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I have had my
Delta 12" Planer for about 8 years and I confess that I have taken it for granted and
did very little to keep it working—until a few months ago when it quit totally. I
couldn't get it to lower or raise. The Operating Manual really wasn't a help so Sal and I
just started disassembling, cleaning and lubricating. Once re-assembled it worked like a
charm. It is so simple to do that it can be done regularly.
In this section I will show you what we learned, how I keep the blades sharp,
and how I have minimized snipe...I mean almost none.
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I realize that planers will differ,
however most of the portable planers are built with similar mechanisms. For me, the first
step (after the power plug is disconnected) is to remove the vacuum hood and/or chip
deflector. This will give me access to the cutter head and blades.
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It goes without saying but watch out
for the blades...even when they are dull and need sharpening they are very dangerous. I
use a rag to protect me as I rotate the cutter head to where I can access the blade.
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Now I can get a small wrench in and
loosen the blade hold-down mechanism. For this machine, there are 8 such screws that hold
the bar and blade in place. You only need to loosen them each a bit.
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Once loosen, I remove the blade.
I don't know how to do it without using bare fingers. I am careful to grip the sides. You
can use a screwdriver at the end to jar the blade loose. One thing about sharpening these
blades often is that they are easier to remove.
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I have tried using the little hand
stones that are made expressly for sharpening these blades. They are set so that one can
easily maintain the proper angle. I have the blade mounted in the bench vise. When you use
these stones, be careful to make full, even swipes and to count the number of times you
run the stone. Do the same number on the other blade to maintain balance.
That said, I don't think that this method works well for me. If any of you
readers have found a stone device that works well, please write and let me know.
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Instead, I like to sharpen the two
blades on my shop grinder. I start by placing the blade in the long blade holder.
The knobs on the left allow for positioning the blade. I start with the blade parallel to
the holder. Then I tighten down the holding screws. And yes, I am wearing a leather glove
so that I can hold the blade against the positioning screws.
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I use a black Sharpie marker to
"paint" the blade edge. I find that this makes it much easier for me to see the
grinding action.
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The blade holder sits on the sharpener's rest and allows
me to move the blade accurately back and forth. After each swipe, I look at the blade and
see how the edge is coming. This is where the blackening helps. I use the sharpener's
elevation settings to adjust the grind angle and I then make minor adjustments of the
blade holder screws as needed to evenly grind all areas.
I am not so much grinding a new edge as I am sharpening a dull edge so
I am careful to use very light strokes and to not overdo the sharpening. It takes only a
minute or two per blade and I remove very little steel—just enough to remove the
black ink.
By the way, I am using the Delta Sharpening System. It is a relatively new
addition to my shop. It works very well...even better as I add jigs to it and get the hang
of properly sharpening with it. I will cover this unit more completely in weeks to come.
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