I bought a replacement saw today... a 11 year old Jet HVBS-56M (made in Taiwan) bandsaw for $400 that had been used for maybe 10 cuts per year and the owner had never changed the blade. It has a few minor issues, and will need adjustment to get it cutting straight, but everything else seemed reasonable. Lower wheel runout was closer to 0.01" vs 0.04" on the harbor freight.
It just sounds and looks healthier at the wheel. Here's a video:
The funny thing is that I did get the Harbor freight cutting near dead straight after re-installing the custom shims and re-aligning the guides. However, it just looked and sounded rotten, and I'd still have to figure out how to address the 'blade not dropping enough' issue as well as the lower wheel runout... not to mention the blade not able to go back all the way on bottom wheel flange. Now I'll have to figure out how to get the Jet dialed in for straight cuts.
For posterity, and with only an hour of seeing the Jet, here are the differences I'd note about build quality, in general:
Harbor Freight/China
Crappy quality switch, that I don't have faith will last... out of the box, it refuses to seat fully
When saw blade is fully seated on upper/lower wheel flanges, teeth are recessed into the flange area, though it does seem to have some taper near the edge, so may be OK?
There is a lift handle on the upper end of the casting
Spring tensioner rod easily bent
Washers (flat and locking) are thin and generally horrible
Machine screw heads round out easily with Philips or flat head
Crank/shaft for vice tightening is 'lumpy' and visibly bent
Vertical position installable table is ~0.08" thick
Nicer stand with shelf, which serves as bracing (in addition to the end bracing between legs)
Rubber wheels are nicer rolling than the Jet hard wheels
Out of the box, back guide wheels set to push down blade 1/8" or so, so as to ensure cut will go through
Metal pulley/belt shroud and blade guard are more solid, but nosier (vibration), and metal blade guard interferes with cutting fully through the stock
Tilt position lock-out
Lock-down pin to keep saw locked in horizontal position
Sounds really bad
Some parts available
Jet/Taiwan (definitely superior, but not perfect)
Good quality metal (covered with rubber) toggle switch
When saw blade is fully seated on upper/lower wheel flanges, teeth hang off edge of flange - no risk of flattening
No lift handle... must use tensioner knob
Spring tensioner of slightly better quality and threaded rod not bending
Washers are decent quality
Crank/shaft for vice tightening is smooth and feels good
Vertical position installable table is ~0.06" thick (and the used one was bent)
Stand is not as nice and lacks proper bracing on all 4 sides
Plastic (ABS?) pulley/belt shroud and blade guard are quieter, but both have damage (one crack, one hinge broken). Seems like this is something Jet should do better.
No way to lock down saw in horizontal position
Sounds reasonably good
Virtually all parts available online
Also, note that some parts appear to be interchangeable (or at least close enough), for instance the vertical table. And, some parts are not interchangeable... take the stock stop and bar - these are different sizes.
