The GAME CHANGING Woodworking Tool Few People Regret Buying!

This is awesome woodworking tool is an oscillating spindle sander made by WEN. It is a game changer in a lot of woodworking shops because of how versatile it is. If you sand a lot of small parts or curves, this is a must have woodworking tool for your shop!

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0:00 Woodworking Tools You Need
0:17 WEN Oscillating Spindle Sander Review
1:10 WEN Belt Sander Features
1:54 WEN Oscillating Spindle Sander Features
2:40 Small Shop Compatible
2:49 Why a Spindle Sander for Woodworking?
3:23 What You Get with the WEN Spindle Sander
3:43 Who Does Not Need This Tool?
4:20 Ridgid vs WEN Oscillating Spindle and Belt Sander
6:30 Using the WEN Spindle Sander
7:13 Best Accessory for a Belt Sander

[Woodworks]

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[davidwalser]

I've had the Ridgid sander for close to 5 years. It's served me well. Since I bought mine, a number of companies, such as Grizzly, WEN, and Harbor Freight, have released smaller-footprint versions of the sander. As was pointed out in the video, the difference is size isn't that great. For a lot of things, Ridgid's larger table won't be a benefit. However, I prefer Ridgid's larger table for how I use the sander. I frequently use the larger end of the belt sander to sand the concave parts of a project and then use the flat part of the belt sander to sand the flat and convex parts. On most projects, this allows me to just use the belt sander. I seldom use the spindle sander (but having the various spindles often comes in handy). If you look at the Ridgid sander, you'll see that the belt is not mounted in the center of the table from left to right. Instead, the belt sander is shifted toward the right, leaving much more room on the big end of the belt sander. Since I'm frequently using that end for contour sanding, having more room at that end to support the work is a huge plus for me.

I agree that the dust collection on the Ridgid sander is poor. That's not an issue for me. Since the WEN sander's 'better' dust collection only raises to the level of mediocre from poor, I'd be wearing some sort of dust mask when using either sander.

[Shannon-vr]

Purchased mine based on your alert for the deal. This is something I should have bought a long time ago. Kind of glad I didn’t buy the ridgid. It’s great for getting close to your template lines, making the router table safer and not as taxing on your bits. I have a Camvac 90l hooked up to it so that makes anything have good dust collection, I’m not sure how well a shop vac would do but suspect it would be fine. I’ve made some clip boards and this makes sanding the edges so much better than using my ROS, and rounding the corners is a dream compared to my old methods. So so so glad I finally have one and I’ve only had it for a few days

[mrgunn]

Never change 731, providing tool recommendations for all income and skill levels is very much appreciated. I have unsubscribed to a lot of 'popular' wood working YouTubers b/c as they succeeded they started to focus on the most expensive tools and gadgets, forgetting that not everyone can afford or needs them. Their sites seem to devolve into a narcissistic exercises; Look at me and my expensive tools. Appreciate you, stay humble, God bless 👊

[indigo_wolf]

Almost a part for part clone, is the Triton TSPST450 3.5A Oscillating Spindle and Belt Sander. The biggest difference is that the front drop section of the table is metal rather than plastic. Normally, runs would $259. I snagged it for $199 with free shipping during a pretty insane sale. HUGLEY recommend getting an Abrasive (Rubber) Cleaning Stick for Sanding Belts & Discs, if you get one of these.
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If you are working with with large pieces that are too large to wrestle onto the table of the sander. Both Triton ($130) and HValley ($90) (formerly MLCS) make a hand held spindle sander.

[mariah]

I learned more from you about using my ‘green’ machine than I did by searching for “unboxing” videos of the green machine itself. Thanks for your great videos!

[pt]

My shop is small, and most tools don't have dedicated locations. I haven't broken out my standard belt/disc sander since I got the oscillating spindle/belt sander. It does almost as much as the classic does, plus more - and more importantly it's WAY lighter so it's much easier to relocate.

[chashint]

I have had the Ridgid for several years.
I do not like the knob on the spindle, it is bigger than the two smallest sleeves, since it is left hand threads it’s hard to replace with a nut.
That nut interferes with taller pieces.
I noticed the Wen spins in the opposite direction and even though it too has an oversized knob it is right hand threads so a nut can be easily swapped.
When I was building boxes and making wood hinges I used the Ridgid a lot, since I have started building bigger pieces it has sat in the corner for the past few years.
I am not replacing the Ridgid, but if I was in the market for an entry level machine the Wen looks as good as any of the others.

[peteg]

I lost the little nylon drive washer on mine. It’s only held in place by either the belt sander assembly or by a sanding drum. If you’re using a flip top cart the part is easy to lose. Getting a replacement part is turning out to be very difficult and may be impossible. I looked for the same part on the Ridgid website but the Ridgid part is obviously different. But the Ridgid part is available, and in stock. It’s things like this that make buying Ridgid suddenly much less expensive. Two years ago I bought some replacement parts for a 20+ year old Ridgid Shop Vac. I’m not a huge Home Depot fan but they do stand strongly behind their Ridgid tools.

[nholly]

Always appreciate you reviewing products that are not sold at the big box stores. Also, the comparison of features are great!

[numberpappy]

I have an old craftsman oscillating sander I got at a garage sale for $20 bucks. I wasn't even looking for one, but at 20 bucks, it was a no-brainer . Unfortunately, it doesn't have a belt sander. I googled this Wen sander, and it appears it's sold by several different brand names, so I have zero doubt it's a good one. I'll definitely look at this one when my old Craftsman finally gives up the ghost. It would definitely be nice to also have a belt sander attached. I'm litterly clamping my portable belt sander down to use it when it's needed. Lol!

[jakeramey]

Direct Tools is a good place to keep an eye out for the Ridgid sander. I got it from there, new just factory blemished (the box had a hole in it), for $180 I believe. It was during a sale event, but they do a different sale almost every day. They still qualify for the the Ridgid LSA as well.

[littlejimmy]

I recently picked up the Wen sander. I'm working on some shop upgrades and I'm getting a little fancier. I've used steel rods to hang tools from for a while. I'm building a wooden bracket to hold a orbital sander and router with steel rods extending from the back to hold up other tools. I've been getting back into some light woodworking, it's so good.

[janschoice]

You always have such nice helpful videos. You try to help others to build their woodwork shop! And save some money in the process. Just want to let you know that is really appreciated!
From the Netherlands ❤👍🏻

[chasingwaterfalls]

I bought a wren 12 1/2 inch planer and I absolutely love it. I haven’t had no problems yet. I’ve been using it for around two years.

[susanb]

I enjoy watching your videos and saw your complaint about the knob getting stuck on the spindle. There’s another Youtube channel, ARTyRV, who advises to put milk of magnesia on the threads of the grinder knob which he uses on his glass grinder. He says that solves the problem. He builds large stained glass windows and does blown glass. He’s worked with stained glass and grinders for more than 35 years so he knows what he’s talking about. Of course, he’s dealing with glass dust and you with fine wood dust but it’s worth a try.
I will probably buy a Wen drill press thanks to your recommendations.

[lauramarshall]

I got a Wen spindle sander, as well as a Wen helical blade planer, for Christmas. I chose those (Santa brought what I asked for) because of reviews of both. I love them both. I've used the Ridgid spindle sander and the DeWalt 735 planer. I prefer the Wen planer for sure, and the sander has been awesome! Thanks for your review.

[spectreoftruth]

⛔WARNING!!! I purchased this Wen Belt / Spindle sander back in (Apr 2023). It's only (June 2023) and I've only used this VERY LIGHTLY to add bevels to 10-15 pieces of small soft wood. Now for the last 2 days I've been on it a little heavier, but still only using it to buff out the scratches & pits on a few small brass pieces. I use very light pressure and I'm sure I don't even have 100 hours in on this machine... maybe not even 50hrs; but something (POPPED) inside and now it doesn't oscillate anymore. It sounded like maybe some kind of rubber belt snapped - I don't know. But what I DO know is that it just passed the return window last month (How convenient)!! 🙄

So now I'm stuck with a $250 basic sander that DOESN'T oscillate... everything else still seems to work (for now). I'm going to replace it soon... probably separate the features next time and get a HEAVY DUTY SPINDLE SANDER... and a separate HEAVY DUTY BELT & DISC combo-sander. My work is actually considered LIGHT duty, but apparently we gotta go with HEAVY DUTY to keep from replacing all this crap every 6-12 months!! 😮‍💨

I guess you really do (GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR) because all the higher end machines are $500-$1, 000+. The $250 range is considered "Hobby Gear" and there's a lot of videos taking these low-end models apart to replace worn out parts after only a few months of use. For ME - I'm done with WEN! This is the only WEN machine I've ever used... and the last; I don't have $250 to light cigars with, so PURCHASE THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK!!

[NonieTools]

Wow, looks like wen is stepping up their game. I used to sell Adirondack chairs and i had a big grizzly edge sander that wrapped around and was like 5' long and massively heavy. Can't believe they make that tool so much smaller and lighter!

[averykeeling]

I personally just got the pure spindle sander as I like the solid cast iron base to it, I just combo it with a belt/disc sander combo which helps with flat cuts