought was the minimum depth setting but it turned out to be the maximum. The planer had no problem cutting through the pallet pine test piece. It took a rough board and made it perfectly smooth. I used a Wen digital micrometer to check the depth setting. It was accurate to within two decimal places. It takes some practice to keep the planer level after it goes off the end of the board. I then switched back to the 1/128 minimum setting. It worked without a glitch. I did not try it on hardwood. Although it is a great planer, it still has many aspects that could be improved. First the dust bag only captured about 90% of the dust. The chip extraction port did not fit any of my vacuums nor was I able to find an adapter. The indicator mark for the rabbet depth gauge is almost imperceptible. You need to look at it in a perfect light to see it. The instructions need to be rewritten by someone who has actually used the product. There were many inconsistencies. Often the instructions assumed that it is a corded model. The planer has a kickstand which is a great idea to keep the planer blade from touching the surface but it does not work at all like the instructions say. The kickstand should be improved to work as described in the instructions. The markings on the depth knob could be made darker to have contrast and make them easier to read. The charger light scheme differs from all of my other charges so a few words describing them in the instructions would have been helpful. Even with all of these suggested improvements, it is still a great planer because it performs its main function flawlessly. The planer is made in China and has a 2-year warranty.

I just received this WEN 20 volt max brushless cordless 3 1/4” hand planner with the 4.0 Ah lithium ion battery and charger and I have to say this tool is fantastic. I’ve never used a planner and always wanted one and WEN made a tool that is super easy to use. Hand planning takes time to figure out but this was pretty easy for a beginner. Dust bag worked great but I would recommend hooking it up to a vac or dust collector because planning creates a ton of shavings. Blade adjuster knob worked great and felt sturdy. The kick stand is a nice touch to keep your blade from resting on the work piece. This planner is rather light as well even with the battery in. As you can see in my pictures I was playing around with some really rough lumber and just a few passes cleaned it up and was smooth. Sanding is still required when using planners but I could run my hand down the finish surface and it was smooth. Highly recommend.

For those interested in country of origin, this product was made in CHINA. Doing a lot of work around the house and I needed an inexpensive method to plane wood to a better looking condition and remove any surface damage. Tis tool works very well to accomplish the needs and I did not have to spend a lot of money on a seldom used horizontal planer. The unit is easy to assemble. The instructions are not bad. Decided to plane a rough piece of 2x4 as a test. Made several passes at the end, going through the depth gauges. Easy enough to do but split ends at the edges. Probably the old wood. Planed the smaller length of the board going through the depth gauges. No problem and good results. Tried to use the rabbiting feature. Not so much a success, but assume time needed to get knowledge on how to use the planer. All in all pretty satisfied. Only problem is the collection bag. Worked on the piece of wood making 15 passes and the bag was full. Need to connect to shopvac for better working results.

I've seen these before but never tried one. After I tried this WEN cordless planer, I was hooked. I tested it on the edge of an old board and it made it look like new wood again. I also used it to trim my shed door that always seems to stick and will use it on the window frames as well. It has a handle in front that doubles as a depth gauge where you can set how much wood the planer will cut on each pass. So simple! It comes with a plastic foot that folds out so you don't have to let the blade make contact with your table. It also comes with a 4.0 amp-hour lithium-ion battery (and charger) that keeps its power despite the battery level. The battery also has a charge indicator so you can always see how much juice is left. It also has a dust bag, which is really handy, because it really spits out a lot of wood when you use it. There is also a rabbeting guide and a parallel fence to make sure each pass is on target. It can take 3-1/4" passes, so it will be handy for me when I glue up boards to make a longer board and I want to remove the excess glue and get both glued boards to exactly the same level.

Easy to use work's great

The tool itself works great. I bought it to quickly shave down some doors after repainting in the house. It’s solidly built. My only two issues were not easily being able to keep the tool square with the door as I made my pass -and the wood-chip discharge port didn’t fit any of my small shop vacs so I had to “duct tape engineer” something to work since I was working in the house, neither issue of which are necessarily a big deal. Had I been working outdoors or in a wood shop, the second one wouldn’t matter. I felt it was a good value for the money. The grooves on the bottom to shave 45° chamfers on something are an added bonus. I liked that as well.

I got ahold of some old wood and some old decking material. I bought the Wen 6 Amp planer and hoped i could get enough good wood to work on a project. I was really surprised ! I got a few boards planed down, and with a little sanding I got new wood.

Easy to used and affordable

Great little planer poplar red oak and pine. Worked as expected on each. Made a trash bin from saw mill scrap for my daughter. She loves it! And now I can remember wen got the job done! Thank you wen!

It's my first electric planer , and it works perfectly good .im I very happy.

was refinishing my wood deck, and the blade assembly did not last very long - caught a knot and bent out of shape on the second day of use - tough time finding a replacement set (not the blades, the assembly holding the blades in) - worked fine up until then, but not exactly for heavy use

I'd give it 4 out of 5 stars. The guide is not 90 degrees and is rather flimsy Other than that, it works like a champ.

Corded Hand Planer - 4-3/8". This hand planer is a great value for the money. It is heavy and sturdy feeling in your hand. Out of the box it is ready to go. The blades are installed and in my first test runs, it cuts smoothly. The guide/fence attachment is in two pieces that need to be assembled. It can attach to either side of the planer. The depth adjustment dial is large and easy to handle. It is easy to adjust the depth of the cut in 2mm increments (1/128th") up to 1/8" max. It adjusts, and stays where you put it, but there is no actual lock on the dial. The ability to switch the dust exhaust to either side is a nice feature. There are two "V" grooves (two sizes) on the planer surface that make it easy to make a chamfer cut on an edge. There is a kick stand that can be easily popped down to keep the blade up when resting the planer. The manual that comes with the planer is well written in good english. The blades are two sided, so when they get dull, they can be turned around to the other side before having to get new blades. I'm happy with this planer.

This is a solid planer for a variety of projects. So far I have used it on doors and to smooth out my old work bench. It has a lot of power and with 16,000 rpm and two blades on the drum, it cuts smooth. A simple knob sets depth from 0"-1/8", at very small increments. The guide is great for keeping it moving along doors and boards. The dust port can be switched from left to right and it catches most chips. At nearly 10 lbs, it is a little heavy but ones on the board it moves smooth. I am glad to have this tool and will use it with most furniture projects in the future that use rough lumber.

In full disclosure, I’m certainly would not be considered a carpenter or woodworker. I’m a DIYer who occasionally has home projects that involve wood. But on those occasions, a hand planer like this is the perfect tool. I confess I’ve resorted to grinders and scrapers in the past to tool wood. It has a width of about 2.5” so planing anything wider requires care to assure uniformity. It has an easy to use depth gage (up to 1/16”) and changing blades appears to be fairly easy. One feature I hadn’t expected but am pleased to see is that it has a large and a small groove in the shoe for making a chamfer. They can be used to create a sloping edge along a corner. Unfortunately, when I opened the box I discovered that the kickstand was broken (see pic), but I was able to glue it. Although my needs for this tool are limited, I’m pleased to have it.

3.8 Amp 2-3/8 in. Corded Hand Planer This is a very nice little tool. I have lots of Wen tools and I am happy with all of them. The have held up well for me and in a field of many similar tools, they tend to put little extras on them to make them stand out. A small hand planer by its nature has a somewhat limited use. It isn’t necessarily good on large flat pieces but for me it is best used on the edge of boards. It is always a challenge to get the edges of boards to line up. They frequently are not straight, and gaps appear. What I did to test this is I tried to plane the edges to make them fit better. I did this with pine. Then I took some purple heart, a notorious hard wood and tried to plane the edge of it and then the face of it. The photos are attached. I was able to get the pine to line up. But, it is very difficult to keep constant and even pressure on the planner when pushing it. Therefore, I think it is best to plane a longer piece and then cut the ends off and use the middle. But it worked. I was able to get the edges to line up. I then used it on the very rough face and edges of the purple heart. As you can see from the photos, it did smooth it out. As this was just a test I did end up with lines between the passes on the wood. I had to make four passes to cover the face of the wood. I think with practice and then a power sander this could work out OK. The product feels well-made and solid. I think it could last with lots of use. And the blades are reversible and replaceable. I do have one small gripe. Most of the Wen tools I have use a very small dust exhaust hole for the wood chips. This is annoying. I have read where others have used duct tape to tape the small dust hole to the larger vacuum hose. I think if Wen wants to do things this way then they should supply a piece that fits to their tool and then to the standard vacuums. Overall a good tool for the right use. I gave it a four instead of a five because of the dust exhaust hole being so small for wood chips.

Right out of the box this planer is ready to go. First time using one but spent time watching videos to make myself aware of the uses. I adjusted the blade to about 1/32 nd of an inch and ran it down the length of a re-sawn 2 x 2 pine and I was amazed at how easily it worked and how smooth the 2 x 2 was. Maybe a little bit of sanding and presto, new lumber. I use a lot of re-purposed lumber and now I can get results I had only imagined. If you are on the fence on this, trust me you won't be disatisfied. I will be looking for an adaptor for my shop vac hose to prevent messes.

I purchased this when planing a board that was too wide to fit in my full size planer. I didn't intend on using it very often, and so I opted to save some money and go with WEN. I was greatly surprised to find out that this is actually a really nice, high quality tool. It took a little bit of getting used to, but once I had the hand of it, it made easy work of planing that board down. My recommendation is to either let the chips fly with no vacuum, or check the ejection port often to make sure it isn't getting plugged up. Also, use this planer on one of the lowest settings to get the best results. It does have the power to take off more at a time, but the finish will be much more likely to have a roughness to it and dips throughout if you take off too much at once. A great tool at a fantastic price. It even has a little kickstand to keep the blades off of the resting surface when you are not using it.

Quality is definitely not lacking in this planer and the price is great. I definitely would recommend this. It was the first WEN brand product I ever bought, I was so impressed that I bought a WEN belt sander as well.

The only reason I didnt give it five stars is because there are obviously better planers out there but they are going to be $100-$200 more expensive. This planer is just a great value. Its a quality product with easily enough power to handle everyday jobs. I dont think theres a better planer out there in its price range!!!

I have been using this to plane some rough cut oak posts and it has worked really well.

Talk about a tool. This planner is awesome. You can direct the flow of chips or curls to the left or to the right with the flick of a actuator. I used it to cut door bottoms and drawer tops and bottoms off so they would fit without sticking. Wow, this made quick work of it, taking 1/64 of an inch off with every pass. The depth of cut can be set by turning the forward knob that also serves as a forward motion control. The adjustments are made in 64ths and are very easy to make. The tool itself is light and very comfortable to use. This is my first planner and I already thought of about a million uses for it. The blades are easily accessible so if you have to change them you can do so without lots of hassle. The tool runs smooth and there is no bucking. I made sure that there were no metal fasteners of any kind in the wood I planned to protect the blades from nicks. Great tool and worth the money for a DIY’er that is concerned about nice even surfaces or laminating wood together to make wider boards or thicker wood for using with a band saw or a tool comparable. I always set the tool back to 0 so as not to nick the blades by accident. As Always Be Safe Using This Tool.

The WEN Planer was ready to use right out of the box unless you needed to attach the "Fence" accessory. I planed a section of damaged, uplifted wood on my deck railing (photo's attached for your review). I set the easy to set depth control to 1/64" and within a minute or so the wood was flat again. Tip: Because you hold onto the knob in front of the planer, which is also the depth controller, be careful that you don't turn the knob, which will raise or lower your cut. It happened to me but thankfully it turned to Zero cut on the dial. The parallel Fence attachment is a plus for this Planer. The Rest Stop is also a great idea. It keeps the tool up and off the surface, thus keeping the blades from damaging the wood or themselves. This tool can even make rabbets up to an inch in size. Depending on your position, you can attach the dust collector bag to either side of the Planer which is an excellent feature. The bag won't hold a lot of chips and will need to be emptied often so keep an eye on it. The 2 year warranty is also a nice deal. I have so many damaged wood projects to do and now it's more like fun to fix them with this WEN Planer. You can purchase extra blades on the WEN website for around 10 bucks. I don't believe Home Depot carries blades for this Planer. I think I did a good job on my deck railing being that it was the first time I had ever used an electric hand planer. I definitely recommend this tool.

This electric planer really surprised me with how easy it was to use. I have never owned an electric planer, I always did it by hand. With this new machine, I doubt I'm ever going back to manual work. The body is plastic, but does not feel cheap. The shoe is all metal and has a kick stand that automatically swings down when not planing so that you an rest the machine on it's shoe without the blade touching the surface and dulling or denting the project. All fences, depth gauges are metal and secure with large set screws. It's mostly ready out of the box. Everything but the included sawdust bag is attached. You can mount the bag on the left or right and flip a switch to send the debris that direction. This also means you can attach your vacuum to either side depending on how you are working. Depth of cut is adjusted by a large knob on the top of the shoe. Adjustment can be made from 1/128" to 1/8" and each click of the knob moves the cutter 1/128" each time. That is a huge range and can fit most tasks. This also comes set up for rabbeting out of the box. You only need to adjust the built in rabbet depth gauge and get to cutting. If you need to chamfer, it has a 45 degree cut in the shoe to allow for it. If that isn't enough, it also comes with a parallel fence that can be attached without tools using the built in set screw. Maintenance is easy, the blade can be removed by removing a built in wrench and simply loosening the nuts that hold the blade. Quick and simple sharpening and replacement. The large handle and depth knob ensure confident and stable cuts. The 6 amp motor powers through any type of wood. You can even smooth out a beat up old 2x4 with holes in it and it never skips a beat. Overall this is a top buy in my opinion. It has everything you need and then some.

Great tool for the $$. The exhaust vacuum system to remove the wood chips could be improved. Otherwise, I like the tool and would recommend it.

Excellent product for the cost. As good as I need for my home projects.