Delta 22-562 12-1 2-Inch Steel Knife for 22-560 Planer (2-Pack)

Customer Reviews & Comments
Okay--I have the planer, and I have bought the spare blades. Both are great. I have a Makita planer as well, and the Delta, in my opinion, rates right up there with it. I just want to write a few words about the importance of sharp blades, and how to keep them that way. When you replace the blades, you are going to notice an immediate difference. The new blades are exceptionally sharp. The planer will make a lot less noise, and the wood will slide through easily. This goes for very wide planks of very hard woods. The two hardest woods I have planed are bubinga (used for guitar backs) and olivewood. Both are dense, hard, and heavy. A 12" wide board seems to glide through with a new blade. The thing is, a new blade doesn't stay "new" for that long, particularly if you are planing a lot, and are planing hard woods. So--after years and years of planing--here are a few things I have learned for keeping your blades sharp. First--sharpen them with the Hone-Mate, which you can get from Woodworker's Supply (www.woodworker.com). This tool is meant for jointers, but it works great on planer blades, and the best thing is, you can sharpen them right there on the planer without taking them off. In 5 minutes, you're done. This will easily triple the life of your blades. It costs about $40, and I recommend the diamond version. Second--sharpen often. The duller a blade is, the faster it wears--both on itself, on the planer, and on your nerves as you try to force a piece of wood through an increasingly noisy planer. Sharpening often also reduces nicks and tear-outs. Third--plane in the right direction. Most woods, particularly hardwoods, have a certain slope to their grain. Feel the wood, with the grain, from one side to the other. Your hand will probably slide over it more easily in one direction than the other. The direction that your hand slides over smoothest is the direction that you should be feeding your board into the planer. It will give you a smoother board and save your blades some wear. Finally--if your wood is really hard, wet it with a sponge before planing. Let the water soak in for about 30 seconds. This dramatically softens the grain, and eases planing. Don't worry too much about the wood getting wet and warping. With hardwoods, the water doesn't soak in much, and the wet wood is removed in one or two passes through the planer. I have used this technique when my blades were beyond sharpening and I didn't have a spare on hand. I've planed literally thousands of board feet with my two planers. Sharp blades are a joy to work with, and take a lot of frustration out of woodworking. I hope these suggestions are useful. In any case, your blades will eventually wear out, so keep a set of spares on hand. Happy woodworking!