DeWalt 735 planer knives

[Rick Potter]

What is the story on planer knives for the DW 735. Some complain they are getting dull really fast, or nick too easily, others talk about how good they are. Was there a bad run of blades, or a change of manufacturer?

I am a lucky one, I guess. Mine is maybe 5 years old, and I have never changed or rotated a blade yet. Don't run junk through there though. I got two extra sets when I bought it, and haven't needed to open them yet.

I don't have the tables, but have had good results with just a two foot piece of melamine coated PB kept in the machine with one cleat.

Anyone know the story on the blades?

[Mike Gresham]

IMHO, it is unrealistic expectations.

I have a 735 and have no complaints. As far as nicked blades go, they come with the territory. I buy skip planed lumber. So, it doesn't seen junk, but I don't baby it either. Several times I have had to re-position blades to account for nicks. I've had it for 10 years and lost count of how much lumber has been through it, but I'm only on my second set of blades. I bought extras when I bought the planer thinking the blades wouldn't last long. Go figure.

[Mike Henderson]

I've had good luck with blades, also. I don't know how many sets I've used, but it's not too many, considering how long I've had the planer. I use a black marker and put the date inside the top when I changed - or reversed - the blades just so I know how long a set lasted.

I have one or two extra sets of blades that I bought early on because I thought it'd go through blades faster.

Mike

[David J Blackburn]

I bought my 735 this summer and have a couple of nicks in the blades already; don't know from what because nothing ugly has been run through. Probably 150-200 linear feet of lumber have gone through. Not a lot.

But, I haven't done anything about it, because I generally am moving on to a smoother plane after the 735 anyway, so a small track gets clean up right away. Doesn't seem worth going through the trouble to reposition or flip the blades since it doesn't negatively affect the end product.

[Brian Tymchak]

I've had good luck with my blades. Still on the first side of the original set, although they are ready to be flipped. I wonder if the complaints are about after-market blades. I seem to remember a thread or 2 about low quality blades for the 735 but can't remember what brand(s) were being talked about.

[Stew Hagerty]

I too have had good luck. I buy a combination of S2S, skip-planed, and slabs. I run everything through it, but always finish with handplanes. In 6 years, I am just on side 2 of my original knives. I still have the extra set that came with it stored away. That said, whenever I do need to buy a set, I am going to buy the HSS ones from Infinity. I understand that they are supposed to not nick quite as easy.

[Grant Wilkinson]

I've not had a noticeable problem with nicks, but I don't get the years of life out of a set that the others here do. I buy rough sawn, joint a face and an edge, and plane. Most of my work is hard wood, so maybe those two differences account for the shorter life of mine. I like the planer, but I don't like disposable knives and the price of knives in Canada is ridiculous.

[Rick Potter]

My plan is also the Infinity blades, Stew. Of course that might be a while at this rate:rolleyes:

[Shawn Christ]

Excellent luck here too with my blades, still on the original set. Planer was new in 2008, I adjust blades every year or two to minimize nick marks, and any that remain are easily removed with a card scraper or final sanding. I only recently reversed the blades in 2015. I'm a hobbyist but mainly work with rough sawn walnut, cherry, and ash so they've had a reasonable amount of use. I use a handheld metal detector and am careful to vacuum or brush any grit off the workpiece before sending it through the planer. I found a deal on a 6 pack of blades 3 or 4 years ago and they're still sitting in my drawer!

[Andrew Hughes]

I went through lots of knives when I had my 735. I sold it 2 years ago not because of the knives I just didn't use it that much any more.
My fix was carbide tipped knives from infinity.I used my machine for thicknessing a variety of woods Ebony,Teak and all the domestics.
Worked great for me with Carbide knives.

[Mike Ontko]

I've been pretty pleased with my DW735, but then it's my first planer so I don't really have any previous experience to compare it to. After two large bed projects, both of ash, one beech coffee table and several smaller projects involving sapele, cvg doug fir, and 2x stud lumber the blades appear to have picked up two very small nicks. I'm guessing there may have been some dirt, sand, or grit embedded in the fibers of the rough sawn wood that I started my last bed project with. I haven't taken the blades out to inspect or flip them over yet, but the two thin lines they leave behind very light and near impossible to see unless you're looking for them. But this is after processing several hundred (a couple thousand maybe?) lineal feet of rough cut lumber. So, maybe it's just time to flip or rehone the blades anyway.

349506

[Peter Follett]

Really terrible (high cost) blade life was one of the reasons I sold my 735 in favour of a Rockwell Invicta era planer. The ability to reshrpen blades, lower noise, increased throughput and excellent surface finish are all bonus features. Would I go back to a lunchbox planer? Not on a bet!