My new Dewalt planer is leaving train tracks on wood...

[Michael Costa]

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Anyone experience this before and/or know the cause before I start taking it apart?

[Ray Newman]

Based on my shop experience that was most likely caused by a knick in the knife blade(s).

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Are the area of the tracks raised or indented?

Either way, the first thing I'd suspect is the blades.

[Doug Landphair]

My first thought was that it is a knick in one of your blades but in the photo the "tracks" look awfully wide for a knick. Is it possible that a couple of the screws holding your blades on are loose? Is there anything wrapped around your pressure wheels that might cause those tracks? Like you, I'm grasping at straws. Let us know what happens.

Doug

[Michael Costa]

They are indented. It was bought less than 2 months ago and the only wood that's been through it is pine. 2x4 and 2x6 pine. All checked for staples, etc prior. I guess it's time to open it up.

[Grant Wilkinson]

Is the planer a 735? Does it have the stock knives in it? They are prone to nicking, even by hard knots.

Are the grooves on the upper face of the board or the lower? I had some nicks in the bed of my 735 that produced small "burs" in the bed. They cut grooves in the wood until I sanded them smooth.

All that said, those grooves seem pretty wide to be nicks, though. As others have said, check for loose screws.

[Robert Hazelwood]

If they are indented then its not a knick in the blades. Has this been happening since you first got the planer or did it work fine at first? Does the indention occur on the top or bottom of the board (i.e. on the side being planed or the side sliding against the bottom?)

If it just started and is on the top side, then I would guess something is on the feed rollers. They are a soft rubber on these lunchbox planers and tend to pick up debris, especially if you run a lot of resinous wood through like pine. Unplug and raise the planer head up as high as you can, grab a flashlight and take a look. You can clean them pretty well with a shop towel and some rubbing alcohol. I have to do this periodically because they get coated with wood resin and lose their grip on the wood.

[Robert Engel]

Robert ^ nailed it.

My guess is outfeed roller we'll see if I'm right.

[William Hodge]

Run a piece of wood through the planer, and mark the planer right above the indentation. When you raise the head up, your problem will line up with the pencil mark.

[Roger Feeley]

Start a piece of wood. As soon as it shows on the outfeed side, turn the planer off. Mark the infeed and outfeed sides of the planer on the wood. You now have a ruler that will tell you how deep into the planer the mark is being made. That should narrow it down.

I had trouble with my planer where wood hung. I ran a piece, let it hang and marked the infeed. Found the problem in a flash.

[Richard Coers]

Most likely a piece of wood or chunk of a knot is stuck inside the machine. Just raise the head and inspect it.

[Tom Bender]

I think Richard's got.

My Dewalt planer has been doing a great job for several years.

Be careful when you wipe the rollers, you'll be wiping along the knife edge. Don't want to get blood on it.

[Roger Feeley]

FWIW, in the printing industry, there is some stuff called Rubber Rejuvinator that we used on the rubber rollers in our printing presses. This stuff worked wonders on the rubber rollers of my old lunchbox planer. It softens and moisturizes. If you have dents made by chips, RR will expand them back out. The big benefit is that it improves traction.

[Rich Engelhardt]

FWIW, in the printing industry, there is some stuff called Rubber Rejuvinator that we used on the rubber rollers in our printing presses. This stuff worked wonders on the rubber rollers of my old lunchbox planer. It softens and moisturizes. If you have dents made by chips, RR will expand them back out. The big benefit is that it improves traction.

+1 - 100% on the dot.
Alcohol will dry out rubber and cause it to crack.
Petro solvents will put too much oil into the rubber and cause the rollers to slip.

Rubber Rejuvenator - such as Tech Spray and/or Fedron (no longer made - but still a lot around in old printer repair places, typewriter repair places & printing places that are going out of business) - will clean and restore the rubber rollers.

You can also use it on the rollers of your printers to restore them to better than new condition.

[Roger Feeley]

+1 - 100% on the dot.
Alcohol will dry out rubber and cause it to crack.
Petro solvents will put too much oil into the rubber and cause the rollers to slip.

Rubber Rejuvenator - such as Tech Spray and/or Fedron (no longer made - but still a lot around in old printer repair places, typewriter repair places & printing places that are going out of business) - will clean and restore the rubber rollers.

You can also use it on the rollers of your printers to restore them to better than new condition.

I would go out on printers forums to see which is best. Amazon has a number of products.
i recommend against sprays since you won’t use much and this stuff lasts along time. Also, it’s hard to control a spray. I had a 4oz bottle for years. I just put some on a small rag and wiped the rollers down.

interestingly, a reviewer said that this stuff is great for renewing windshield wiper blades. Makes sense.