I have an old Wallace skew knife jointer. The knives are held in grooves in the cutterhead at an angle to the cutter head’s axis (much like the old Porter Cable electric block plane’s cutter – but I think that was a one piece.) I will need to get the knives sharpened soon.
Any ideas on who can sharpen the knives? A friend said the knives have to be sharpened in the head, which is placed in a jig and then run through the grinding machine.
One inquiry to a sharpening company got me the verbal equivalent of unknowing stares. Surely this technology is not dead.
Replies
Look in the yellow pages for tool grinder or tool and cutter grinder. Or call local machine shops and ask who sharpens their end mills. The metal working industries uses lots of helical cutters.
I've also seen (on the computer, not in person) helical cutting heads for planers that use replaceable carbide inserts instead of knife type blades. Don't know what kind of finish they produce, and getting one to fit an old jointer would probably be an adventure, but the idea is intriguing.
I too have lusted for a helical head carbide insert cutterhead for both my planer and jointer. Why can't they be an aftermarket item?
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