Setting The Knives
Now that the Planer Pal® Jigs are properly adjusted for your planer, the knives can be replaced. You’ll achieve the best results by removing and replacing knives one at a time, leaving the rest tightened in place.
TO SET YOUR KNIVES
1.Remove the first knife and replace with a newly sharpened knife. Let the knife protrude above the cutterhead more than the others, so the jigs can push the knife in place. Tighten the gib bolts enough to still allow free movement of the knife and gently push down on the jigs until the magnets contact the knife and the cutterhead. If you are using two jigs, place one at each end of the cutterhead. A third, if necessary, should be placed in the center, equal distance between the other jigs.
2.When all of the jigs are in place, the gib bolts may be tightened. Do this gradually, by turning each bolt once and moving on to the next. If some bolts are inaccessible due to jig placement, return and tighten them after the others have been fully secured.
3.Repeat the first two steps on the remaining knives.
NOTE: Look from the side of the jig to make sure the knife is contacting the middle of the center bar as shown in the illustra- tion. This will assure consistent knife height.
Additional Tips
It’s not always necessary to replace knives that have been nicked. You can often reset the nicked blades by slightly offsetting the knives from side to side so the nicks are no longer aligned with each other. This can be done after you have prepared the jigs as shown on the back of this page (Steps 1 - 4). Set the jigs on the cutterhead, loosen the knives (one at a time), slide them slightly to the left or right and retighten. Proceed to the next knife and offset to the opposite direction as the first. This method is an ideal way to deal with small nicks. Knives with larger nicks should be removed from the machine and taken to a qualified saw and knife sharpener. However, be sure to prepare your jigs prior to removal of the knives so that you may easily reset them to the exact height when you replace them.
REMEMBER: Always alternate the surfaces of your wood when taking multiple passes with your planer. Your workpieces will be more likely to retain dimensional stability if you remove material from both sides.
If the knives have been removed before you are able to adjust your jigs, you can use an alternative method to set them. Place the Planer Pal® jig on your cutterhead and lower the center bar until it comes in contact with the cutterhead. Insert feeler gauges (equal to the knife protrusions recommended in your planer’s manual) between the center bar and the cutterhead and tighten the jig’s setscrews. Repeat the process on the remaining jigs.
Once the knives have all been reset, return the chipbreaker and chip deflector to their original locations.
Injury May Occur. If, for any reason, you believe that the knives have been reset higher than previous levels, it’s essential that you
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Woodstock International, Inc. 10/05 | Protected by U.S. Patent #5,020,228 |