problem with Dewalt 735 13" planer

[wanda]

Hi,

I purchased a planer May 2006 but only got around to using it/turning it on for the first time yesterday. I had the technician tune up my jointer and then asked if he could demonstrate the features on the Dewalt. We both discovered that the planer was leaving scratches running down the length of the board. I used a piece of dimentional 3/4" pine. 1X8 . I certainly didn't expect a new planer to leave scrathes on my wood. Only wish I had of checked out this planer when I purchased it but I was so sure I had the best portable planer out there. I trusted in the Dewalt name. Plus Popular Woodworking and many other reviews I read on planers gave this one top marks. It came out as Editor's Choise in the 2004 issue of Popular woodworking.

He suggested the planer might have been knocked around during transport or perhaps the damage hapened at the factory. Now he suggested just changing the blades. But I'm not so sure.. God knows what else might happen to it down the road especially if it was knocked around. For all I know the Sprokets might give out in a few mts down the road. I told him I would like a new machine although I realize I am 9mts into the warranty. That shouldn't matter. The machine was "new" used for the very first time right out of the box. So it wasn't me who abused it. if they don't give me a new planer in exchange and insist on just replacing the blades that isn't exceptable. I didn't dish out that kind of money for a "reconditioned/refurbished machine Otherwise I would have purchased a 2nd hand machine for far less money. I paid top dollar and I expect to get what I paid for. Do you think I'm being unreasonable.

Does anyone here have any experience with this machine. because I would like to know how to use the turret stop .. I read the manual but am a bit confused. Can I just use the depth guide on the right hand side which is used to set finished thickness of the board I think.

Wanda

[Maintenance]

Sorry to hear about your planer troubles. I wouldn't worry to much though. Dewalt is owned by Black and Decker. I have had excellent service from them the few times I have needed it. They like to keep their customers happy.

[John Bartley]

I guess by "scratch", you mean a raised ridge running the length of your test board? if so, that's an indication of a nick in the same place in all the knives. That can only be caused by the knives passing over a hard object when planing (I know this from experience:(). If it happened on the very first pass, then either they did a test cut at the factory with a dirty board, or the first board that you ran thru' had a bit of dirt on it. It doesn't take much dirt to damage the knives. Either way, a new set of knives will solve the problem and dulled or damaged knives won't negatively affect anything else on the planer as long as you don't run them too long. If you get new knives, try to keep your old ones too and get them sharpened as spares.

cheers eh?

[ArtMulder]

Either way, a new set of knives will solve the problem and dulled or damaged knives won't negatively affect anything else on the planer as long as you don't run them too long. If you get new knives, try to keep your old ones too and get them sharpened as spares.

cheers eh?

John, I'm pretty sure that the blades on this machine are reversable, and disposable.

[Michael in Port Alberni]

John, I'm pretty sure that the blades on this machine are reversable, and disposable.

A friend of mine has one as well and has sharpened the knives and it seems to work. A deep gouge may be a problem.

I've not had any problems with my 735 and it's been almost a year. Best TP I've used so far.

Cheers

Michael

[Mike in London]

Hi Wanda

My guess is, it was the pine you used that nicked all three knives. Pine with knots are just nasty on blades. It's no big deal to just shift one of the blades and you're good to go.

Mike

[Bob R., Ottawa]

Hi Wanda
It's no big deal to just shift one of the blades and you're good to go.
Mike

Unfortunately you can shift the knives, they mount on small poles so you're stuck with the position. Only flipping is an option.

If I buy an expensive item if be sure to test it out before the store warranty as well as the manufacture warranty expired! I agree though, it was likely the pine that got to the knives. Maybe it hit a metal staple, knot or stone even.

[Negative_Zero]

...and the knots would only get harder in the six years since this thread was created. I wonder how many sets of knives have been swapped since then.

-Will

[John Bartley]

John, I'm pretty sure that the blades on this machine are reversable, and disposable.

Hi Art,

Yes, you're correct, they are reversible and are meant to be disposable, but ... I'm a cheapskate who doesn't mind spending a buck to make or save one, so I bought the Busy Bee planer and jointer knife grinder when it was on sale for $165 and it does a great job. I use reclaimed wood and so I run into nails, staples, dirt, etc and I can get about three or four sharpenings out of each cutting edge on my Ridgid TP1300 planer which AFAIK uses roughly the same sort of knife as the DW.

cheers eh?

[Mack C. in Brooklin ON]

Hi Wanda; the 735 is a great planer. I had the 733, then the 734, and then I was able to steal (I mean rob, no, no, I mean buy) the 735 from a poster on this thread.:p It has planed some very hard wood (honey locust) and shows some lines of positive bumps, but they sand off so easy I can't be bothered changing blades.

As far as the turret stop goes, just turn the dial to the thickness you would like and the machine won't lower any further than that depth as you thickness plane.

[Chris in Pickering]

When you say "scratch" is it a negative (dent) or positive (bump)?
A bump, or raised line down the lenght of the board would signify a chip in the blade. Usually this chip would have to be in all 3 blades to create a raised line down the lenght of stock. This would most likely mean the planer was used and hit a hard knot, staple or nail.

Chris

[Brent in Montreal]

Hi Wanda,

As mentioned above, it's possible the piece you put through was the cause just as much as a test piece at the factory may have been the cause. I don't see how rough treatment during transport would cause knicks in all three blades. the simple, and easiest solution, is to shift one blade over a bit. That should give you a nice clean cut. I'd be surprised if they would be willing to give you a new machine at this point. I'd be more than satisfied if they gave me new blades and very impressed if they had their tech change them.

[Jerome]

DeWalt does test all the planers as they come off the line. I had the same problem and told the store where I got it and they just gave me a new set of blades. the wood that they use in the factory does pick up dirt etc. and can cause a nick in the blade. being so long since you bought it it may or may not be an issue with the store. I would call DeWalt if it is.

[wanda]

Hi Guys, problem solved. The store I purchased the planer from gave me a brand new one in place of the damaged one. The blades were knicked.

Now I've read a few post here at the forum and at the Fine Woodworking forum and a couple of people have mentioned that knots might be the culprit. What kind of steel are they using on their blades? Surely the blades aren't that fragile. I thought a planer could plane any species of wood as long as you didn't take too much material off in one pass. I usually cut around 1/32nd off the boards if I can. Don't want to waste material. I have yet to use hardwood. I'm using 3/4" dimentional pine .. the kind you can buy at any Kent or Home Depot store. I try to find the best pieces I can. boards with few knots. Finding good wood at a reasonable price is challenging.

Wanda

[Michael in Port Alberni]

The knives in the dewalt a made of a hard steel edge laminated to a softer steel to provide some shock resistance (at least they are on my 733). Pine and cedar knots will toast any blade edge that they hit. I've hit plenty of those and they always screw up the knives. Knots are hard and the very leading edge of a sharp knife is very susceptable to damage. It's got nothing to do with the quality of the blades. I now cut all knots out of my stock before I plane it.

Cheers

Michael

[Mike in London]

Hi Guys, problem solved. The store I purchased the planer from gave me a brand new one in place of the damaged one. The blades were knicked.

Now I've read a few post here at the forum and at the Fine Woodworking forum and a couple of people have mentioned that knots might be the culprit. What kind of steel are they using on their blades? Surely the blades aren't that fragile. I thought a planer could plane any species of wood as long as you didn't take too much material off in one pass. I usually cut around 1/32nd off the boards if I can. Don't want to waste material. I have yet to use hardwood. I'm using 3/4" dimentional pine .. the kind you can buy at any Kent or Home Depot store. I try to find the best pieces I can. boards with few knots. Finding good wood at a reasonable price is challenging.

Wanda

Hi Wanda

I've never had problems with knots on any other type of wood, only pine. Can't tell you why only to say the knots are very hard and sometimes come loose. The blades are made of High Speed Steel. I don't think it wouldn't matter who made the blades, if you use pine with knots you will run the risk of knicking your blades.

Mike

[Gordo B]

Just to give you a slightly different outlook on the hardness of KNOTS--I can recall the summer of 1961 when I was tasked with trimming off the roof decking on a house I had designed and built for my parents to retire into-post and beam west coast style -roof decking 4" x 6" double tongue and groove air dried CEDAR 3 foot overhang 20 feet to the ground----saw 12" circular saw- me 19 years 125 pounds to start -you can NOT imagine my feelings as this monster saw hit the occasional KNOTS in the 30 feet of trimming and large SPARKS were emitted from the blade at each KNOT--after I had completed trimming BOTH sides of the roof in this nice SOFT CEDAR--I would estimate I had lost at least 10 pounds of sweat--KNOTS are HARD!!!!!!!--(Gordo B )

[Wayne - Oakville]

Don't lay your rough lumber on the cement or dirty floor -- I understand the cement dust/particles can also raise havoc with the blades. It's no longer an issue for you, but on my DW735 when I slide the blades, rather than just one blade, I usually slide one blade one way and a second blade the other way. I find there isn't much movement in the DW735 blades, so if one blade doesn't work, try moving a second. The turret depth gauge can only be rotated when the cutter heads are above the depth you are trying to set to, i.e. if you want to set to 3/4", and the cutter heads are sitting at 1/2", you won't be able to turn the turret. Raise the blades above 3/4" and the turret will turn freely. The turret guage is close (can still fluctuate on how hard you turn the handle when adjusting the height, so get used to stop turning the handle as soon as you feel the slightest resistance from reaching the turret stop) but I still check the depth manually. I have to work from the left side of the planer so the depth guage on the right side is not readily accessible -- I only use it to estimate.

...Wayne