Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

I just purchased the DeWalt 735 planer last night, and read over the
manual. Operation seems easy enough, and in practice has been. I managed
to get some snipe on a board and then almost eliminate it by supporting the
board more.

Is there anything I should know before I get going too far? I've never
used a planer before, and while operation seems simple enough, I don't want
to miss something important.

It's amazing what comes out of the planer. This nasty looking piece of
wood goes in, and something beautiful comes out.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Puckdropper" puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote
Is there anything I should know before I get going too far? I've never
used a planer before, and while operation seems simple enough, I don't
want
to miss something important.

Plane only clean wood with not nails, brads, or screws in it. They can nick
the blades. Or so I'm told, I'd never do that, of course, but a guy that
lives on my street missed a nail once.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

Plane only clean wood with not nails, brads, or screws in it. ...

I'll add to that.. no paint or finishes either... You wouldn't think it but
it will completely dull your plades ina couple of passes.

-Steve

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

When they say those blase are disposable.. don't beleive them. They can be
honed for reuse several times of they just dull and not severely chipped.

Build a jig to hold the blade at a microbevel and they can be "scary
sharpened".

-Steve

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

On Apr 11, 7:28*am, Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:
I just purchased the DeWalt 735 planer last night, and read over the
manual. *Operation seems easy enough, and in practice has been. *I managed
to get some snipe on a board and then almost eliminate it by supporting the
board more.

Is there anything I should know before I get going too far? *I've never
used a planer before, and while operation seems simple enough, I don't want
to miss something important.

It's amazing what comes out of the planer. *This nasty looking piece of
wood goes in, and something beautiful comes out.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

Never plane anything less than 12" long. I learned the hard way.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

On Apr 11, 5:28*am, Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:
I just purchased the DeWalt 735 planer last night, and read over the
manual. *Operation seems easy enough, and in practice has been. *I managed
to get some snipe on a board and then almost eliminate it by supporting the
board more.

Is there anything I should know before I get going too far? *I've never
used a planer before, and while operation seems simple enough, I don't want
to miss something important.

It's amazing what comes out of the planer. *This nasty looking piece of
wood goes in, and something beautiful comes out.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

Either get the DeWalt in/outfeed tables or build your own.

In recent testing, that was the ONE shortcoming in an otherwise GREAT
planer.

Once PROPERLY supported, the 735 took Best of Breed.

So ... congratulations on a great purchase !!

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

Neil Brooks wrote in
:

Either get the DeWalt in/outfeed tables or build your own.

In recent testing, that was the ONE shortcoming in an otherwise GREAT
planer.

Once PROPERLY supported, the 735 took Best of Breed.

So ... congratulations on a great purchase !!


How does infeed/outfeed table length affect the size of what can be
planed? If I extend the table, say 12", does that mean I can handle a
board 18" longer without fear of snipe?

I've got some melamine covered MDF that's waiting to be made in to feed
tables.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"C & S" wrote in
:

Plane only clean wood with not nails, brads, or screws in it. ...

I'll add to that.. no paint or finishes either... You wouldn't think
it but it will completely dull your plades ina couple of passes.

-Steve



I didn't think about the finishes. It makes sense, though. After seeing
how fast some of the sand paper gummed up cleaning polyurethane, I'd hate
to have something similiar happen to the knives.

Thanks!

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Puckdropper" puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote in message
...
I just purchased the DeWalt 735 planer last night, and read over the
manual. Operation seems easy enough, and in practice has been. I managed
to get some snipe on a board and then almost eliminate it by supporting
the
board more.

Is there anything I should know before I get going too far? I've never
used a planer before, and while operation seems simple enough, I don't
want
to miss something important.

It's amazing what comes out of the planer. This nasty looking piece of
wood goes in, and something beautiful comes out.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

Don't be suprised when you start to see ridges in the out put results. That
is normal and your planer has settled into being a thicknesser as opposed to
a short lived thicknesser and finisher. You need to sand afterwards anyway.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

On Apr 11, 12:02*pm, Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:
Neil Brooks wrote :

Either get the DeWalt in/outfeed tables or build your own.

In recent testing, that was the ONE shortcoming in an otherwise GREAT
planer.

Once PROPERLY supported, the 735 took Best of Breed.

So ... congratulations on a great purchase !!

How does infeed/outfeed table length affect the size of what can be
planed? *If I extend the table, say 12", does that mean I can handle a
board 18" longer without fear of snipe?

a) Snipe isn't something to be feared. It's simply a force to be
reckoned with;

b) Without getting a $20,000 planer, some degree of snipe is a virtual
certainty;

c) The in/outfeed tables just give you a better way to level the
incoming and outgoing board, REDUCING snipe;

d) By way of BLATANT copyright infringement, I am reproducing --
without permission -- the results of the recent benchtop planer test,
showing you how the 735 stacks up, and -- most specifically -- the
difference between its snipe WITH and WITHOUT auxiliary in/out tables:

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_WVVYjLCNo2w/S8.../s512/scan.jpg

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

Puckdropper wrote:
....

I didn't think about the finishes. It makes sense, though. After seeing
how fast some of the sand paper gummed up cleaning polyurethane, I'd hate
to have something similiar happen to the knives.
....

Other than heavy coats of enamel or other hard finishes it'll make
little difference--varnishes, etc., are much softer than the wood itself
and don't abrade the surface to create heat, etc., in the way the
friction of sandpaper does.

That said, large volumes of surfaced material will make some difference
but other than the old paint, not so much as to be such a major issue.

But, as a matter of course, if I have old material to clean up (and I
reuse a tremendous amount of recycled/reclaimed material) I keep an old
set of knives for the purpose as opposed to a finish set for fine work.

--

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

dpb wrote:
....

Other than heavy coats of enamel or other hard finishes it'll make
little difference--varnishes, etc., are much softer than the wood itself
and don't abrade the surface to create heat, etc., in the way the
friction of sandpaper does.
....
Dangit, that was supposed to read "...and [planer knives cut rather
than] abrade the surface ..."

but somehow lost my intended edit... :(

--

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

On Apr 11, 9:37*am, GarageWoodworks
wrote:

Never plane anything less than 12" long. *I learned the hard way.

Even when I cheat -- like, last night -- and carpet tape shorter
pieces onto a carrier board -- every ONCE in a great while ... you
WILL get an exploding short board.

It's not cool.

Nuh-uh. Not cool at all :-O

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

Neil Brooks wrote:
On Apr 11, 9:37 am, GarageWoodworks
wrote:

Never plane anything less than 12" long. I learned the hard way.

Even when I cheat -- like, last night -- and carpet tape shorter
pieces onto a carrier board -- ...

"Trick" is to follow the shorter piece immediately w/ a longer piece of
same thickness so the infeed roller doesn't fall of the end of the short
one...still, shouldn't ever be shorter than distance between outfeed and
infeed.

--

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

On Apr 11, 1:55*pm, dpb wrote:
Neil Brooks wrote:
On Apr 11, 9:37 am, GarageWoodworks
wrote:

Never plane anything less than 12" long. *I learned the hard way.

Even when I cheat -- like, last night -- and carpet tape shorter
pieces onto a carrier board -- ...

"Trick" is to follow the shorter piece immediately w/ a longer piece of
same thickness so the infeed roller doesn't fall of the end of the short
one...still, shouldn't ever be shorter than distance between outfeed and
infeed.


I did that, even.

It was weird.

I had them carpet taped, front and back, too.

Sides and ends to a jewelry box. Laid them out in alternating order,
atop a long piece of oak. Ends were touching, board to board.

Brrrrrrr.... BANG!

Don't you HATE it when that happens ??

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

On Apr 11, 7:28*am, Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:
Is there anything I should know before I get going too far?

Don't try to run an end-grain butcher block through it.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

Neil Brooks wrote:
On Apr 11, 1:55 pm, dpb wrote:
....

"Trick" is to follow the shorter piece immediately w/ a longer piece of
same thickness so the infeed roller doesn't fall of the end of the short
one...still, shouldn't ever be shorter than distance between outfeed and
infeed.


I did that, even.

It was weird.

I had them carpet taped, front and back, too.

Sides and ends to a jewelry box. Laid them out in alternating order,
atop a long piece of oak. Ends were touching, board to board.

Brrrrrrr.... BANG!

Don't you HATE it when that happens ??

I certainly would if it ever did...maybe I'm not pushing the envelope
enough, but in 40-yrs never had it happen.

I've never used the tape for the purpose but I'd wonder if the tape
wouldn't be a potential culprit--if it didn't go entire length perhaps
would compress an end or perhaps might compress, anyway, not sure...

I also can't address whether the lunchbox guys are more or less prone to
the problem than an old industrial as I've never had anything less...

--

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Puckdropper" puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote in message
...
I just purchased the DeWalt 735 planer last night, and read over the
manual. Operation seems easy enough, and in practice has been. I
managed
to get some snipe on a board and then almost eliminate it by
supporting the
board more.

Is there anything I should know before I get going too far? I've
never
used a planer before, and while operation seems simple enough, I
don't want
to miss something important.

It's amazing what comes out of the planer. This nasty looking piece
of
wood goes in, and something beautiful comes out.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

One idea I haven't read here yet is for figured woods. Birds eye,
squirrely grained wood or any wood where you see a lot of tearout.

Wet (dampen) the surface of the wood with a sponge and let it sit for a
minute. Now when you plane it, the tearout will be minimized or be
totally gone. Don't make a second pass without re-dampening the wood
first.

After you're done, unplug and wipe down the bed and rollers just in
case you used to much water. Try it on some scraps, you'll get a feel
for how much water and how long to let it sit before running it thru.

There are a lot more tips and hints and most can be found via Google
and search back thru the forums.

Bob S.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Leon" wrote in
:


Don't be suprised when you start to see ridges in the out put results.
That is normal and your planer has settled into being a thicknesser
as opposed to a short lived thicknesser and finisher. You need to
sand afterwards anyway.


Shucks... I was enjoying the silky smooth output. Will the effect return
with a new set of blades? I wouldn't replace the blades to get this
effect, just curious.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Puckdropper" puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote in message
...
Neil Brooks wrote in
:

Either get the DeWalt in/outfeed tables or build your own.

In recent testing, that was the ONE shortcoming in an otherwise
GREAT
planer.

Once PROPERLY supported, the 735 took Best of Breed.

So ... congratulations on a great purchase !!


How does infeed/outfeed table length affect the size of what can
be
planed? If I extend the table, say 12", does that mean I can
handle a
board 18" longer without fear of snipe?

I've got some melamine covered MDF that's waiting to be made in
to feed
tables.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

I put my Delta 12" onto a rolling stand, about 30" or so tall.
Gravity held the portable planer in place, so it was portable.
V-shaped 1X1 blocks held it in position on the top, however. The
planer had small metal infeed and outfeed tables, which remained
in place and between them and the planer itself, filled the top of
the rolling table. On the infeed and outfeed ends of the rolling
table, I built drop leaf extensions with horizontally mounted
boards, about 1" apart that brought the leafs to exactly the
infeed/outfeed table heights. For most work, the Delta setup with
the factory, metal, infeed and outfeed tables was fine. For
longer work, however, I could snap the two leaves up and they'd
add another 24" or so to the existing 6" Delta tables. It worked
great and by not having the leaves with a flat surface, the slots
permitted chips to fall aside so the height didn't change.


--
Nonny
Suppose you were an idiot.
And suppose you were a member
of Congress.... But then I repeat myself.'

-Mark Twain
..

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Puckdropper" puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote in message
...
"Leon" wrote in
:


Don't be suprised when you start to see ridges in the out put results.
That is normal and your planer has settled into being a thicknesser
as opposed to a short lived thicknesser and finisher. You need to
sand afterwards anyway.


Shucks... I was enjoying the silky smooth output. Will the effect return
with a new set of blades? I wouldn't replace the blades to get this
effect, just curious.

Puckdropper

Yes, it will. I have a Delta two speed and thought it was fantastic for
finishing. Until I got some wear on the blades. Still a good finish, but
far from the final finish.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Nonny" wrote:

I put my Delta 12" onto a rolling stand, about 30" or so tall.
snip

Here is a neat design for a mobile planer stand in a crowded shop.

http://tinyurl.com/y6jyrl4

Lew

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
...

"Nonny" wrote:

I put my Delta 12" onto a rolling stand, about 30" or so tall.
snip

Here is a neat design for a mobile planer stand in a crowded shop.

http://tinyurl.com/y6jyrl4

Lew






Pretty slick. I can see using similar for a CMS, or bench top DP. With a bit
of jiggery poker, maybe the same stand ...

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote in
:

*snip*

Is there anything I should know before I get going too far? I've
never used a planer before, and while operation seems simple enough, I
don't want to miss something important.

*snip*

Puckdropper

Hey, did you guys know the exhaust really blows? I put a hose on the
output and directed it in to a 5 gallon bucket. Then, I ran a board
through... Those planer shavings are just like confetti! I had no idea
directing the output to a can like that was such a bad idea!

No wonder the home made chip collectors all had covered cans.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Puckdropper" puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote
Hey, did you guys know the exhaust really blows? I put a hose on the
output and directed it in to a 5 gallon bucket. Then, I ran a board
through... Those planer shavings are just like confetti! I had no idea
directing the output to a can like that was such a bad idea!

No wonder the home made chip collectors all had covered cans.


I bought my planer one day, then bought the dust collector the next day.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Puckdropper" puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote in message
...
"Leon" wrote in
:


Don't be suprised when you start to see ridges in the out put results.
That is normal and your planer has settled into being a thicknesser
as opposed to a short lived thicknesser and finisher. You need to
sand afterwards anyway.


Shucks... I was enjoying the silky smooth output. Will the effect return
with a new set of blades? I wouldn't replace the blades to get this
effect, just curious.


Yes the finish will return with new knives and or resharpened knives. This
is not unique to your planer however all planers have this problem. Keep in
mind that planers are not finishers, they are thicknessers. To worry about
the out put quality is a waste of time. Any thing can and will nick the
knives however that does not take away from what the machine was designed to
do. As with any material it needs to be scraped or sanded prior to applying
a finish. Those ridges will disappear during that process.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

On Apr 11, 4:56*am, "Ed Pawlowski" wrote:
"Puckdropper" puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote

Is there anything I should know before I get going too far? *

Here is a cabinet shop trick. If you are ripping stock for face frames
or have other similar sticks and want them all exact same widths,
group them up and lay them on their side and plane them all to the
same width.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

On Apr 12, 5:30*am, Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:
Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote :

*snip*



Is there anything I should know before I get going too far? *I've
never used a planer before, and while operation seems simple enough, I
don't want to miss something important.

*snip*

Puckdropper

Hey, did you guys know the exhaust really blows? *I put a hose on the
output and directed it in to a 5 gallon bucket. *Then, I ran a board
through... *Those planer shavings are just like confetti! *I had no idea
directing the output to a can like that was such a bad idea!

No wonder the home made chip collectors all had covered cans.

Puckdropper
--
Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

When you are ready to sharpen your blades don't waste your money on
"experts" and do it yourself.

Scroll down to "Planer/Jointer Sharpening" for a cool video on a DIY
jig.
http://www.garagewoodworks.com/video.php

**No it won't remove large nicks, but I also don't plane wood with
nails in them.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Leon" wrote in message
...

Yes the finish will return with new knives and or resharpened
knives. This is not unique to your planer however all planers
have this problem. Keep in mind that planers are not finishers,
they are thicknessers. To worry about the out put quality is a
waste of time. Any thing can and will nick the knives however
that does not take away from what the machine was designed to
do. As with any material it needs to be scraped or sanded prior
to applying a finish. Those ridges will disappear during that
process.

I don't know how others tell when it's time to sharpen planer
blades, but my technique was to gently pass my hand over a planed
board. If it felt smooth, the blades were OK. If it felt rough
or had cross-grain ruts, then it was time for sharp blades.

I never worried much about nicks in the blades, since shifting the
knives a tad would wipe them out and I always made a second pass
when I'd reached the final thickness, anyway.

To understand the ruts, just think about how the planer knives
come down, plunge into the wood, go with the grain and then lift
out the chip as the head rotates. If the knives are not sharp,
they bounce against the wood or bludgeon their way into it.


--
Nonny
Suppose you were an idiot.
And suppose you were a member
of Congress.... But then I repeat myself.'

-Mark Twain
..

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Nonny" wrote in message
...

"Leon" wrote in message
...

Yes the finish will return with new knives and or resharpened knives.
This is not unique to your planer however all planers have this problem.
Keep in mind that planers are not finishers, they are thicknessers. To
worry about the out put quality is a waste of time. Any thing can and
will nick the knives however that does not take away from what the
machine was designed to do. As with any material it needs to be scraped
or sanded prior to applying a finish. Those ridges will disappear during
that process.

I don't know how others tell when it's time to sharpen planer blades, but
my technique was to gently pass my hand over a planed board. If it felt
smooth, the blades were OK. If it felt rough or had cross-grain ruts,
then it was time for sharp blades.

You need to sharpen the knives when you start to get excess tear out and or
the shavings start to have dust mixed in.





I never worried much about nicks in the blades, since shifting the knives
a tad would wipe them out and I always made a second pass when I'd reached
the final thickness, anyway.

Still a waste of time IMHO, finish sanding solves the problem. Unless
you are skipping the final sanding... OMG!




To understand the ruts, just think about how the planer knives come down,
plunge into the wood, go with the grain and then lift out the chip as the
head rotates. If the knives are not sharp, they bounce against the wood
or bludgeon their way into it.

If you are talking about the ridges that run across the board a slower feed
rate normally takes care of that. When I am running faster feed rates I get
the "ruts" but that is going to happen even with brand new blades. Slowing
down to 16 fpm makes the surface good enough for finish sanding.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"Ed Pawlowski" wrote in message
...

"Puckdropper" puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote
Hey, did you guys know the exhaust really blows? I put a hose on the
output and directed it in to a 5 gallon bucket. Then, I ran a board
through... Those planer shavings are just like confetti! I had no idea
directing the output to a can like that was such a bad idea!

No wonder the home made chip collectors all had covered cans.


I bought my planer one day, then bought the dust collector the next day.

I used a lunch box planer from 1988 till about 2004 and never used dust
collection. I often lost the dog, a chocolate Lab, under the pile of
shavings. The new stationary planer had a DC added in 2005.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

"GarageWoodworks" wrote in message
...

Never teach your apprentice everything you know.

When you are ready to sharpen your blades don't waste your money on
"experts" and do it yourself.

Scroll down to "Planer/Jointer Sharpening" for a cool video on a DIY
jig.
http://www.garagewoodworks.com/video.php

**No it won't remove large nicks, but I also don't plane wood with
nails in them.


A dirty board will nick a knife... But I agree with sharpening yourself, if
nothing else it saves down time.

Just got a planer... Anything I should know?
 

When you are ready to sharpen your blades don't waste your money on
"experts" and do it yourself....


I'd just like to second that.

I use a similar setup and I can sharpen a pair of blades faster than it
takes to drive 8 miles one-way to the "local expert" who does a so-so job.

I'll add that my jig is *way* more primative than the one shown in the
video. Brian has a sweet little jig, but you get by with way less effort
than that.

My simplifications a

* Just a well-fitted slot (TS kerf) rather than clips and brads
* No roller. I let the heel slide on my bench next to my granite sink cutout
* No height adjustment. The same bevel angle seems to work fine for both my
jointer and planer.
* I Free-hand the back of the bevel at the bech grinder so I'm really only
sandpapering the microbevel

-Steve