Thread: 6" jointer blades, sharpen or replace

Sharpen them if every time you get a chip in your knives you replace it will soon get very expensive

get an extra set, then send these out to be sharpened. By your description you need to sharpen more often as the blades are breaking down from being used dull. If you do happen to get a nick in a blade you can shift one of the cutters slightly so the nicks don't line up. When the blades start to get dull you can put in the second set and send the other out for sharpening.

Thanks fellas,

I agree I should sharpen the knives more often. I think I was fooled because the machine was still producing a good finish although it was starting to get a bit less effective. When ridges started appearing on the timber I realized I had to do something. I'll probably get a shock when I get some sharp blades in there.

So I'll buy some new knives today and drop the old ones off to be sharpened. I'm going to contact Henry Bros this morning to see if they do it.

Peter.

OK, Henry Bros will sharpen the three knives for $11.00 each, a new set from Hare and Forbes is $51.00. I'll buy the new ones today and get the old ones sharpened soon so I always have a sharp set on hand.

Thanks for the advice

Regards,
Peter.

Hi 3 Toed Sloth,

You simply can't do good joinery with blunt blades in either buzzer or thicknesser. The blunt blades bash some of the wood fibrers down into the planed board instead of cutting them off cleanly. Then you sand the timber getting off some of the bashed down fibres but not all even though you get a nice smooth surface. Then you finish and polish the job.

Usually about three months later the client appears at the work shop door. The surfaces of your job have gone all woibly as the crushed fibers expand slowly and come back to the surface. I'll leave you to figure out the rest.

My father told me that story when I was about 14 and I've never felt a need to learn it for myself over the ensuing 60 years.

Suggest you thoroughly brush all timber for the buzzer and thicknesser with a stiff hearth brush before launching them into the machine. I'm working on the assumption that you wouldn't be feeding in second hand timber?

Cheers Old Pete

Thanks Old Pete, point taken. I've got the new blades, will fit tomorrow. No second hand timber going through but I do work mainly with Aussie hardwoods. From now on knives will be kept sharp.