# Sharpening planer blade knives.............what is the best tools to buy to do that with???



## woodchic (Mar 17, 2009)

Hi Guys and Gal Wood Working Buds. I need some info quick. I am looking to buy a tool to that is efficient to use to sharpen our planer blade knives. We are using green lumber that we are planing and sizing ourselves to build a garage. We are going to be out a fortune if we continue buying blades at this rate. So tell me. What is the best tool we can get, that will do the job we need it to do…..and won't kill us at the check out???


----------



## BillWhite (Jul 23, 2007)

Well, what are ya usin' now?
I have the Makita horizontal water stone sharpener, and use it for most of my sharpening jobs.
Help us help you.
Bill


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

what planer are you using?

if you are using any of the smaller "lunchbox" planers (bought at home depot, lowes, and similar hardware stores) chances are they only use replaceable/expandable blades (except for a select few like the older Dewalt 733 I believe) and as such cannot be sharpened.

you can try honing them using a very fine stone or honing compound just to clean them up a tad, or maybe use some cleaner to remove the gunk from the green lumber, but that as far as those go.

Now, if you are using a 15" and larger stationary induction planers, than there are a few jigs on the market (even posted here) that can easily sharpen those blades. there are also commercially available sharpeners like the wet grinders (Tormek / Jet/ Grizzly/ Sheppach) that have adapters to hold planer blades for sharpening.


----------



## woodchic (Mar 17, 2009)

We are using a dewalt 13 inch planer. I would like what ever I buy to be able to handle 20 inch blades because I have my eye on a 20-inch planer I want later. I am wanting a jig of some sort. I was looking at a tormak, but the sales person we talked with said they didn't have a planer jig for those??? I would like what ever I get to be able to sharpen my wood chisels as well.


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

I have a Tormak equivalent (Sheppach) which does chisels, handplane blaes, scissors, knifes, axes, and anything with a cutting edge to it. there is a planer blade attachment which is the same as the Tormek one. maybe the salesperson meant that they didn't have one in stock (as surely Tormek has those attachments)?

As for your current planer - the dewalt 13" planer (735) only uses replaceable double edged blades (each blade can be swapped to be used "twice"). so no real option to sharpen them - but you could try cleaning them and see if that helps.

here is the tormek part (not cheap stuff):









http://www.amazon.com/Tormek-SVH-320-Planer-Jointer-Blade/dp/B00149FIFI/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1370373462&sr=8-14&keywords=tormek+t-7


----------



## woodchic (Mar 17, 2009)

We are using 735 Dewalt planer.


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

yes I understand. see my comment above - you cannot sharpen blades for that planer. you can only use each blade twice before having to replace it with a new blade - those are expandable blades.

If you intend on replacing the planer with a larger one that uses blades which can be re-sharpened, here is a cheaper alternative to the Tormek:









http://www.grizzly.com/products/10-Wet-Grinder-Kit/T10010

with the planer blade sharpening attachment:
http://www.grizzly.com/products/Blade-Sharpening-Jig-for-T10010/T10025


----------



## woodchic (Mar 17, 2009)

I went to wood craft, I was going to shell out the bucks for it. But the guy didn't act like he knew what we were talking about and said they didn't have a jig for it. Believe it or not. I was surprised because I thought for sure tormek would be the one to buy, and apparently with what you are telling me I was right.


----------



## woodchic (Mar 17, 2009)

But I may just end up buying the planer sooner than planned. What is your suggestions for that?? I am not happy with the dewalt that we purchased. It has lasted, we got it when we built our house. But it is sooooo slow, and alot of the times had to push the wood through it.


----------



## woodchic (Mar 17, 2009)

I checked out the Grizzly…...is it as efficient as the tormek? Price wise I do like it alot better. But wondering will it do the same job and hold up to the Tormek? I love it in here, if I have a question about something you all are such of wealth of information.


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

actually - that's NOT exactly what I'm saying - all I'm saying is that there are alternatives to different people out there. the Tormek is still the best unit out there, and is rated for heavy duty where as the lower cost alternatives are more aimed at the weekend warrior that use it less frequently and don't necessarily need to fork out the high $$$ value for a Tormek.

That aside - to focus on the planer, From your description, I would highly recommend tuning your planer to perform better. the Dewalt 735 is a fantastic and VERY capable planer! if you are having difficulties with it, it may suggest that it is not setup properly, or in need of a tune up/ cleanup (bed needs to be waxed smooth, rollers need to be brushed clean, blades need to be replaced if dull). If the issue is tune-up , then you might end up getting the same poor/dissappointing results even with a larger planer with less $$$ in your pocket if not maintained and tuned properly and regularly.

just my 0.02$


----------



## mojapitt (Dec 31, 2011)

Have to be careful sharpening those. Too mucch grinding and the cuts won't be even.


----------



## woodchic (Mar 17, 2009)

Purplev. Is this what you were talking about that you have??

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/SCHEPPACH-Sharpener-11W321?Pid=search


----------



## chrisstef (Mar 3, 2010)

Could you use a spiral head on the planer and completely do away with the knives? If you're gonna spend the money id say that would be the ticket.


----------



## PurpLev (May 30, 2008)

Robin - yes that is the one. it is identical to the Grizzly (same model sold under different name/color) - so whichever one ends up costing less would be my choice.

Chrisstef brings another good point - going with a helical/spiral cutterhead (either in a new planer, or you could retrofit an aftermarket cutterhead on your existing dewalt) would eliminate the need to sharpen planer blades and will also give you a quieter operation.. the cutters on those are usually carbide and will last much longer than HSS blades (your current blades). these cutters usually have 4 cutting edges (compared to your current 2) so the overall long term usage of each cutter is much much longer than you are used to at the moment - however those are also replaceable.

Based on your OP - you would still be looking at a sharpening grinder for your chisels anyways. so see my first paragraph for that.


----------



## lew (Feb 13, 2008)

A different approach that may be cheaper-
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004D9L9AO


----------



## GaryC (Dec 31, 2008)

After you finish the garage, you'll be starting on the stables, then on to your new studio. You might as well bite the bullet and get the big planer and big sharpener now and get it over with


----------



## SASmith (Mar 22, 2010)

Here is how I sharpen my planer blades.
I have not sharpened disposable blades with it but I know that some people have.


----------



## oldworld124 (Mar 2, 2008)

Are you using this wood for framing? If so, you do not need to plane at all. You just need to rip it all straight and leave it rough. no planing needed at all. A good skillsaw and straight edge guide is all that is needed. A table saw will also work if you use long fences and a guide.


----------



## nailbanger2 (Oct 17, 2009)

Here's another do it yourself- http://lumberjocks.com/projects/70562

and this- http://www.woodcraft.com/product/2083107/33856/deulen-12-jointerplaner-knife-sharpening-jig.aspx

and use your own good sense, I don't know enough about it to contradict what Purplev is saying.


----------



## Kentuk55 (Sep 21, 2010)

I didn't think you should plane wood until it was dry..? I'll follow along to see what is said. Good luck with your outcome.


----------



## KentS (May 27, 2009)

If at all possible, I would go to a floor model 15 or 20" planer. Grizzly has some reasonably priced, as well as Shop Fox, and I'm sure, others. For more money you can get a Jet or Powermatic. Any of them are available with helical heads, which would be ideal, but you'll pay around $1,000 or so for that option. If you went with straight knives, I recommend you buy at least 2 sets and take or send them to be sharpened professionally. That is what I have always done. If you buy a sharpening system capable of doing it right you might as well spend the money on the helical head. Helical heads use carbide knives, while most straight knives are HSS.


----------



## ssnvet (Jan 10, 2012)

Are you timber framing, log framing or stick framing the garage.

For 2x lumber, dimensioning the stock with a planer is usually a step that is not done until the lumber is dry and stable.

Many, many people have stick framed garages with rough cut lumber.

I've planed quite a bit of green pine with a lunch box planer and it's not really fun. You need to clean the rollers frequently.

Turn the blades and dress the edges with a cheapo stone like this….to extend their life a little bit.










imho, there's a reason why I've never seen a sharpening service that would sharpen the double sided disposable blades.

Think about how the blades are aligned in the planer. They index off of the alignment tabs. So if the blades are not perfectly ground, exactly the same, they will not cut the same arc when re-installed. Most of the larger fixed planers that I've seen that use one sided blades intended to be re-sharpened, are aligned using a fixture that indexes off of the cutting edge.

There's hobby guys who do it…. but as I said, I've never seen a "real" sharpening service that would.

I think the real issue here is planing green lumber and think you might do well to consider learning to frame with rough cut.

If you're timber framing…. most of the guys I've worked with use the high end 12" wide hand held planers by Makita or Maffel…. but these are niche tools and will set you back $3K-$5K


----------



## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

ssnvet, I have been getting my "disposable" 13" Ridgid planer blades sharpened at Best Grinding in Tulsa for several years. They seem to cut better and last longer than new blades. They tell me when they are no longer resharpenable.


----------



## woodchic (Mar 17, 2009)

Hey I haven't forgot all of you, I just haven't really got to sit down and read all the great feed back I am getting from everyone. I am working on two projects at the same time and if all goes well, I will try to get back on here late this evening and read everyone's post they have left me. I will also post some pics that we have done already, we just have a couple of little walls up. Hubby spent most yesterday planing and sizing the boards for more walls…..................this is HIS garage, but I am helping. I told him I get a corner of it until we build my wood shop and studio.


----------



## woodchic (Mar 17, 2009)

One question I have though I skimmed through some of the posts, and one stuck out and is on my mind right now. We do use green lumber, when we build, for our home we sawed it and then let it air dry for a couple of years. So it is not completely dry really. The garage wood is green straight from the saw mill. I am wondering if a planer with a spiral head would hold up as well under the conditions we are going to be putting the next planer we get under???


----------



## ssnvet (Jan 10, 2012)

I'll defer to Andy's experience wrt. re-sharpening "disposable" planer blades, as my own adventures were with different equipment (the old style Delta lunch box, with very thin and skinny blades) and dates back some 15+ years. Nobody around here would touch them. One guy said he'd have to charge me more to re-sharpen them than they cost new (the Delta blades were always in the ~$30 range for a 2 blade set).


----------



## BillWhite (Jul 23, 2007)

Just for the record, the 733 blades CAN be sharpened.
I do it with a Makita horizontal water stone system.
Carbide blades are another story.
Bill


----------



## Jim Jakosh (Nov 24, 2009)

I think sharpening planer blade is best done on a surface grinder to get the edge truly straight. I take all my knives for planers and jointers to Tubergen here in Grand Rapids and they charge 45 cents an inch and so a super job. yours would be around $18 for the 3. They do takes blades in and ship out and they make great industrial bandsaw blades.Their number is 616 534 0701 if interested.

If they are just getting dull from cutting and not from hitting metal, etc, the carbide tipped blades will last a lot longer…but the best solution is a spiral head cutter with carbide inserts that you just turn when they get dull. The heads are not cheap and I'm not sure they make one for your Planer.

My friend is building a house and 2 barns and he bought Grizzly spiral head 20" planer and it works fantastic. He has milled hundreds of board feet and has not turned the cutters yet!

Cheers, Jim


----------

