# Does anyone sharpen their Ridgid planer blades?



## GPDMTR25 (Jun 21, 2010)

I know the knives are "disposable" and Ridgid doesn't recommend it because the knives are indexed so sharpening the knives is going to reduce you maximum depth of cut. But if this doesn't matter, I was wondering if anyone sharpens their own Ridgid planer blades?


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## newbiewoodworker (Aug 29, 2010)

I know this probably isn't what you wanna hear, however, I wouldn't do it. It could potentially be a safety issue(bad if I knife got loose,) and its just not going to be worth the time getting them properly done. If I were in you're shoes, I would recommend buying some ones that are meant to be sharpened.

--You can get a set of carbide inlayed knives for about $150 Or a set of Steel ones for about $40… only thing is you might have to drill holes in them for the slots(using the old one as the template) 
---http://globaltooling.bizhosting.com/products/knives-planer/t1-hss-planer-knife-sets.html Thats the site I was referencing. I am not affiliated in anyway, however it was one of the first that came up in google.


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## GPDMTR25 (Jun 21, 2010)

Thanks for the info and link.

I was actually wondering about Deulen tool that was recommended by, I think, Wood magazine.

It looks like a good way to sharpen jointer blades but I wasn't sure about Ridgid planer blades.


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## D_Allen (Oct 11, 2010)

It may be a safety issue, depending on how much is taken off in the sharpening process. There isn't a lot of the blade that extends beyond the cutterhead body and if ther were to be too large a chip it may get caught between the stock and the cutterhead. That would no doubt make a loud bang.
As for reducing the max depth of cut…..do you know of anyone who tries to take an eighth of an inch per pass? May on balsa wood!
And what of the cost? I know, I hate to throw things away too. But really, if it costs anywhere near $30 to sharpen both sides of 3 blades…..I'd buy new ones.


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

I have my "disposable" Ridgid planer blades sharpened by Best Sharpening in Tulsa. They charge $25 a set to sharpen them. Anew set costs $30. Why do I have them sharpened? They cut better and last longer than new blades. I dont know why this is but it certainly works for me. I dont know how many times they can be sharpened but the guys at Best said they will tell me when its time to toss them and I trust these guys.


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## D_Allen (Oct 11, 2010)

gfadvm, that sounds like my kind of sharpening place.
Is that Best Grinding on East 11th Street?
If they only take a few thousandths off then they can sharpen them multiple times.
I have has such poor experiences with sharpening places in this area that I basically gave up.
Also, I know the blades that came with my 4330 planer were so poorly ground that in the end I determined that was the cause of the snipe I could not eliminate. A new set was like I had a new machine.
I still have my old ones and I consider sending them to Tulsa to see what kind of job they do.


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

D_Allen Yep, its the one on East 11th. Thats a long ways from you! I never thought about shipping stuff off to be sharpened as I'm spoiled having them here in town. If you send your blades to Tulsa send me a pm and let me know how they did.


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## LepelstatCrafts (Jan 16, 2011)

Thanks for reminding me, I need to flip my blades…


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