DW735 blades

[Ron McAllister]

I just called Dewalt, gave them the unit serial no. and told them of my concerns with the blades on this planer. The person I talked to said they were having problems with the blades and were working to correct it. In the mean time, they are sending me a replacement set of blades (N/C). They also put me in the data base on any NEW blades when they become available. Thought this may help.

[JohnT Fitzgerald]

Thanks for the info! The part about putting you in for new blades when they become available is interesting...

FWIW - I emailed InfinityTools for any information they can give about their blades for the DW735, that makes them better - and all they'd say is that it's more resistant to abrasion. I couldn't even get a grade of the steel used out of them...

[Mike Henderson]

I had the same thing happen - my first set of blades didn't last very long (at least that's my perception). I called DeWalt and they sent me a new set of blades which has done well.

I'd be interested in hearing more about the upcoming new blades. Let us know if you get a set.

Mike

[Dave Falkenstein]

Thanks for the heads-up about a new blade from Dewalt. I have the 735, still using the original blades, and a spare set waiting. It is good to know that Dewalt is working to improve the blades for the future. Please post again when you hear from Dewalt that the new blades are available.

[Chris Stolicky]

I am in the process of buying a DW735 as we speak. If I have any trouble with the blades I will make another post here and let you know. However, being only a hobbiest, I am not sure if I will be using it as much as others.

Maybe I should actually send in the registration card that comes with the planer. ...I hardly ever send those things in! Do you think it would be worth it?

[Eric Haycraft]

Thanks for the info! The part about putting you in for new blades when they become available is interesting...

FWIW - I emailed InfinityTools for any information they can give about their blades for the DW735, that makes them better - and all they'd say is that it's more resistant to abrasion. I couldn't even get a grade of the steel used out of them...

The site says german tool steel and italian mfg.. I doubt they could be worse than the dewalt ones.

[Eric Fuller]

Good for you getting a free set.

I'm suspicious of their claim that they are having trouble with the blades and are working to correct it. The model has been out a couple years now and people have been complaining about the blades since day one (check the amazon reviews). DeWalt has had plenty of time to fix the "problem" if they so desired.

I'm fairly convinced there is not actually a problem from their end, and that the blades are working exactly as designed; i.e., to be an expensive consumable with a fat profit margin. Hope I'm wrong but I doubt it...

[Rick Fouts]

I have a set of Infinity blades on my DW735 and they're not any better, in my honest opinion, than the blades from DeWalt. I hope what they're saying about the "improved" blades is the truth. I doubt it.

[Mike Henderson]

I'm fairly convinced there is not actually a problem from their end, and that the blades are working exactly as designed; i.e., to be an expensive consumable with a fat profit margin. Hope I'm wrong but I doubt it...
I think so too. I can imagine the planning meetings:

Product planner - "We won't make much on each unit when we sell it, but if we can get a large installed base, we'll have an annuity from the sale of blades."

Executive - "That's terrific. Do it!"

Mike

[Eric Haycraft]

I have a set of Infinity blades on my DW735 and they're not any better, in my honest opinion, than the blades from DeWalt. I hope what they're saying about the "improved" blades is the truth. I doubt it.
I can see how blades could dull prematurely if the head doesn't hold the blades in the exact same spot. Has anyone who has issues hooked up a robocator or equiv and checked the tolerances on their dewalts? Anything over .001 and I could easily see blades going bad very early which could explain why some have great blade life and others are constantly replacing theirs.

[Eric Fuller]

I can see how blades could dull prematurely if the head doesn't hold the blades in the exact same spot. Has anyone who has issues hooked up a robocator or equiv and checked the tolerances on their dewalts? Anything over .001 and I could easily see blades going bad very early which could explain why some have great blade life and others are constantly replacing theirs.


The blades index to two pegs on the head. After that they are clamped down with 8 screws. The setup is quite rigid. I know my planer is flat to .002 across the 13" surface.

The "problem" is likely crappy steel. I know the blades in my DW733 lasted far longer and they were resharpenable to boot, so you could get a lot of use from them and even add a back bevel to plane difficult figured exotics.

[Peter Quinn]

I got the DW 735 the year it came out, the blades were crap then, there were lots of complaints, dewalt said they were working on it.

It must be 4 years later, the blades are crap now, their working on it? Still? The planer is a nice unit and the blades are priced like real tool steel, I get the feeling they are not in fact working on it. I would use mine more if the blades sucked less. I would even spend for a set of carbide if they could come up with one. Can't they cal Terminus and ask how its done?

I wound up getting an old DC-380 at an auction whose blades last MUCH longer, can be sharpened for less than a set of the dewalts, and makes frankly a similar quality cut with fresh knives while moving almost twice as fast.

Did they mention if my complaint was still being reviewed? Perhaps their list of people needing better blades for the 735 has been filed in a circular receptacle?

[Eric Haycraft]

The blades index to two pegs on the head. After that they are clamped down with 8 screws. The setup is quite rigid. I know my planer is flat to .002 across the 13" surface.

The "problem" is likely crappy steel. I know the blades in my DW733 lasted far longer and they were resharpenable to boot, so you could get a lot of use from them and even add a back bevel to plane difficult figured exotics.
That isn't really what I was getting at. If one blade is lower than the rest by say .005, it will cause all of the blades to wear more quickly. I am wondering if anyone who has short blade life has checked to see if they all have the same depth of cut. I am starting to become suspect because some people praise the 735 and others have a horrible time with it. Poor tolerances could explain that difference in results.

[Peter Quinn]

Eric, in my experience if one cutter is .005" lower than the rest, that blade will do most of the cutting, it will dull very quickly, and the other knives will come off the machine sharp and largely unused. Performance will quickly suffer as the one knife dies but they wont all dull quickly.

When I change my dewalt knives all three are shot.

[Vic Damone]

While there are some owners who are still using their original blade sets there are far more who have experienced the delicacy inherent to the DeWalt design. Not unlike the ink for an Inkjet printer these blades have become a cash cow for DeWalt.

Factor in the accessories needed for this planer and a few sets of blades plus a few hundred dollars more and you could get a stationary planer with real knives.

Vic

[Steve Sawyer]

I got involved in a discussion on another thread about this issue. I'm one who has been very satisfied with the blade life on my DW735.

I thought that there were perhaps different standards of performance when I saw that one of the thread participants was demanding a flawless ready-to-finish surface, something that you won't get from what most agree is the top-of-the line jointer or planer head, a Byrd Shelix. Those heads (from what I understand from others that are fortunate to have machines with these heads) leave a slightly scalloped surface that must be further smoothed by scraping or sanding if you're working toward a flawless finish.

However, some are reporting an unacceptable surface in relatively soft woods after a few passes, while I put a new set of knives in mine over a month ago and have run maybe 20 BF of hard maple through it, and I'm still getting a glass-smooth surface, even at the faster "dimensioning" speed setting. Even when the old knives were worn after months of use on hard maple and white oak, the surface was still acceptable, only needing a little sanding. I swapped 'em out only because the planer was beginning to labor a bit on a heavier cut, and I was starting to get a bit more tearout on grain reversals in this hard maple I've been working with.

I wish someone had the time and skills to determine why we're getting such wildly different results with the same machine and the same knives.

For the record, I will always look at the conspiracy theories as the least likely explanation for an observed situation. I think the pricing may indeed be influenced by the fact that DeWalt has a captive market here, but I think the basic design was driven by engineering and marketing, not finance. The cutterheads are simpler to manufacture needing no mechanism for adjusting the knives, and the end user doesn't have to worry about knife setup and adjustment, a pain in the butt for most jointers and planers, a big plus in making a purchase decision.

I think that the inferred lack of attention to this problem is probably due to the inconsistent reports of poor blade performance. As a former software engineer, I know that it's really tough to track down a problem when it occurs intermittently, or is experience by some users but not others with no apparent pattern to the variation. I think there is something going on here, but I don't think it's with the basic design, or the steel quality, or even some "planned obsolescence" campaign on the part of DeWalt management or product planning. There may indeed be some other QC issue that is at work here, but it's beyond my skill set to identify it.

I find Ron's original post EXTREMELY interesting, as it's the first I've ever heard of any confirmation or acknowledgment by DeWalt that there may indeed be an issue with blade life.

[Eric Fuller]

Steve, there's no "conspiricy theory" about DeWalt's decision to put crap blades on the 735, and naming it as such marginalizes the observations of the large numbers of us who have had problems.

I'll agree that manufacturing a fixed cutterhead is cheaper, and I'll also agree that having the knives self index is advantageous for some individuals. Personally I'd rather set them myself and be able to sharpen them.

Either way, neither of those features necessitates the use of subpar metal and too thin blades. If DeWalt wanted to, they could have (and should have) designed it around the industry standard 1/8" blade thickness and decent tool or HSS steel.

As far as acceptable finish quality, many people including myself have observed tearout after 50BF or less. Finishing is one thing - ruining the piece is another.

[JohnT Fitzgerald]

A couple of questions for everyone...

I have not yet bought replacement for my 735 (I actually just got it).....for the people that do have replacements on hand, is it written anywhere on the packaging where the blades are manufactured? I wonder if they have issues with components coming from different suppliers...

For the people who have had issues with tearout....are you careful about the orientation of the stock when it goes through, so you're not planing 'against' the grain?

[Steve Sawyer]

neither of those features necessitates the use of subpar metal and too thin blades.

My point, Eric, was that some of us are getting poor results, and some of us are not. This contributes to the difficulty in a) identifying the problem, and b) fixing the problem. I don't think that there was any deliberate decision to foist off a poor-quality product on us in the interest of boosting revenues. The rest of the machine by almost all accounts is first-rate. In my experience and that of many others, the blades appear to be of good quality. Others are getting very poor performance from the same blades on the same machine.

To further stress my point, inferring user-unfriendly motives for what we're observing does nothing to provide DeWalt with information that they could use to correct the problem and obscures the actual facts - that some are getting good results, and others are not, and there must be a reason for this. If there was an effort at planned obsolescence on the part of DeWalt, then they've failed miserably because some of us are not finding it necessary to replace our blades as often as DeWalt intended.

I don't have a dog in this fight - I'm happy as a clam. However, I feel the pain of others that aren't happy, and would like to discover the reason for the different results. My reference to a "conspiracy theory" was simply pointing out that it is not productive, not that some people don't have good reason to be dissatisfied.

[Steve Sawyer]

For the people who have had issues with tearout....are you careful about the orientation of the stock when it goes through, so you're not planing 'against' the grain?

I am, but with the material I'm working with now, there is no "right" way to plane, as the grain changes directions at least once on almost every piece. I compensate for that by taking very light finishing cuts on those pieces for which tearout is a problem.

Again, I only had trouble NOT being able to compensate for the unruly grain when the previous set was getting VERY dull after several months of use.

[Vic Damone]

If I'm not mistaken the nature of the "portable bench top planer" does not have the mass necessary to spin a heavier cutter head assembly typically found in a stationary type planer. Yet, other planer brands using similar thickness blades have far less blade issues.

IMO, the DeWalt blade issue is hardly an intermittent occurrence. They've been handing out one free set for a few years now so I don't believe they're doing anything to improve their blades. With so much dissatisfaction out there I can't agree with the 'same blade same machine' logic. Frankly, if DeWalt ever improves their blades everybody will benefit so why would anybody support the manufacture simply because they're simply lucky. With the exception of having to purchase so many costly accessories I find all the other aspects of the 735 make it a wonderful product.

Realistically most users don't expect a perfectly flat surface nor do they expect to see ridges right after a blade change. I wouldn't mind the blade changes if they were more reasonably priced but $50 to $65 is way out of line.

Vic

[Steve Sawyer]

With so much dissatisfaction out there I can't agree with the 'same blade same machine' logic. Frankly, if DeWalt ever improves their blades everybody will benefit so why would anybody support the manufacture simply because they're simply lucky.

Not sure how you can interpret my comments as being in support of the manufacturer. I'm just not willing to assume evil intent, and feel that because there is obviously great variability in the life expectancy of these knives, that there may be something else wrong other than the blades themselves. The logic of different results, same machine, same blades suggests this, no?

I agree that we would all benefit from an improvement - whatever form that takes - which is why I'm trying to understand what's going on here - my luck may not last!! :)