# dewalt 735 planer, stripped screw



## maples (Dec 30, 2009)

hey guys, I have a question , maybe one of you have worked thru this, I had to change the knives out on my 13" planer,, I got all the screws out, they all came out hard but one stripped out, the hex is rounded off, They all seemed too tight, maybe because it wa sin the unheated room of the "shop',, it was below freezing by a few degrees steady,,

I was thinking about taking a gring wheel to it and grind it flat so I can remove the knife,, I dont know if I will be able to get the remainder of the screw out after that or not.. it is the second one in from one end,, not sure if that will interfere with operation or not,, any ideas..

do you think the coldness had anything to do with the outcome,,, I changed them once before and dont remember them coming off that hard,, maybe the stainless being that cold made a difference,

I may bring it next to the stove and see what happens for teh other 2 knives, thanks pat


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## bugsiegel (Dec 12, 2008)

I'm not familiar with how much room you have to work with but can you cut a grove across the screw and then use a flat screwdriver to back it out?


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## SCR0LL3R (May 28, 2010)

I've read a couple reviews where people were complaining about the softness of the screws. Maybe it would be a good idea to find harder replacement screws when putting the blades back in? Of course that doesn't help you with your current problem. I've seen my mechanic pound a slightly larger Torx bit into a stripped allen head bolt and it worked for him… Not sure if that's a good idea but it's an idea.


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## CampD (Nov 8, 2008)

what Keith said.
Get a larger allen wrench, Type that are sockets , maybe metric (sears has a good supply) and pound it in with a hammer, also the shock of pounding on it will help break it free.
if your worried about it happing again in the future (it will) find a good screw supply house and buy new AMERICAN made screws. cost ya more but less headaches


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## mrg (Mar 10, 2010)

A couple of things to get the screw out. Bring it in where it is warm. Could heat with a small mini torch or solder iron to heat the screw or take a flat head screw driver and put a notch in the screw and try tapping the screw counter clockwise and walk it out. The notch and walk method I had used a lot when I fixed copiers. Replace with a set of new screws. Put a little never cease on the threads and don't tighten to much. These little screws don't take much to over tighten.


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## Bertha (Jan 10, 2011)

I've had decent results by gently heating, squirting a bit of PB blaster, then using one of those proprietary cutting screw extractors. Cutting a slot with a cutting Dremel disk is an option as well.


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## GBS (Apr 1, 2008)

+1 on cutting a slot in the screw head with a dremel. I have this problem on my Jet benchtop planer on, like, 5 of the 12 screws that hold the knives in. I think the centripetal force from the cutterhead throwing the knives outward makes the screws TIGHT! If I lose a hex socket by rounding it out, I cut a nice deep slot with the dremel and back it out with a flathead screwdriver.

Another tips - every time you change your knives, use a NEW hex key. You just spent 50 bucks on new knives, whats $0.69 for a new hex key? I resist banging the screws etc because I don't want to damage the cutterhead.


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## maples (Dec 30, 2009)

thansk guys, all good advice, I will try most of them, taking it into a warmer place, maybe try the next bigger torx bit will be helpful, if not definatly will cut a slot and try that route, not enough room to hammer the side of the screw after a slot os put in,, and teh hitting the cutter head with jollts scares me a bit, I will definatly get better screws,, does anyone know what thread they are off hand, thanks I will try to get it out today, pat


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## sawblade1 (Feb 11, 2010)

Two Words Easy- outs drill a small pilot hole then drive the easy out in guaranteed to pull out the offender screw


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## Bertha (Jan 10, 2011)

Easy-outs! That's the proprietary extractor I couldn't remember. SnapOn makes mine. Work well.


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## maples (Dec 30, 2009)

hey saw blade, they make them that small,, thsi is a small screw,, I never had much luck with easy outs, but have used them on bigger bolts and such,, but this is a very small screw,, its worth a try,, , pat


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## Finn (May 26, 2010)

"put a notch in the screw and try tapping the screw counter clockwise and walk it out. The notch and walk method I had used a lot when I fixed copiers"...............................says MRG. That is exactly the way I have done it many, many times on planer blades and on aircraft…many years ago.


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## Gofor (Jan 12, 2008)

I got mine out (2 of them the first change) by using a cold chisel to notch the edge and tap it loose (Old aircraft mechanic trick when the factory used too long of screws and buried the shank in the nut plates). First thought that I could just leave out one on each blade to keep the balance, but soon found out the blade will bow out under centrifugal force, allowing wood chips to wedge underneath, giving a bowed cut.

Still using them but have to tighten them the same way I loosened them. Mine is the Dewalt 734. Hard to find the right size/profile metric screw.

Go


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