Delta 12.5'' portable planer

[torontocarpenter]

I bought this Delta 12.5'' portable planer 4 monthes ago, it was working fine. Today, when I put the wood in, it doesn't move any more, even I push hard, it is hardly moving. After checking, I found that the front roller doesn't move when the moter is running, does any one else have the same problem?

Thanks

[<marierdj]

I have one. When I use it with wood that contain lots of resin like white pine gum accumulates on the surface of the bottom table and rollers. First I remove the electrical power completely from the planer. Then I use mineral spirit to clean the table and rollers. I also apply bees wax on the surface of the bottom steel table to reduce friction. This 12.5" planer is not made or design for heavy work. You can only remove less than a 1/64" in one pass. Half of 1/64" is even better especially when you working with hard wood like maple and oak. If your planer is stored and used in a unheated garage it will accumulate condensation and dust. Along with wood that has been stored in the same way you will have friction on your planer table. So when the planer has been unused for a while I clean and wax its table and check the rollers. It is not a bad thing to make sure that there is no abrasive matter on the surface of the wood to be planed. If all this failed you should contact Delta to find a fix and maybe have it repaired under warranty.

[Lowell Holmes]

I do the same thing except I wax the table with Johnson's wax. I also wax everything in the shop that can rust. The jointer particularly requires wax for rust protection and the wood feeds through the jointer easier.

I recently installed an Incra miter gage on my cs. It is the $59 one. I attached a piece of wood to the gage that is 1 1/8" thick x 2 1/2" X 14" long. After waxing the saw table, it is almost feels like a sliding table.

I don't know why I threw that other stuff in, but I feel like properly waxed surfaces are a safety device. :-)

[torontocarpenter]

Thanks for the reply. I opened the side, and turn on the machine, I see the chain doesn't move at all, maybe it is loose. Any planer do you recommend?

[Leon]

The front roller should be turning. You can clean that roller and wax the base all you want but until you have the unit repaired, it ain't gunna work. Sounds like a broken key or broken gear.

[<marierdj]

More than likely, if every thing fails after cleaning and waxing, as you have stated it may be a broken key or gear. That why, after only four months of usage, I end it up saying to contact Delta to review the problem. They have contracts with most local tool repair shops. The thing is to make sure that Delta gives you a valid work order to have the planer appraised and then repaired. In some cases it may cost them less to replace it then repairing it. Then the repair shop may have to wait to get the right parts to repair the planer. In my case it took about three weeks. If the Service shop's report indicate that the planer was abused and not used as shown in the instruction book you may have to convince Delta otherwise. At the end of the day all I can say is that I did not have any problem with Delta concerning their warranty. Good luck and keep up informed of the outcome.

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[Leon]

Perhaps you missed the part where the OP stated,

After checking, I found that the front roller doesn't move when the moter is running.

[torontocarpenter]

I spoke to the delta service in my city, when he heard the roller not running, he said it could be something broken, and ask me to bring in. Will keep you posted.

Thx