WEN 3962 10” Band Saw Review
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- čas přidán 25. 08. 2024
- Review of this bandsaw after about a year use. Overall, I think it is a great value and a good choice for the new or budding hobbyist.
UPDATE: thanks to a commenter who pointed out that you can actually pull out on the table tilt lever, which will allow you to rotate it a bit to avoid it running into the table when you're trying to loosen it. I didn't see this in the manual, but I'll chalk that up to operator error anyways.
*Perfect band saw for the hobby enthusiast **MyBest.Tools** Easy to set up and square. Had it running in 10 to 15 minutes. Quality of cuts will depend on the quality of the blades.*
Great Review - no BS, no bragging, just the facts from a real person. Thanks very much. I am awaiting the arrival of mine now! :)
Dude, keep plugging away. I like your style and honesty. Your narration is great. Don't quit! You'll get there
I’ve the same saw and I have a re-saw comment. After watching Stumpy Nubs video on band saw blades and teeth I felt well informed. I was having a terrible time getting my blade to cut straight and found that moving to a 4 TPI, 1/2” deep blade did the trick as Stumpy suggested. I can now cut straight in 3+” thickness wood and can thus re-saw accurately now. I also ordered a 1/4” blade at 10 or 12 TPI for cutting curves. The right blade makes all the difference.
On the tilt handle you can pull the handle directly out and it will be able to rotate to the next indexable spot. I'm not sure if I explained that in a way that makes sense, but if you stand behind the saw then pull the handle toward you can rotate the handle. Hope that helps.
I just tried this out and you are correct. Weirdly enough I didn't see this mentioned in the manual in the section on adjusting the table. Thanks a ton, I'll put this info in the description.
@@NotThatMattNagy I've been caught out before on the "damnit, this handle interferes! what a stupid design!" thing before, and then as I'm raging accidentally pull on the handle.
This is a good review. Thanks👌
I bought this saw one month ago from Lowe’s $235 with free shipping to my door 👍. This saw is replacing my 9” WEN bandsaw which is going to my son’s home shop, I like WEN products. Getting a lot of use out of it cutting everything from pine to maple & oak and plywood. I passed up a beautiful ‘60’s 14” Delta for this saw that’s a 250+ lbs saw I didn’t feel like moving. Anyway this WEN is a fantastic saw does everything I want. Things that could be better: needs a standard 3/4” miter slot for making jigs, change the fence handle so it doesn’t block the bottom door (that’s all). Love the light, upper blade guide construction is solid, table adjusts easily, great stand, great dust collection, 6” re-saw capacity, quiet and plenty of power. I don’t experience any blade drift on this saw. The miter gauge is OK usable, the fence is fine I get good use from it and like the configurable options.
For blade tension and selection tips check out Timber Wolf web site for bandsaw blade information.
I lightly “pluck” the blade until I hear a clear ring to judge proper tension.
About the 6” re-saw capacity, my philosophy is to use a saw to about 80% capacity. So I limit my re-saw to about 4.5 to 5” regardless of the type of wood. I’ve milled maple and apple tree parts without any problem. This is a great 10” bandsaw.
thank you, this is one of the best reviews I have seen on this saw.
Appreciate it!
Thank you for creating a very detailed and realistic review.
I’ve been looking for a mid-level, 8 to 10 inch bandsaw for the past few weeks now. After watching your review, it would appear that WEN is the manufacturer that works best for my needs. (I wish all manufacturers would make realistic video reviews/tutorials of their products and not *just* glorified sales pitches!)
Absolutely professional n thank you for explaining in detail. Now I’ve made up my mind n will go with the Wen. Thanks LP
I have had the same bandsaw for a couple of years. It works well for what I have done, which includes cutting boards from small logs. As for removing the fence to change a blade, I just attach the guide bar with only two of the four clamps. Half the work then. I also have mine on the stand, which is them on a mobile base. It seems very firm to me.
This is the best review I have seen! Thank you.
Thanks!
Thank you Matt. You are natural at explaining stuff... You should consider becoming an instructor in technical college as well. I enjoy your presentation very much. Thank you.
I too am very impressed with the WEN products price performance. A few months ago I bought the WEN 4214 Drill Press and the WEN 6502 4X36 belt sander. Both are excellent to use and so far both run perfectly. I also bought the WEN Forstner Bit set which works great and some Wen F Bar clamps which also work well. Today I ordered the WEN 3962T 10 inch band saw and I was pleased that your review was mostly very positive about the unit. I am looking forward to the arrival of my band saw and as with other WEN products I'm confident it too will perform well. Thanks for the informative review.
great. This is a really Pro review, helps a lot. Thanks.
I can't begin 2 tell u how much I appreciate your vid. They r sooooo expensive! I have Wen products as well, and overall I'm quite satisfied with them. We're lucky 2 have a company who sells decent power tools 4 a reasonable price. I think I'm going 2 give this 1 a try.
Great video. Bottom of pg 12 of instructions describe the tilt lock. My 45 degree stop maxed out before the table got to 45 so I removed it. I might grind out the slot later. I think an advantage of the 0 degree stop is it gives a solid support to the table.
Thanks, I checked the bottom of page 12 in my manual and it didn’t say anything about tilt lock. Weird. That sucks about the 45 stop, but I think you’re right, a little grinding with a Dremel will do the trick.
For the table lock knob and all like it, pull out on it and you can place it at any direction. Tighten some then pull it out and relocate it and tighten more. I have this saw. Finding blades for it takes some searching. Mine will not track a 1/8 blade. Also the guide bearing are difficult to adjust. I will eventually replace mine with a nice powermatic
Someone pointed that out and I put that info in the video description. I have good luck with Carter for my blades; just bought a 1/2” 4 TPI blade for re-sawing. I found the guide bearings fairly straightforward to adjust, maybe a little finicky. I think I will always have a small bandsaw like this to cut curves, even if (when) I upgrade to a bigger bandsaw.
And it has ''ROLLER BLADE GUIDES'', a major plus. I do like the size of that table. I use those clamp on spot lights to high light all my cut lines, especially over my shoulder pointing at my scroll saw, the built in light is a must have!
It’s a nice little feature to have, I use my light a lot.
I’m about to buy my first band saw, thanks for the little tips throughout the vid
Damn man you ought to be a professional reviewer. Great job.
Appreciate it!
I also have the same band saw and drill press along with the Wen bench top grinder. All have proven to be well worth the money. The under the table adjusting handle for tilting is fine and does not really have a design flaw as that handle can be adjusted to any position by pushing in the small knob on the end and pulling the handle towards you and turning then release at the position you want it.
I agree, all of my WEN purchases have been well worth their cost. Another commenter brought up the point about the lock handle, and I put that info in the description. Adjusting the handle in that way isn’t listed in the manual though, so WEN may want to check that out.
pull the knob out, it is spring loaded, and then put it where you need it.
Yup
Yes I love those type of knobs. Pull out on the handle, re-clock it to any position you want, and release the handle.
🤦
Wow, Sir this was a very informative video and very well explained. Thumbs up and I subbed, great job and God Bless.
Great job on this review! I recently purchased my first Wen product... a 10inch Variable Speed Drill Press and have been pleased with it thus far. I too am looking at buying this band saw and the same spindle sander you have. Thank you!
I just set mine up today. I found the fence was slightly out of square, so I clamped it next to the mitre slot then used the allen key to loosen the fence and adjust to to match the mitre slot.
This was super helpful, Thanks a ton!!!
Great Review. Looking forward to your drill press review.
great review, straight to the point without any bs.
You can get some flexible 4 inch hose and hook it to a shop vac or a dust collector. There are these cyclone devices too that mount on a trashcan and use a shop vac. Most of the stuff ends up in the trash.
Been shopping around for a couple of weeks for my first bandsaw, will say this has me convinced. Going to buy it. Seems like it's great for the price
This one is my first as well. Great entry level choice.
@@NotThatMattNagy yep, I'm very excited for it now ordered it last night. Though they are running a bit higher these days it seems
I just bought the exact saw, mounted on stand and very solid. I was looking for help on tensioning the blade as each I time I try to cut the blade wonders even with the fence. After your review, it seems my blade is too loose. Good review. I find the fence useless as it does not lock on square.
The feature that works the best is the dust collection port. Breathing less dust is always better, as is less dust building up in the saw. Not on that, but the vac or dust collector draws air through the motor keeping it cool, especially important when cutting thicker stock/ resawing.
Great way of explaining things!
Great review, thanks so much. I’m hoping to pick one of these up soon. Wen was actually sold out of these for the last few weeks but they just got a new batch in and they’re back up on their website. They are still out of the oscillating belt/spindle sander though. I really want to pick one of those up too. I hope the get restocked on those soon
I was contemplating getting this band saw for awhile now. But I eventually got the Rikon 10-3061. And I agree with your assessment.
Twice the price but almost twice the saw in capability
thank you
realky awesome presentation.
Hey Matt -- great video and review. I really like watching your videos -- they are dead simple for noob like me to understand and helps me to not go bazook on buying expensive tools. Based on your review, I am definitely going to buy this band saw now.
I do have one more request -- could you please post a video reviewing the Wen drill press that you have. I am also thinking of buying one but not sure which one -- there are forums that say minimum must be 10" drill press while others say go for floor model or cry once and buy 1K+ one. Yeah right! I don't have money growing in my backyard. Would be great to hear from you though and a review of your drill press.
Once again, thank you for wonderful and informative videos -- love them.
Thank you for the compliment. The drill press is actually next on my list, so hopefully within the next few weeks.
@@NotThatMattNagy Awesome. Can't wait for your video on it. God Speed :)
I have this bandsaw and I agree that it's awesome, especially for the price. Given me zero issues. I also have the wen 3 speed air cleaner and if works great too.
Hi Connor. Hey I was wondering how you're liking the WEN air cleaner you have?
I'm looking at that brand and I figured I'd ask. Thanks.
I have one of these and like it. I do think that the blade guides could be improved a bit - perhaps someone will take this up as an aftermarket mod. This saw seems like good value.
The guide guide that is attached with the knobs doesn't need to be totally disassembled. Just loosen the knobs and slide the guide off.
Im debating on getting this bandsaw but I just had to buy a new table saw, and planer. I did go cheap on the planer and got the spiral head wen planer. My band saw just stopped working so I do need one but in all reality it is a nicer one then the wen just old and I can probably fix it. The motor is making a noise but will not move so I may take it apart see if I can get it going again. It's either that or risk the wife giving me grief over buying toys. She's never said nothing to me in the past but I've made a lot of purchases recently and the last couple I've gotten the look. She has already said I have a tool addiction in play but with women you never know lol.
I bought the Ryobi bandsaw yesterday (BS904?). I figured it would be "good enough" for me before seeing this video.
The main differences between the two was the Wen has a stand, light, guide bearings, a two speed motor, and more power (3.5A vs 2.4A). The positive stop for leveling the table and double the resaw capacity is a bonus. About the only negative I've seen that wasn't mentioned was the lack of a de-tensioner lever that other saws seem to have to pro long blade life (I don't think the Ryobi had it either).
So after this video, I reboxed the Ryobi, got a refund, then ordered this Wen. I'm paying about $100 more than you did unfortunately, but I feel this saw will give me more for the money than the Ryobi in the years to come
Thanks for the review!
Gord LeLacheur
Looking to purchase this bandsaw and have just seen this review. Very good review. One comment is that if the fence rail has four securing bolts and if two bolts are on each side of the blade slot, could you not saw through the fence with a, 1/8" kerf chop saw at the table slot point to allow the blade to be changed without removing the fence rail and still have enough fence rail rigidity to support the sliding fence ? Just a thought.
The welds break on bandsaw blades quite often. While working my way through college, I had a job that required me to weld 100 to 200 broken bandsaw blades every week. I particularly disliked the welding and annealing of blades used for cutting meat due to the smell of the burning tallow.
I am going to get the 9" version.
I’ve not dealt with this saw but was wondering if the spacing on the fence guide bolts were so that you could cut the guide so the blade would travel through during change
Be careful about putting your shop vac into an enclosed cabinet ... mine gets quite warm out in the open, I couldn't image it where there was little to no circulation. Proceed with caution.
I enjoyed the review, I'm looking at a the 3962T and found this very helpful. Thanks and Cheers ... Dave
It may or may not be the case with the lever handle knob on the back of the saw for angle adjustment, but it may swivel when you pull out on the handle allowing you to reposition the lever and turn it from a different position. Sort of a locking ratchet motion that I have seen in other designs. Again, this may not be that type of handle.
Thanks I ordered mine tonight
Thank you for the review.
Not sure if you get this... Not sure if I am having an issue with my WEN Band saw or not.
Are you able to move the top wheel forward and backward?
The tension screw knob came out of the square metal part and I needed to remove the back plate and get it connected. Now the Blade tracking know, when I turn does not do much and I can move the wheel forward and backward. Have you had any issues like that?
Maybe you could help me... My fence actually moves. It holds tight on the side where the lever is, but on the other side it moves a lot actually. What do you think is the problem and is it fixable?
I wish you would do a video on detail adjustment which I find painful on this saw. 3/8 factory vs 3/16 you must have did a guide adjustment and the tracking vs tension I find mind blowing on this unit. I have a perfect track with tension way under 1/8 deflection. As soon as increase tension it tracking goes south. Only way I get it in is to tighten in tiny amounts and tiny tracking until it runs right (which is blade center not curf...don't know why but it works). The guide the top isn't bad to adjust but you have to do both and the lower is very tweeky. My attempts at blades other than 3/8" factory have failed (1/8" just broke in no time). I'm going to try the 3/16" like you did so I can get my middle of the road. I also never leave fence on just because it's for re-saw or straight cuts that really are too much for this saw. Please consider that detailed adjustment. the big guys all do it with Powermatic or other industrial grade and their guides aren't like this.
Great review. I’m going to get this band saw.
Awesome, consider making a video of your own! The more info out there, the better.
Were you able to find it in stock anywhere? Looks like it is discontinued and all the big box carriers are out of stock and all the small guys are selling it at double msrp.
Tabletop bandsaws won't cut purpleheart?
Thanks...really solid presentation...helped me...
Can you reply ? Wondering if this can handle cutting true 4x4 hardwood maple at 40 lengths occasionally if fed slow? Can't get anyone to reply.
extremely well presented. I just bought a 3359T the 9 inch version. I never used a power saw before. I gave it a quick try and now have the courage to use it more. I will be rarely using it though. For small craft wood projects. I might need to do a few cuts on a thick hard wood board like 3"x3"x20". Bevel cuts, slight angles etc. And at other times thinner boards. Wondering if I should swap it with the 10" version - the 3962. The build quality seems about the same from your presentation. Mine came with a 1/4" blade.
I’ve only ever used it for 90 deg cuts, but that’s because I have a table saw and/or router table for the bevels.
I have a small vac hooked to my bandsaw and you will be surprised at how much it collects. Do some measuring and get the biggest one that will fit in the cabinet.
What is the hight from bench to top of saw ?
Use the band saw to cut the table adjustment handle?
Can the bulb be changes in the light should it go out?
Matt, have you had any luck finding miter bars that fit this saw? I saw you use a Carter blade and I'm trying to get another Carter accessory to work with this saw but the miter slot on this one is too narrow.
Hey man, thanks for this honest review. It's very helpfull.
How tick is the bigger piece of wood that have cut already?
Great review!
I have wood stock 5X7 would a 10 inch bandsaw cut that wood?
curve cutting :: make relief cuts when making curve cuts.
...the stand is super solid...
Great Review How does this differ from the grizzly 10inch band saw? they look the same.
Is the motor on this saw 1/2 horse power?
i just purchased this machine it was the tacklife or this one this one hade a lot of reviews on it that were good
Thanks for the review, just ordered mine! Are you still happy with that Carter blade for most applications?
Yep, and I picked up a 1/2” Carter for resawing and am happy with that one too.
So the handle for the table and tilt does not pull out while tightened to be moved to another spot ? Or in other words tighten it down pull the plastic handle out towards you and move it to another spline and it pops back on....this is how it should be...My Porter Cable bench sander has that kind on the tilt table for the disc...AND it also has a design flaw with the dust bag not being able to be turned 180 degree to lay BEHIND the machine....hits the mounting leg...
A commenter pointed out awhile back that the handle does indeed pull out and move to another spot.
@@NotThatMattNagy Looking at the 9" right now not sure the price difference is worth it..
For curves use a 1/4 inch blade. I can't believe a 4 wing nut fence removal is considered a pain in the ass. The fence is much better than most saws, and the ability to swap blades for better results is no big deal. Really
You don't have to take the wing nuts completely off, in order to remove the fence guide. Just loosen them enough to pull it off. That way you won't have the hassle of threading them every time you take it off. I t helps to read the instruction manual now and then.
Gabby
There’s a manual?!?
Great review but was hoping you’d mention the blade tracking on the bottom wheel. While I can center the blade on the top wheel, it wants to shift towards the very front side of the bottom wheel, to where it looks like it might come off. Any way to adjust that?
I haven’t encountered this issue. The bottom wheel isn’t readily adjustable. I would call Wen and let them know.
thanks.
Thanks for the in depth review. When you used the full 6" resaw capacity did the motor bog down much? What wood were you cutting?
Pine. I actually recorded cutting a pine 2x6 for this video but somehow lost the clip. It was slow going using the stock blade, and the blade would squeal a bit, but it worked. That said I typically resaw using my table saw.
@@NotThatMattNagy Thanks. I doubt I'd ever resaw that thick of a piece of wood but it's good to know it's capable. I have a couple projects where I'd resaw some 4 inch hardwood so I was wondering if it would be capable of that
I looking to get a 10" bandsaw to do bandsaw boxs. Does this saw have enough power to cut boxs out of 5" hardwood? Doing fairly tight curves at that thickness of 5"?
I was wondering the same thing. The Make Something channel has a Rikon 10-305 and he cuts bandsaw boxes with a 3/16" 4 tpi blade quite often. Says it's his favorite band saw. I'm torn between the Wen and Rikon.
Great review! What model did you go with for your drill press?
The 4210. I plan to review that next.
Do you find it worth the price difference between the 2.8 amp model that cuts 3.5 inches deep? I was thinking about buying one to resaw 2x4 to make wood boxes.
Honestly not sure. Might be worth it for you if you’re only going to max out at 3.5”
Thanks , I Just got this , haven’t put together yet . I also got the 10 inch Wen table drill, is that what you have ? Will you review that also ? Thanks .
I’m doing a project video at the moment, but it’s next on my list.
Thanks for doing and posting this great video. Do you know if 72-7/16 Length blade will work?
Thanks in advance.
My guess is probably not-the manual doesn’t call for anything except a 72” blade, and I don’t think the blade tensioning system has 7/16” inches of travel built in it, which is at least what you would need for that blade.
i have got the rikon 10-305 and it is a good saw,,,,but the sliding blade guide on the front of saw is a nightmare,,,,,i hate it,,,it would so so much easier to have a door that would open up to install a new blade,,for that reason,,im looking to purchase a saw that does have it,,i noticed the saw your demo has the same sliding sliding blade guard as well
What use is it that it cuts up to 6" thick if, according to you, it doesn't have the power to deal with anything thicker than 2"?
It all depends on the type of wood and the blade width. Stock blade cuts through cedar and pine at 6” just fine, but you might need to buy a 1/2” blade to cut through harder woods at that interval. Generally speaking though, the harder the wood and thinner the blade, the longer it’ll take to resaw, if it can even handle it at all.
Great review. Are the wheels the blade rides on metal or plastic
Aluminum I do believe, coated with a layer of rubber that the blade sits on.
One of the things I not understand is... why do those manufacturers never make the table go all the way into the throat, nearly touching it... there is so much space wasted. And I checked all sizes and price ranges of bandsaws.
I need to find a bandsaw that can resaw plywood thats 5-6 inches. Is this saw decent enough to do the job?
I actually haven’t tried to resaw plywood. My guess is that it’s be fine because the plys are generally softer wood or just filler, easier to saw through.
@@NotThatMattNagy that’s what I was thinking. Thanks
Great review this helped me make my decision! Is that the 8" or 10" drill press (thats my next one haha)
10”. Gonna make a review of that soon.
If it helps anyone. My rip fence was slightly out of square as well made shims with three layers of playing cards and fixed it right up
Band saw shopping, thanks for the review. Still not sure tho...
Can't beat the Wen for price performance. Bought mine directly from WEN Products for $304 while is $391 on Amazon. Also bought my Wen 4214 drill press and Wen 4x36 belt sander directly front Wen. Both perform very well and today I ordered the Wen 3962T Band saw.
Could you cut curves in 4 inch stock if you go slowly?
Depends on the wood, and depends on how tight of curves you want. It’d be tough but gentle curves are doable with soft wood.
@@NotThatMattNagy I would be cutting blanks for birds out of Tupelo, which has a Janka hardness of 870. I know a 14 inch would be better suited but I only do 5-6 carvings a year so I’d rather not spend triple the price. Thanks
@@NotThatMattNagy and I meant to say 3 inch sorry
I don’t know for sure but it really looks like you don’t have enough tension on your blade when making that curve cut, your blade was moving too much side to side which would indicate it’s not tensioned or the guide bearings aren’t set
That was my first thought, so I tried various ways of tensioning and bearing alignment and got almost the same result each time. I found out later that the tightness of a radius you can cut is dictated by your blade thickness. In fact, on the Wen product video for this saw, they mention that point, which suggests to me they know the stock blade isn’t great at cutting curves. Option 2 would be to make a shit ton of relief cuts first, then see if that helps, but that’s a lot of work and I’d rather just use a thinner blade.
I love wen but the scroll saw is terrible. I think I’ll go with the 10” bandsaw.
YOU NEVER. USED . BLADE. TO. CUT. STAIN STEEL PIPE. ???? THANK. YOU. FOR. THIS. VIDEO. AND. YOU. TIME
Thanks man. Great info. Do you have a link to where you got it. I’m seeing it at $300+
3962t is 304 on there website
I just gave this guy his 100th like
This Guy appreciates it
Hey if you’re ever looking for a bench grinder, I got one from wen and it’s awesome, I would fully recommend it
Where did you buy it for 260????
Where did you find it for under $300?
this saw will give you so many issues getting it to cut straight. good luck. I have one and its a boat anchor
What is re-saw?
When you cut a board in half that’s on its edge and length wise. And example would be turning a 2x4 into a 1x4.