SKIL 2.8 Amp 9 In. 2-Speed Benchtop Band Saw for Woodworking - BW9501-00

I bought this band saw for my husband’s woodworking shop for Christmas. He says for a small saw it cuts well and is quiet. He is very pleased with this addition to his shop.

This Skill bandsaw is fantastic. It replaced my 35 year old Delta that was about same size. This Skill bandsaw is definitely better than the old Delta, even when it was new. Build quality is great. All ball-bearing blade guides unlike the Delta that used plastic set-off blades guides that were always a PIA. Swapping blades on this Skill is so much easier than my old Delta. Larger sawing work area too. Glad I purchased this one!

I’m never quite sure what to leave in a review like this, or if I should leave one at all. The product (or at the very least the box) came damaged. It was smashed in on one whole side, upon opening, the styrofoam on the inside was broken as well, and I could hear metal parts jangling around. I wouldn’t buy it from a brick and mortar store, so back it went. I’ve kept damaged products in the past where I didn’t see any damage, and it came back to bite me well after the return window. I have several Skil products (a drill press, a router, router table, drills and the like) and I am a big fan, they have never let me down. They are all quality products from the budget price range. I obviously can’t tell where in the process the box took the hit (as a former factory guy, it looks to me like someone got in a hurry on the forklift) so based on previous Skil performance I will assume it’s a 5 star tool and I got a bad beat. I don’t want to leave a bad review for something that might not have been Skil’s doing.

This is basically an upgraded version of the WEN 3959. I bought this saw because it has 2 speeds vs. the single speed of the WEN. The addition of the tension release lever is also a nice feature. It would be nice if Skil sold it with a fence, but the one that comes with the WEN 3959 fits it perfectly and can be had for somewhere around $20-$25 if you order directly from WEN. The blade that comes with the saw is 59-1/2 x 1/4 x 14. It's a decent general-purpose wood blade and seems to be of decent quality. As for assembly, all you have to do is remove the saw from the box and attach the table. It's just a matter of putting the table assembly in place and installing the two locking knobs that secure the tilt adjustment. That being said, it's easier to adjust the thrust bearings and blade guides before the table is in place. Surprisingly, the blade guides and thrust bearings are not even close to being in approximate adjustment from the factory. Be sure to calibrate them or the blade is going to wander everywhere. It's not necessary to follow the instruction manual exactly. Just make sure that the thrust bearings barely miss the back of the blade and that the guides don't pinch the blade when the splice comes around. Once adjusted the saw cuts well. The first thing I did with mine was to resaw some teak, and the saw barely slowed down even going through a 2-1/2" thickness. All in all, it's a well-designed saw that should give years of service if you take care of it.

Lite weight! Cuts 1/2” plywood fast. Great value for $200.00. Keep saw blades replaced as needed.

I've only used it once, but straight, smooth and accurate cuts right out of the box. Seems they set it up at the factory. Very quiet also, at least compared to my old one.

I use this to cut out my kydex holsters and its extremely fast and easy to use. Setup took 5 minutes, much better than a scroll saw.

My 30-40 year old full sized bandsaw died and I decided to down-size. I shopped around and chose this one for its features. Am I glad I made a good decision. It had no rip-fence, but I made a clamp on fence that is self-squaring (see photo). This saw does everything I want it to do, and has features I didn't have on my old dinosaur that I replaced.