Deulen Jig for sharpening blades

[steve swartz]

I have 5 sets of blades for my Dewalt 733 planer and need a cheaper way of maintaining them than sending them out at $1 plus an inch for sharpening plus my time and gas or postage. I can't tell you how many times I have chipped a blade within a few days after hitting a hard knot on old recycled lumber. I checked out Amazon and they sell a Powertec brand for about $35 a set. They don't even carry the Dewalt blades anymore. I am a little cynical when I read a lot of reviews that claim the after market item is better than sliced bread. I don't really want more blades, just a way to keep what I have in great shape. Any feedback is greatly appreciated. I've read about the Deulen Jig and it sounds great, but I tend to be skeptical about the claims that you can remove small chips and sharpen your blades razor sharp by using sandpaper. Any feedback is greatly appreciated.

[John Schweikert]

Sharpening with sandpaper does make for razor sharp blades. I made my own jig from scraps: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?168191-Honing-Jointer-Blades/page2&highlight=Deulen+Jig

[Art Mann]

I have a small Deulen jig I use to sharpen 6 inch jointer knives. It has worked well for me. I don't know about the Dewalt 733, but my lunchbox planer does not provide a way to compensate for the knives getting narrower from repeated sharpening. If the 733 is like that, then you may eventually run into problems as the knives make less and less contact with the wood.