DELTA BS100 Shopmaster 9-Inch Bench Top Band Saw

I have had my BS100 Shopmaster for 5 years now, and I am a very satisfied user. I feel I have enough experience with the saw to see its shortcomings and virtues. It IS a great saw when you know and accept its limitations which are: (some can be overcome...)

1) Saw is designed and made for small scale woodworking. Period.
2) Low "power" for resawing or cutting thick hardwood stock (not designed for this, see 1).)
3) Blade wander can be a problem if saw used right out of the box with original guides and original blade (and in general, especially when using 1/4" blade).
4) This saw requires high quality blades to perform its best (not found in ordinary hardware stores). The original Delta blades are thin, which makes them unsuitable for precision work - they flex too much.
5) Its small table is not sturdy enough for large, heavy workpieces, but will do for smaller pieces. (I have however used my saw for ripping 6'long 1 1/2" birch into smaller,...Read more

I bought my bandsaw a little over two years ago and only used it sparingly and primarily for small shapes from thin plywood. After about a year I needed to use it for 3/4" stock while making curved moldings for a grandfather clock and found it difficult to follow the line because the blade kept turning to the inside. I tried using the fence to cut a straight line and had the same problem. The wood pulled away from the fence because of the blade turning in. I also found it impossible to cut a straight line freehand. I quit using the saw for a year and then decided to either adjust it properly or get rid of it. I spent two hours playing with the adjustments and finally gave up when I ended up dropping one of the guide blocks into an old air conditioning unit sitting on the floor below my workbench. I took the saw to a Delta factory service center in Dallas. They had to shim the bottom wheel as it was a full 1/4" behind the plane of the top wheel. They also replaced the guide...Read more

Light weight and easy to set up. It comes with the 1/4 inch blade but get the 1/8" and 3/8" blades too. You will need the smaller blade for tight corners and the bigger blade is a must for resawing. I was able to resaw 1 1/2 x 1 inch oak into several near perfect 3/16 slices using the 3/8" blade. I used the rip fence for that job and highly recommend it for resawing. Just use the big blade with proper tension.

Changing DELTA blades is a snap, the welds are ground smooth and pass through the guides without any fuss.

This is a great 9" bandsaw and I would recommend it to anyone with only one caution. Mount it on a plywood base for better stability.