WEN 9-Inch Band Saw, 2.8-Amp Benchtop (BA3959)

I just received this little band saw. The assembly took about 20 minutes and I was cutting soon after that. I looked at the Ryobi (at Home Depot), the Craftsman at Lowes and the Harbor Freight saws. This one was the least expensive of them all so I was skeptical about taking a chance (the "you get what you pay for" adage usually holds true). I needed to cut some cherry wood or varying thicknesses (1/8" - 3/4") for a jewelry box I am constructing. I am a retired woodworker who previously owned professional-grade power tools and now I was looking for a saw for my tiny basement workshop for occasional use. My assessment? This is a very nice saw with some nice features and it does the job. In fact, I prefer it for small, delicate, work over my 12-inch Delta! It's construction is sound and for the weekend craftsman, it is a steal at this price. I wouldn't recommend it for the serious DIYer who needs to routinely rip 4-inch stock, but for light duty work, it's perfect. Highly recommended.

I read all the good and bad reviews about this band saw, plus looked at other brands before deciding to give it a try. I found that the instructions were in clear English, and gave details about how to make every adjustment. The blade was correctly centered and tensioned by the factory so I started it up. There was no hesitation and minimal vibration. The base was sturdy so I didn't need to bolt it down . The table adjustment angles were clearly cast (compared to other reviewer complaints) and 90 degrees was spot on. The push guide and fence also measured accurately. Perhaps the company has improved on their quality or I just got lucky.I've been without a band saw for years so this was a good choice for my for medium/light hobby and household work. Much easier than using a vice and trying to cut straight!

It arrived fully set up, just had to install the table, it’s very quiet and cuts plywood like butter but when cutting bigger pieces like a 2” hardwood block it’s obvious that it’s not super powerful, I was cutting out an animal shape on a 2”x4” maple block and it struggled on tight turns and made the blade come off the wheel.Cutting plywood it can make turns really tight like a 1” circle with ease.I haven’t tried straight cuts a band saw isn’t really the right tool for straight cuts anyway.I’m just doing hobby stuff and it will work great for my needs, for the price it’s worth it… I wish it had a light because the blade area is hard to see all the safety parts block the light putting a shadow right where the blade cuts.If I could do 1/2 stars it would be 4.5 stars.If you’re unsure buy it, it has a great return policy but it’ll be perfect in my little wood shop and for the price it’s great.

I love this machine. Makes making my projects at home easier! My son likes that we can cut out his swords from scrap wood too. I used to have to router but this makes it so much easier. It is smooth going and easy to use. Good power and safety features. I find that I can be accurate with it and it has a guide push. Cut different woods and all have been good.

Similar to other 9" bandsaws. I won't be pushing it beyond it's limits...no resawing 3 1/2 inch hardwoods, for instance. The manual is clear but misses a few finer points of setup process. And it does need to be set up! But once it is dialed in, it works like a charm. Rips or crosscuts 3/4 inch Cherry or Walnut with ease. I have managed to rip strips consistently as narrow as 1/4" or less.It's a solid, basic, somewhat unrefined design. The guide rollers are finicky, there is no tension release lever, the clamp-on fence has limited usefulness and is a pain to square up to the blade, and the miter guide fits loosely in the (1/2 inch, not 3/4!) slot, making it impossible to cut accurate 90 degree crosscuts.It may sound like I'm complaining. But I'm not. Once you set it up properly, as long as you don't expect too much of it, it cuts like a dream.The keys to success include setting the guide rollers very carefully, centering the blade on the wheels, and tensioning the blade (a bit looser than you might imagine. Look up Alex Snodgrass's videos for an excellent walkthrough. The other thing it to get a small, high quality machinist square or 6" combination square, to adjust the limit screw on the table so that the blade is absolutely perpendicular to the table when in the un-tilted position. This is harder than it needs to be, as the bolt is secured to the frame by two 10mm nuts. One nut cinches down to the top of the lower wheel's cover, and the other is inside the lower wheel cover behind the wheel, pushing upward.In order to lower the height of the bolt, you have to first loosen the nut on top of the wheel cover, then turn the bolt while reaching into the lower wheel with a finger to keep the lower nut from spinning. Then, you have to continue to hold it in place while tightening the upper nut. Then put the table back to horizontal and check level again and repeat if it's not level.The other head-scratching issue is the non-standard vacuum hose port. Very hard to find the correct solution to hook it to a 1 7/8 inch vacuum hose end. The solution that I finally found (and it works great!!) is to buy a $12 "ID 1.75" to 2.5" Silicone Reducer Coupler Hose" here on Amazon. These are found in the automotive department and there are several manufacturers. Once I discovered this solution, it's smooth sailing! Keeping sawdust out of the lower wheel section, where it can get imbedded in the rubber tire and mess up the blade tracking, it important. Running the saw without a shop vac is asking for trouble down the road.

Light weight not for heavy use, but good enough for what I need it for.