Dewalt 735 Problems –me or machine?
I bought a 735 about a year ago — used it abit at first and it seemed to do a great job. Work came along and wood working took a back seat until recently when I did some planning of maple, alder, and some other hard woods. Not that much in terms of board feet, so it seems to me I would classify this as light use.
I ran some alder through today and it stuck in the machine. This happened last week with some maple and I thought maybe I was feeding it against the grain — still have trouble reading grain sometimes — anyway, there are also streaks in some of the boards, like there is a knick or something in one of the blades. I looked and cannot see it.
So, are the streaks (compression marks?) and the wood getting stuck while feeding signs of dull baldes or a dull woodworker? A quick search shows other people seem to have had some issues with short life on blades, etc… but I am not sure if the problem is me, the baldes, or something else with the planer.
ps — I usually take passes of 1/32 or less and feed at an angle.
Thanks
Edited 3/12/2006 1:57 am by hotwheels
Replies
I suspect the problem of the material hanging up in the 735 can be fixed easily with a good coat of wax on the feed tables. I have heard of this problem frequently on many brands of planers, enough that we added a story about it to my site. (See the link below, scroll down to the Planer section)
I have the DeWalt 735 also and after using it a while, the stock began hanging up and I initially thought perhaps the rollers were dirty or slipping. I waxed the tables just to reduce that friction and the sticking problem went away instantly.
The lines in the stock probably are caused by small nicks in the knives. This is another common complaint across the brands that use the throw away type of knives. People complained about the high cost of replacement knives that were designed to be sharpened so the manufacturers went to a cheaper throw away version that do not seem to hold up as well as the higher-buck versions.
The good news seems to be that these lines stay small and sand away almost instantly with even 220-grit paper during final preparation. I have seen a few small lines develop with my 735 after considerable use but they go away as soon as I touch them with the sander so I am not going to worry about that.
You can turn the knives over to use the opposite edge, effectively doubling their life span.
http://www.newwoodworker.com/tipstrksdir.html
Tom Hintz
Because there is always more to learn!
Thanks for the suggestion on the wax. That is an easy solution to try so I will clean and wax the table today. The streaks in the wood take some serious sanding to remove and most do go away with sanding.I may try to reverse the blades and see if that solves the streaking problem. I have been curious about the Infinity replacement blades for the 735 -- do you have any experience with them? I am an fan of their router bits, dado set, and especially their customer service. Everytime I ask them a newbie question by phone or email, there is always a thoughtful reply.The planer is one of the tools that gets more use than I anticipated it would. In hindsight, I might have bought something else to start: it produced a smooth cut when new and it does not take up much room. But, since I put it on a mobile stand, it probably takes up about the same space as a Powermatic 15S :)))))
If your 'streaks' take too long to sand, try using a card scraper. this will level the high spots and save you alot of sanding time.
If it is taking considerable effort to sand the streaks out, it probably is time to reverse the blades.
So far, I have not needed to replace my knives but that time has to be coming fairly soon with all the use I have put on this machine. When it is time for new knives, I will use the ones from Infinity as I have heard good things about them and have the same opinion of their products and service as you.Tom Hintz
Because there is always more to learn!
Before you reverse them....can they be slid right or left a smidge??? If you can reposition one knife a bit, it will clean up the ridges, assuming that's what you're describing. Keep this in mind when installing the knives too. Leave room to slide in either direction.
Hope the waxing helps. If it doesn't do the trick, probably time to clean the rollers. This questions comes up frequently on the forums, and it seems like most of the time, cleaning the rollers and waxing the bed fixes it.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
If I had pushed through a lot of board feet of hard wood, then it would seem that a blade change or rotation would be normal. But, this machine has had light duty --- so, that it what makes me wonder. It sounds as if others have planed more wood with fewer problems. I will move the blades first ( had an all day power outage so could not do any shop time) and then try to rotate them, then try the infinity baldes, then buy the Powermatic if that does not work. I need a planer that works .....
I too have had some of the same problems with my 735. I've had it less than a year and I'm already on the second side of my second set of knives. I never take more than a 1/32" pass. It also tends to shut down and kick my breaker in the middle of a cut. I thought this planer was supposed to have lots of power and has been rated very well but I can't imagine what might happen it I tried to take more than 1/32" at a time. Plans are on for more power in my garage shop but for now I only have the option of running from a 15 amp outlet. Am I in danger of ruining the tool or even more? Hope to hear from some of you.Kurt
"had an all day power outage so could not do any shop time" Geeee, what part of the Northwest do you live in, LOL! I can identify!
There have been alot of complaints about the quality of the DeWalt knives. Boggles the mind that they don't produce something much better, given the quality of the planer itself. Really must be frustrating. Hope you have good luck with the INfinity knives. Do you happen to have a link for them??forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Yep, nice planer when it works. The first cuts were so smooth it was a pleasure to use, even with the noise. Many people are happy with their, so maybe there are some quality consistency issues. I also have a Dewalt compressor less than a year old and it also has some quality control problems. Good tools gone bad ....Here is the infinity link -- It seems worth trying to me, so I am going to order some of their blades to have them on hand for when I need them.http://www.infinitytools.com/products.asp?dept=1111
Hotwheels,
Thanks for the link. Unless I read it wrong, the price was about $60. That's only about $10 more than the DeWalt replacement knives (although I did get my last set on clearance at Lowes for $27). Had I known I would need them more often, I would've bought all they had.
The Infinity knives can be sharpened too is that right? It's a no-brainer in my book. I'm going to look for my credit card right now to order a set.
Kurt
Called Dewalt today and they said the blades should get 6000-9000 board feet of wear. So, I have a problem and they are willing to make it right if reversing the blades does not work. Good for them.I am still going to order the Infinity blades. They are more costly, but I have been happy with their other bits and baldes. And, they can be resharpened!
Make sure to clean the rubber rollers. I use alcohol.
Forestgirl,
Any thoughts on the power issue? It pops when I'm running just one machine (especially the planer) but running two at a time is basically out of the question. This makes my dust collector worthless until I can get more power in there. Another bonus to the 735 though is that it has a chip ejection blower so I still hook it up to the dust collector and it makes it all the way to the bags.
Kurt
Electric is definitely not my strong suit, but if you're popping a breaker with one machine running, there's definitely a problem. And you don't want to keep resetting them time after time after time. I've been taught to find the problem and fix it when that happens. My tablesaw used to do that, and it turned out to be a bad breaker.
How many amps on the planer's motor plate? How many amps on the breaker? If you have the planer and the DC plugged into two separate circuits, are the both popping their breakers?
The elctric service in my shop is waaaay not something to write home about, but I can run the tablesaw and 1.5HP Jet DC at the same time, with the lights on no less <g> and not have anything trip or brown out or whatever.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
By chance, are you using an extension cord with that machine?? If you are, that's likely the problem.
Jeff
I am using an extension cord! I'm not an electrician by any means. How does the use of an extension cord affect the ability of a machine to operate? I'm working on getting the wiring in my garage/shop re-done but right now there's only one outlet coming from a 15amp breaker. Obviously I need more and you might imagine my frustration level at times. I would like to learn more about electricity and specifically how it concerns the way I use (or the way I should be using) my tools. Any comments would be greatly appreciated.Thanks,
Kurt
Resistance from an extension cord (too small and/or too long) can cause the motor to bog down. I had to move my DeWalt planer to a different circuit because it would bog way down on wide boards. On a less loaded circuit it runs close to full speed at all times.Running with less than rated voltage is also hard on the motor.Dave
Thanks so much! I think I've learned more from this site in the past couple of months than I ever expected.Kurt
(Taunton-when you get the check written, I'll send you my address. J.K.)
Generally, current delivered to static loads is lowered by increased extension cord length. Resistance goes up; current goes down (I = E / R). Resistance increases with extension cord length, thus voltage drop across the line lowers the voltage available at the end of the cord for use by the appliance. A heavier extension cord (one with more copper in it) has less resistance than a lighter cord, just as in plumbing, a larger pipe has a lessened restriction to the flow of water.My compressor WILL NOT RUN if I use a 25 foot 12 gage extension cord, it just pops the breaker, DUN. Take cord off, move compressor over to (same) outlet, no problem. You'll note your machine manual probably advised you against using any extension cords someplace. Mine do. Anyway, sounds like that's it, relatively easy fix, move the machine closer to your outlet, or put a longer and HEAVIER power supply cord on the machine. You could try a heavier gauge extension cord, but I haven't had good luck with that approach sans the example I gave with my compressor. Check the specs of your motor, they will be listed on the plate on the motor. Power draw will be listed there, using those numbers you can calculate what gauge cord you need for the length of cord you need to reach your outlet. Many places on the internet list the formulas you need for this. Note that motors have a start up surge and a continuous running power requirement, so two power requirements should/may be listed on your motor....
Good luck.
Jeff
Edited 4/2/2006 4:39 pm ET by Jumpman
Thanks for another lesson. I was using a 12 gauge cord but it was a relatively long one so it sounds like that's the problem. How hard is it to retro fit a larger cord onto a machine like a portable planer? The position of my one outlet and the length of the cord make it very difficult to use. Any suggestions?Thanks so much!
Kurt
Isn't this a 'portable' planer?? LOL. I'm thinking that this might be a difficult machine to refit a cord to. It would likely void your warranty as well. If you can't move it, your next option would be to wire another outlet near the machine. Might be time to get an electrician in there to do an assessment. You could run the outlet on the surface in conduit, tapping off of a wall outlet, if you know how to do that kind of work. Another thing you could try, might be cheaper and easier, would be to have a 10 gauge extension cord made up with quality connectors and cable. You could do it yourself, or a good local hardware store (not one of the big box stores, but a good old fashioned local hardware store) would help you make it up. That might do the trick. Don't aske me why, a 12 gauge circuit works, but a 12 gauge extension cord doesn't. I've puzzled over that myself. I guess it's in the quality and design of the connectors. Might want to rethink why you can't move that machine. Ultimately, that might be the best solution. Good luck....
Jeff
Kurt, another thing I would do, first. I'd drag that planer over to where ever that outlet is, and plug it in without an extension cord and test to make sure it does run from that outlet. Just to make sure something isn't wrong with that outlet. If that outlet was wired up with 14 gauge wire (it's possible) then that might be the problem as well. So test it somehow before you go to more trouble working on other solutions.
Jeff
The outlet (coming from 15 amp breaker remember) is wired with 14 gauge wire. Is this going to cause me problems? If not, would the "homemade" 10 gauge extension cord work o.k.? Can you come over and do it all for me? Just kidding!!Thanks,
Kurt
Kurt, I went back and read your original post about tripping the breaker...."in the middle of a cut"...
I hate to be the bearer of bad news but I think you just don't have enough power on that circuit. I see on the DeWalt website the DW735 has a 15 amp motor in it. That the max amperage your circuit is. Do you know if anything else is on that circuit (lights?) or is it dedicated one outlet to the circuit breaker? If that motor trys to pull more than 15 amps (loads up cutting material say..in the middle of a cut!) then indeed you will blow the breaker, especially if anything else is drawing power on that circuit. Sure, you could use the 10 gauge cord with the 15 amp circuit, but now that I have more information, I don't think that will do anything for you. In fact, the 12 gauge extension cord you're using has bigger wire than the circuit itself (14 gauge, right?) Sorry. Like Tim the Tool Man always says, you need MORE POWER...
Jeff
I was affraid of that. Actually, I was just looking for temporary fixes until I get the garage/shop rewired with more power dedicated to that area only. Thanks for all your help and research.Kurt
Forest, I have been doing this for 18 years now and have never thought of doing that(moving the knife). I am going to run and tell my wife that she was right, I dont know everything! I just changed my planer knives, ran two pieces of cherry and found a nick allready. I hate when that happens.
-Lou
"I hate when that happens." No kidding! BTW, how did your wife react? ;-)forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I agree with Tom's post. I always keep a can of wax handy on the back of my bench. It works for jointer tables, plane soles and planer feed tables. Remarkable stuff.
Jerry
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