DeWalt 734 Planner Feed Rollers Slipping

[Kyle Fries]

Does anyone have any advice for keeping the feed rollers clean on the dewalt 734? I have tried wiping them down with acetone and have had little luck with the cleaning lasting. I did spray down the table with some lubricant which helped for about 4 or 5 boards until it all got soaked into the boards. It doesn't seem to matter on the wood species. I have been running white oak, soft maple, poplar and even some pine. I only take about 1/32 cut at a time.

[Mike Kees]

Kyle I have the same planer. I wax the table with a chunk of parafin wax. This works pretty well for me. I have not tried it but Johnsons paste wax might work well. I have also noticed that if your knives are dull it has more trouble feeding well. Mike.

[Grant Aldridge]

Like mine said I have the same one and dull knives are my guess! I run a lot of old resinous heart pine through mine

[Matt Day]

Something is clearly wrong if you're only taking 1/32" cut, that's what a drum sander can handle.

Sounds like you're doing the right things though. Have you checked your tables to make sure they're not set too high? I'm guessing that would make it harder for the wood to feed. Maybe try roughing up the feed rollers with some sandpaper to increase friction. Flip your knives to a fresh edge too.

Lastly, check that the head isn't slipping up as well. That happened on my old 734 after a decade of use and I replaced a bunch of parts to remedy it. Likely no relation though.

[Jason Lester]

As others mentioned: wax the tables, clean the rollers, and check the knives. I was putting some 10" wide white oak through mine tonight. I could only go about 1/2 turn, which I think is 1/32". It was struggling and is probably due for knives and tune-up. I've planed lots of oak, ash, and maple since the last change.

[Jerry Wright]

I use spray dry lube on the bed periodically.

[Kyle Fries]

Thanks for the tips. I will have to check the knives, clean the rollers and try waxing the table.

[Mike Kees]

Kyle how did it go ?

[Rich Engelhardt]

I have tried wiping them down with acetone and have had little luck with the cleaning lasting.

Acetone, Lacquer thinner,,,,actually any solvent you can buy isn't going to do much, if anything, to the rubber...

You need to rejuvenate the rubber, not simply clean it.
Cleaning won't restore the "tack" to the rubber.

You need a platen cleaner, like this one:
https://www.alliedelec.com/techspray-1612-2sq/70207268/

Fedron used to be the best money could buy, but, I think they(the mfg.) went under a few years ago.

[Thomas L Carpenter]

Jason says 1/2 turn on his 734 which seems like a lot to me. I usually go 1/4 to 1/3 turn on mine but maybe I'm too gentle. If the motor seems to bog down a little i usually back off a little.

[Jason Lester]

Jason says 1/2 turn on his 734 which seems like a lot to me. I usually go 1/4 to 1/3 turn on mine but maybe I'm too gentle. If the motor seems to bog down a little i usually back off a little.

Mine leads a hard life! That's with narrower boards like rails/stiles. I'll go as much as 3/4 turn sometimes before getting close to finished size.