Planer: how to clean buildup?

wwian

New User
Ian Worthington
Hey Folks!

I just scored a DW735 planer off craigslist and am giving it some TLC and cleaning. I've removed the blades and found that there was a tremendous amount of resin/ sap. The guy said he only used soft pine in it. But, I'm not so sure. I've tried scraping as much off as I can but I can't get the last bits off. Do any of you have suggestions on how to clean this? Thank you for any wisdoms! (I'm new to woodworking. So, I don't have my list of tips, tricks, and methods down yet.)

183910
 

McRabbet

Rob
Corporate Member
I'd put some sheet plastic across the bed to catch the gunk and attack the resin with mineral spirits and a stiff brush. Should do the job. Check the blades for nicks and replace if needed (you can get them at Lowe's or online).
 

zdorsch

Zach
Corporate Member
Scraping with something or blade and bit cleaner. I’ll confess to resorting to carefully using a small screw driver with tough build up.
 

Rick M

New User
Rick
Citrus degreaser like zep or the generic kind that home Depot sells should take that resin off in about a minute or two just spray and soak. Be careful though because it will take off paint if you leave it on too long.
 

JimD

Jim
Senior User
I use CMT's blade cleaner for my table saw blades. It comes in a squirt bottle and is fairly aggressive on this sort of gunk. I use a toothbrush too. I used to use a brass bristle brush but haven't been able to locate it recently.

I don't know anything about your planner but my old Ryobi AP-10 has blades which can be fairly easily sharpened. That process would also take off any gunk.
 

wwian

New User
Ian Worthington
Hey Fellas!

Thank for all the advice! I ended up using some undiluted Simple Green on a rag and let it sit on the the buildup for about 15 minutes, it softened and I was able to scrap and wipe it clean. I also soaked my blades in the SG for about 10 minutes and the buildup on those just wiped off. AND I didn't have to wear a respirator with the doors open in 40°!

183917
 

wwian

New User
Ian Worthington
I don't know anything about your planner but my old Ryobi AP-10 has blades which can be fairly easily sharpened. That process would also take off any gunk.
Unfortunately, due to dewalt's thinking ahead, the blades are not able to be resharpened and reused. :mad:
 

wwian

New User
Ian Worthington
Check the blades for nicks and replace if needed (you can get them at Lowe's or online).
Yeah... the guy wasn't entirely honest with me. He said it hadn't planed anything with nails in it. I didn't think anything about at the time. But, upon further investigation, once the blades were clean all three blades have a nicks all in the same place. :mad:
 

TENdriver

New User
TENdriver
Unfortunately, due to dewalt's thinking ahead, the blades are not able to be resharpened and reused. :mad:


Dewalt made a lunchbox planer (DW733) that has blades that can be sharpened. I had one and it worked very well.

I think Dewalt tailored the DW735 to people like myself. A hobby woodworker with more cash than time. The disposable triple factory blades leave a exceptionally smooth surface. They are reasonably quick to change out and you totally avoid the occasionally tedious and troublesome task of getting a perfectly sharpened blade back into alignment. I keep spare blades on the shelf for the inevitable chip in the blades...or when the factory DW735 blades dull.

Given the rate the blades do dull, I often wondered if that was intentional too.


The good news is the DW735 is a good candidate for a Byrd Shelix conversion. If I used mine more, that’s what I would go for.
 

wwian

New User
Ian Worthington
l "you show me you can make something with all this stuff
I think Dewalt tailored the DW735 to people like myself. A hobby woodworker with more cash than time.

The good news is the DW735 is a good candidate for a Byrd Shelix conversion. If I used mine more, that’s what I would go for.
Yeah, I was considering a cheaper planer. But, this one fell into my budget and I jumped on it. Given all the cash I've spent in the last few months, my wife isn't keen on the shelix blades "until you show me you can make something with all this stuff!" LOL
 

ehpoole

Administrator
Ethan
Unfortunately, due to dewalt's thinking ahead, the blades are not able to be resharpened and reused. :mad:
Yeah... the guy wasn't entirely honest with me. He said it hadn't planed anything with nails in it. I didn't think anything about at the time. But, upon further investigation, once the blades were clean all three blades have a nicks all in the same place. :mad:

It isn’t necessary to plane boards with nails to get minor knicks as very hard loose knots and hard (PVA) glue lines can both put knicks in the knives. However, the knives are designed so that they may be offset laterally from one another so that you can cancel out minor knicks.

As for planing soft pine, pine is about the worst possible material to run through any of our equipment as pine is highly resinous and is very prone to buildup on the cutting edges of knives and blades as the cutting action initially heats and liquifies the sticky resin, then it quickly cools and solidifies just behind the cutting edge where the blade is much cooler.
 

McRabbet

Rob
Corporate Member
My "go-to" planer is a DeWalt DW733. Like TENdriver said above, they have blades that can be resharpened and hold up very well because they are thicker than the newer model planers. I have two knife sets and have resharpened them at least twice each. I always keep a sharp set on hand so if I nick the running set, I can change them out (BTW, they always nick in the same place on each blade because of the high RPM's when you hit that nail or piece of grit). Even though I bought the planer about 20 years ago new and the model is no longer in production, Lowe's still carries the replacement blades for it.
 

Rick M

New User
Rick
I have read that aftermarket blades for the 735 may outlast oem blades, but I haven't tried them.
 

danmart77

Dan
Corporate Member
No suggestions but I have a brand new set of knives for the DW 735. If interested send a PM .. oh I meant a conversation.

Dan
 

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