Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I scroll saw wooden trivets from 3/4" red oak. In 2000 I made almost 1,000. I spend a lot of time at my saw. All of the cuts I make are inside cuts so ease of blade changing is very important. I have owned a Hegner and two Excaliburs before buying the DeWalt in December 1999. The DeWalt costs 1/3 what the Hegner and Excalibur cost. Hegner is by far the hardest of the three brands to change blades and customer support is poor. DeWalt worked with Somerville Designs (the maker of the Excalibur) to design the DeWalt saw. The Excaliburs I have, one 20" and one 30" saw were good but required routine oiling replacement of the many sleeve bearings. Customer support through Seyco was excellant. When the Excaliburs were getting to the point that repairs were going to cost what a new DeWalt cost I decided to try the DeWalt. I have found the saw to be every bit as good as the Excalibur. All of the sleeve bearings in the Excalibur have been replaced with roller bearings which do not require any maintenance. The blade holders are a much better design, they have required no maintenance during the year of use. The Excalibur blade holders would need to be rebuilt and replaced several times a year. The Excalibur tables were made from aluminum and remained slippery, an important feature for a scroll saw. The DeWalt uses a cast table and the surface wears away around the blade hole causing work to drag on the table. DeWalt says this is caused by the red oak which I don't believe. The table requires constant waxing to keep the surface slippery. This is the only draw-back I have found to this saw. If you go to a wood show or fair and see the Hegner or RBI saws demonstrated, consider the price before you buy. I can tell you from experience that the DeWalt is superior to either of these and it costs 1/3 as much! I like the DeWalt saw so much I just ordered a second one because I cannot afford to have my saw down even for a week.