What style planer knife setting would you recommend?

[Trace Beard]

I dread changing my planer knives but it's time. I found a couple of different styles and wanted some feedback. Any comments or other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Trace

[Greg Portland]

The key with the magnet style setters that you've shown is that you can still adjust the knife height within the jig. In other words, do not assume that the planer head is perfectly machined to be parallel to your table height!

[Don L Johnson]

Trace,

I received the same 1/2 price offer. Since that is the cheapest I've seen any planer knife setup jigs, I jumped on the sale (it appears to be a limited sale, as there are no rainchecks or back orders). I bought the larger of the two, as it can be used for larger knives if need be. I've always liked Peachtree's products, so I'm not worried about quality.

[Kirk Poore]

I use the styles listed here:
fig9.jpg
Details on use here:
http://wiki.owwm.com/Getting%20Peak%...rformance.ashx

15 bucks for a dial indicator, a couple more for bolts, a couple of pieces scrap, and away you go.


Kirk

[Chris Fournier]

Neither of those, they are horrid in my opinion and experience. I would recommend a .001 increment dial indicator with flat contact point in a shop made fixture that references the indicator from the outfeed table. I made a simple fixture out of wood and put a large magnet in the base to hold it firmly to the outfeed table. Zero your indicator off of the outfeed table and then move it over to the knives. Set the knives with taps from a hammer via a wooden dowel and lift the knives as needed with a shop bent piece of 3/32" wire or coathanger as you tighten the gibs.

You can determine TDC for your cutterhead with the indicator and devise a way to hold it there while you take measurements and get your kives spot on. Of course you could also just sweep the knives through TDC as well.

Slide this fixture end for end and get the knife height that you want and you're ready to double check your work and enjoy fresh knives. Once you work through the process a couple of times it will be old hat and take very little time.

[george wilson]

I have never found any magnetic blade setters to be worth anything. As soon as the blade gets anywhere near tight,the magnet breaks its hold,and the blade is left not properly adjusted.

I bit the bullet and bought the Dispoz-a Blade outfit from Grizzly. It costs a little to get the blade holders,but after that,the blades PER EDGE cost less than sharpening. And,after a few grinds,you don't have too narrow blades left,and have to buy new ones. I could change the blades in the 20" Powermatic at work in 15 minutes.Before,we always put off blade changes WAY too long,planing with chipped,dull blades.

I have this system for both my 8" jointer and 15" planer at home,and would never go back to regular blades. The cost of a set or 2 of planer blades will pay for the Dispoz-a-Blade outfit. You WILL buy planer blades if you use your planer,so may as well avoid the inevitable and get the outfit.

[mickey cassiba]

I've set a lot of knives in my time, and a little wooden bock with an eighth inch ledge has served me well.YMMV

[Rob Holcomb]

I bought a set of Planer Pals for my Grizzly 15" planer. Tried them once and put them back in the box. The large ones which are supposed to be for my size planer, were too big to get into where they needed to be. I went back to the original way of setting the knives. The whole idea is to speed up the process without sacrificing accuracy. All they did was frustrate me and make my wallet a few dollars lighter.

[Dick Bringhurst]

If you use either of these magnetic type setters and you have carbide blades make sure the magnets will work on carbide. I think it takes a rare earth magnet to work with carbide. Dick B.

[Peter Quinn]

I like the kind with the little square carbide chips that get tightened with a torque wrench and connected to a shelix Byrd head. By the time you buy two or three sets of HSS knives, get them sharpened, get some crazy setting jig, learn to use it by killing a lot of wood and time, you have pretty much paid for the byrd head anyway. I just installed one after years of dealing with straight knives and am wondering why I waited so long? My planer came with a knife setting jig that worked fine for straight knives. Glad I won't be needing it any more. It gave the correct projection form my planer, and all the other settings were adjusted to it.

[Larry Edgerton]

I have never found any magnetic blade setters to be worth anything. As soon as the blade gets anywhere near tight,the magnet breaks its hold,and the blade is left not properly adjusted.

I bit the bullet and bought the Dispoz-a Blade outfit from Grizzly. It costs a little to get the blade holders,but after that,the blades PER EDGE cost less than sharpening. And,after a few grinds,you don't have too narrow blades left,and have to buy new ones. I could change the blades in the 20" Powermatic at work in 15 minutes.Before,we always put off blade changes WAY too long,planing with chipped,dull blades.

I have this system for both my 8" jointer and 15" planer at home,and would never go back to regular blades. The cost of a set or 2 of planer blades will pay for the Dispoz-a-Blade outfit. You WILL buy planer blades if you use your planer,so may as well avoid the inevitable and get the outfit.

100% in agreement here. I have had them in my jointer for 15 years.

One thing that george did not make clear is that once you switch to disposablades and set up you're initial adjustment you never have to do it again, assuming you have jack screws, because the knife height never changes.