DF

"Dick Fitzwell"

24/12/2004 2:23 PM

DW735 - Lines running along grain

Hi, all,

Got an early Christmas present -- a Dewalt 735 portable planer. Not too
shabby for my first planer. I have run a couple boards (pine and maple)
through it, and everything appears to be dead on out of the box.

My one question regards some lines running parallel to the grain on an
otherwise perfect finish. They are not terribly noticebale, but you can
definitely feel them if you run a finger across the board. They showed up on
both the soft and hard wood. They appear to be pretty regular. At first, I
thought the knives were nicked, but I checked them out and they appear to be
smooth and sharp.

As I said, I am a planer novice. Should I expect this kind of preformance,
or is something wrong with the planer? These lines will sand out easily, but
I thought I was supposed to get a mirror smooth finish with this planer.

Thanks for your wise counsel.

Ho, ho, ho,
Mr. Fitzwell


This topic has 15 replies

HE

"Hansen"

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 8:53 AM

I also have the DW735 planer. It is a very nice peice of equipment. However,
I have the same problem as you. It turned out some very nice work till I ran
some Hichory though it. I beleive it was from the knots in the hard, dence
wood. I flipped the blades over (which is one of the nice things about the
blades) and the line was gone. You do have a knick in the blade however
until you take the blades off and inspect them (all 3) you won't be able to
really see the imperfection. Blades are not cheap, so if you have more time
then money (as is my case), a few extra minutes with a sander is what I
recomend if you have already flipped your blades. Enjoy your planer, and
have a merry Christmas.

Hansen in Wyoming

"Dick Fitzwell" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:dDVyd.2510$Y57.2393@trnddc08...
> Hi, all,
>
> Got an early Christmas present -- a Dewalt 735 portable planer. Not too
> shabby for my first planer. I have run a couple boards (pine and maple)
> through it, and everything appears to be dead on out of the box.
>
> My one question regards some lines running parallel to the grain on an
> otherwise perfect finish. They are not terribly noticebale, but you can
> definitely feel them if you run a finger across the board. They showed up
on
> both the soft and hard wood. They appear to be pretty regular. At first, I
> thought the knives were nicked, but I checked them out and they appear to
be
> smooth and sharp.
>
> As I said, I am a planer novice. Should I expect this kind of preformance,
> or is something wrong with the planer? These lines will sand out easily,
but
> I thought I was supposed to get a mirror smooth finish with this planer.
>
> Thanks for your wise counsel.
>
> Ho, ho, ho,
> Mr. Fitzwell
>
>

Nn

Nova

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 9:31 AM

Dick Fitzwell wrote:

> Hi, all,
>
> Got an early Christmas present -- a Dewalt 735 portable planer. Not too
> shabby for my first planer. I have run a couple boards (pine and maple)
> through it, and everything appears to be dead on out of the box.
>
> My one question regards some lines running parallel to the grain on an
> otherwise perfect finish. They are not terribly noticebale, but you can
> definitely feel them if you run a finger across the board. They showed up on
> both the soft and hard wood. They appear to be pretty regular. At first, I
> thought the knives were nicked, but I checked them out and they appear to be
> smooth and sharp.
>
> As I said, I am a planer novice. Should I expect this kind of preformance,
> or is something wrong with the planer? These lines will sand out easily, but
> I thought I was supposed to get a mirror smooth finish with this planer.
>
> Thanks for your wise counsel.
>
> Ho, ho, ho,
> Mr. Fitzwell

Check the rollers. The pine may have left sap deposits on the feed rollers.
Also are you using any form of vacuum chip collection.

--
Jack Novak
Buffalo, NY - USA
(Remove "SPAM" from email address to reply)

DB

Duane Bozarth

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 9:20 AM

Dick Fitzwell wrote:
>
...
> ...-- a Dewalt 735 portable planer. ...
> My one question regards some lines running parallel to the grain on an
> otherwise perfect finish. They are not terribly noticebale, but you can
> definitely feel them if you run a finger across the board. They showed up on
> both the soft and hard wood. They appear to be pretty regular. At first, I
> thought the knives were nicked, but I checked them out and they appear to be
> smooth and sharp.
...

Are they ridges or dents?

If ridges there almost has to be a tiny knick...if dents there's a small
deposit on either the rollers or material on the tables. Particularly
easy to get w/ pine owing to the sap.

Regarding your last comment -- no power planer is going to leave an
absolute mirror finish although it is amazing the quality of finish some
of these small guys can do...

DB

Duane Bozarth

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 10:13 AM

Dick Fitzwell wrote:
...
> ...these are tiny ridges on the board.
> They showed up almost immediately (after a couple linear feet of planing).
> Are the Dewalt planer knives supposed to be of decent quality?

I don't have one so can't judge directly, but what I have seen is that
these small benchtop planers all have very light knives in general...it
just goes w/ the type of machine they are. I suspect such minor knicks
and chips are the rule rather than the exception for them as a class.
Maybe someone can post whether there are bad/less bad/good/better/best
sources of replacement knives for these guys.

I have an old (as in 30+ yrs) Rockwell Model 13 which has much more
robust knives (of course, they come w/ a much more robust price tag :) )
but I don't think I'd want to trade.

HE

"Hansen"

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 9:12 AM

Yes, I had a friend tell me that he was able to have them re-sharpened. I
don't know how much faith I put into a resharpend blade. Especially when you
are dealing with a thickness planer. I have been using my "knicked" blade
for better then a year (I got my DW735 for Christmas last year) and it is
still doing a fine job. I have developed 1 more very small knick in my
blade, but I have run more then 2000 board feet through it. I feel I have
got my money out of it.

Hansen in Wyoming
"Dick Fitzwell" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:x8Xyd.2537$Y57.187@trnddc08...
> All,
>
> Thanks for your replies. To clarify, these are tiny ridges on the board.
> They showed up almost immediately (after a couple linear feet of planing).
> Are the Dewalt planer knives supposed to be of decent quality?
>
> Thanks,
> Dick
>
>
>
> "Dick Fitzwell" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:dDVyd.2510$Y57.2393@trnddc08...
> > Hi, all,
> >
> > Got an early Christmas present -- a Dewalt 735 portable planer. Not too
> > shabby for my first planer. I have run a couple boards (pine and maple)
> > through it, and everything appears to be dead on out of the box.
> >
> > My one question regards some lines running parallel to the grain on an
> > otherwise perfect finish. They are not terribly noticebale, but you can
> > definitely feel them if you run a finger across the board. They showed
up
> on
> > both the soft and hard wood. They appear to be pretty regular. At first,
I
> > thought the knives were nicked, but I checked them out and they appear
to
> be
> > smooth and sharp.
> >
> > As I said, I am a planer novice. Should I expect this kind of
preformance,
> > or is something wrong with the planer? These lines will sand out easily,
> but
> > I thought I was supposed to get a mirror smooth finish with this planer.
> >
> > Thanks for your wise counsel.
> >
> > Ho, ho, ho,
> > Mr. Fitzwell
> >
> >
>
>

sD

[email protected] (Doug Miller)

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

26/12/2004 12:23 AM

In article <dDVyd.2510$Y57.2393@trnddc08>, "Dick Fitzwell" <[email protected]> wrote:
>Hi, all,
>
>Got an early Christmas present -- a Dewalt 735 portable planer. Not too
>shabby for my first planer. I have run a couple boards (pine and maple)
>through it, and everything appears to be dead on out of the box.
>
>My one question regards some lines running parallel to the grain on an
>otherwise perfect finish. They are not terribly noticebale, but you can
>definitely feel them if you run a finger across the board. They showed up on
>both the soft and hard wood. They appear to be pretty regular. At first, I
>thought the knives were nicked, but I checked them out and they appear to be
>smooth and sharp.

Ya know what? I've noticed the same thing with my DW735, even with
freshly-honed and polished knives -- but only on relatively soft woods such as
sycamore and poplar. The marks are much less noticeable on soft maple and
cherry, and pretty much not there on hard maple, walnut, or oak.

I *suspect* (but have been unable to confirm) that it may be caused by
variations in tightness of the blade-mounting bolts, causing the blades to
flex slightly.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek-at-milmac-dot-com)

Get a copy of my NEW AND IMPROVED TrollFilter for NewsProxy/Nfilter
by sending email to autoresponder at filterinfo-at-milmac-dot-com
You must use your REAL email address to get a response.

Mm

MikeG

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 9:56 AM

In article <dDVyd.2510$Y57.2393@trnddc08>, [email protected]
says...
> Hi, all,
>
> Got an early Christmas present -- a Dewalt 735 portable planer. Not too
> shabby for my first planer. I have run a couple boards (pine and maple)
> through it, and everything appears to be dead on out of the box.
>
> My one question regards some lines running parallel to the grain on an
> otherwise perfect finish. They are not terribly noticebale, but you can
> definitely feel them if you run a finger across the board. They showed up on
> both the soft and hard wood. They appear to be pretty regular. At first, I
> thought the knives were nicked, but I checked them out and they appear to be
> smooth and sharp.
>
> As I said, I am a planer novice. Should I expect this kind of preformance,
> or is something wrong with the planer? These lines will sand out easily, but
> I thought I was supposed to get a mirror smooth finish with this planer.
>
> Thanks for your wise counsel.
>
> Ho, ho, ho,
> Mr. Fitzwell
>
>
>
Whether you saw them or not you have a nick there. Shift, if possible on
that unit, one blade slightly to one side or the other.
--
MikeG
Heirloom Woods
www.heirloom-woods.net
[email protected]

Lr

"Leon"

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 2:45 PM

Those are nicks and or high spots in the knife edge. Some times very hard
to see on the knife itself and not necessarily on both blades. Sometimes
this happens immediately with a new set of blades. Also first hand you are
seeing why the slower finish speed is probably going to be a waste of time
as you will now have to follow up with a scraper or sand paper, which you
should do anyway. Remember this planer is a thicknesser not a finish
sander.
As long as the lines in your wood are raised you are seeing a normal result
of knives showing wear . If the lines are indented, there could be another
problem.

As for normal. Possibly if you ran some wood that possible could have had
some grit on the surface or imbedded in the surface. But normal after
running 25 to 200 linear feet through the planer



"Dick Fitzwell" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:dDVyd.2510$Y57.2393@trnddc08...
> Hi, all,
>
> Got an early Christmas present -- a Dewalt 735 portable planer. Not too
> shabby for my first planer. I have run a couple boards (pine and maple)
> through it, and everything appears to be dead on out of the box.
>
> My one question regards some lines running parallel to the grain on an
> otherwise perfect finish. They are not terribly noticebale, but you can
> definitely feel them if you run a finger across the board. They showed up
> on
> both the soft and hard wood. They appear to be pretty regular. At first, I
> thought the knives were nicked, but I checked them out and they appear to
> be
> smooth and sharp.
>
> As I said, I am a planer novice. Should I expect this kind of preformance,
> or is something wrong with the planer? These lines will sand out easily,
> but
> I thought I was supposed to get a mirror smooth finish with this planer.
>
> Thanks for your wise counsel.
>
> Ho, ho, ho,
> Mr. Fitzwell
>
>

DW

"Dave W"

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 1:11 PM

The Dewalt knives can be resharpened many times before tossing them. The
best way to keep knives sharp is to wirebrush all stock before planing.
When I bought my planer, I got a nick in the first foot of cedar. Shifting
one knife laterally is a good way to get rid of a little problem.
Dave

sD

[email protected] (Doug Miller)

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

26/12/2004 12:29 AM

In article <[email protected]>, Joe Wells <[email protected]> wrote:
>On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 18:15:34 +0000, Leon wrote:
>>
>> "Dave W" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>> news:[email protected]...
>>> The Dewalt knives can be resharpened many times before tossing them.

Not for the 735, they can't.

Not, anyway, if by "resharpened" you mean reground. They can be *honed*
several times, sure, but there just isn't enough metal projecting above the
cutterhead to allow more than a very small number of regrindings.

>>> The best way to keep knives sharp is to wirebrush all stock before
>>> planing. When I bought my planer, I got a nick in the first foot of
>>> cedar. Shifting one knife laterally is a good way to get rid of a little
>>> problem. Dave
>>
>> The throw away one's??
>> That would be good news.
>
>DeWalt planer knives aren't meant to be disposable.
>
I'm sure that will be news to the guys at DeWalt.


--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek-at-milmac-dot-com)

Get a copy of my NEW AND IMPROVED TrollFilter for NewsProxy/Nfilter
by sending email to autoresponder at filterinfo-at-milmac-dot-com
You must use your REAL email address to get a response.

Lr

"Leon"

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 6:15 PM

The throw away one's??
That would be good news.


"Dave W" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> The Dewalt knives can be resharpened many times before tossing them. The
> best way to keep knives sharp is to wirebrush all stock before planing.
> When I bought my planer, I got a nick in the first foot of cedar.
> Shifting one knife laterally is a good way to get rid of a little problem.
> Dave
>

Lr

"Leon"

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

25/12/2004 2:50 AM

IIRC the new model ones with the 3 cutter heads are.





"Joe Wells" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 18:15:34 +0000, Leon wrote:
>>
>> "Dave W" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>> news:[email protected]...
>>> The Dewalt knives can be resharpened many times before tossing them.
>>> The best way to keep knives sharp is to wirebrush all stock before
>>> planing. When I bought my planer, I got a nick in the first foot of
>>> cedar. Shifting one knife laterally is a good way to get rid of a little
>>> problem. Dave
>>
>> The throw away one's??
>> That would be good news.
>
> DeWalt planer knives aren't meant to be disposable.
>
> --
> Joe Wells
>

sD

[email protected] (Doug Miller)

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

26/12/2004 12:25 AM

In article <x8Xyd.2537$Y57.187@trnddc08>, "Dick Fitzwell" <[email protected]> wrote:
>All,
>
>Thanks for your replies. To clarify, these are tiny ridges on the board.
>They showed up almost immediately (after a couple linear feet of planing).

In that case... the knives are nicked.

>Are the Dewalt planer knives supposed to be of decent quality?

They are of decent quality. But no planer knife will stand up to dirt on the
board, and that's probably how they got nicked.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek-at-milmac-dot-com)

Get a copy of my NEW AND IMPROVED TrollFilter for NewsProxy/Nfilter
by sending email to autoresponder at filterinfo-at-milmac-dot-com
You must use your REAL email address to get a response.

JW

Joe Wells

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 5:58 PM

On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 18:15:34 +0000, Leon wrote:
>
> "Dave W" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> The Dewalt knives can be resharpened many times before tossing them.
>> The best way to keep knives sharp is to wirebrush all stock before
>> planing. When I bought my planer, I got a nick in the first foot of
>> cedar. Shifting one knife laterally is a good way to get rid of a little
>> problem. Dave
>
> The throw away one's??
> That would be good news.

DeWalt planer knives aren't meant to be disposable.

--
Joe Wells

DF

"Dick Fitzwell"

in reply to "Dick Fitzwell" on 24/12/2004 2:23 PM

24/12/2004 4:06 PM

All,

Thanks for your replies. To clarify, these are tiny ridges on the board.
They showed up almost immediately (after a couple linear feet of planing).
Are the Dewalt planer knives supposed to be of decent quality?

Thanks,
Dick



"Dick Fitzwell" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:dDVyd.2510$Y57.2393@trnddc08...
> Hi, all,
>
> Got an early Christmas present -- a Dewalt 735 portable planer. Not too
> shabby for my first planer. I have run a couple boards (pine and maple)
> through it, and everything appears to be dead on out of the box.
>
> My one question regards some lines running parallel to the grain on an
> otherwise perfect finish. They are not terribly noticebale, but you can
> definitely feel them if you run a finger across the board. They showed up
on
> both the soft and hard wood. They appear to be pretty regular. At first, I
> thought the knives were nicked, but I checked them out and they appear to
be
> smooth and sharp.
>
> As I said, I am a planer novice. Should I expect this kind of preformance,
> or is something wrong with the planer? These lines will sand out easily,
but
> I thought I was supposed to get a mirror smooth finish with this planer.
>
> Thanks for your wise counsel.
>
> Ho, ho, ho,
> Mr. Fitzwell
>
>


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