Which Planer

[Ron S]

I have been renting a house for a while and in an apartment for the last year and my tools have been packed up in storage. In another week I am closing on a house and finally get to set my shop back up. I used to have a DW734 and hated it. Too much snipe and just never felt good about it.....so I sold it, and now I need to replace it. I've been looking at the DW735 and have heard great things about it. Was recently looking at reviews and almost everyone complained about the noise level. Some said that even with hearing protection it was too loud.

With that said, I'd like to hear some feedback from people using the DW735 and what they think of the noise level. I live alone so I'm only worried about my ears, not bothering anyone else. I'd be particularly interested in hearing from people who have the DW735 but have used other planers to get a comparison.

I have also heard that switching between speeds is a bit tricky so any thoughts on that?

And as a last request, if anyone is happy with their planer (non- DW735) and think they get high quality results, please let me know. I was considering the Delta as an alternative.

Thanks

[Neil Brooks]

I have the Ridgid 4330, and I get *fantastic* results, but ....

DW735 is the sweetheart of the benchtop planers. If need be, stick foam ear plugs IN your ears, and then ear muffs ON your ears.

;-)

[keithw86]

I have a DW735 but don't use ear protection around it. I'd likely use muffs if I were going to run it all day, but I wouldn't much enjoy putting 1000bf through it anyway. ;-)

No help. I like the DW735, though. I have it mounted on a Delta planer/miter saw stand. Works out great.

Tricky? It's a simple lever.

[Chris Friesen]

I can't see it being much louder than other planers with universal motors.

The more common complaint I've heard is that the knives dull quickly. I recently bought a stationary planer with carbide cutterhead. Much quieter than my old benchtop and less tearout.

Chris

[SonomaProducts.com]

I

What brand\model?

[Doug Miller]

In article , Ron S wrote: [...]

I think it's a loud SOB, definitely the loudest tool in my shop. We live in town, but the lots are large and the nearest neighbor is about 75 yards away, and my shop is in the basement. If your shop is in the garage, and your next door neighbor's house is only 30 feet away, he won't be happy if you're running a DW735 early in the morning or late at night.

*Anything* with a high-speed universal motor is going to be noisy. But the DW735 is probably louder than most. Definitely louder than the 12.5" Delta it replaced. Ear protection is a must.

Naaaa. It's easy as can be. Just flip a lever. The only thing even remotely "tricky" about it is that the machine has to be running to change speeds.

[joeljcarver]

I could not be more pleased, and I'd strongly suggest that you get the in-feed & out-feed tables with it.

It's no problem with top notch protection. I got a pair of "ear muffs" sold by Stihl - they're 25 dB while most others are about 18 dB. I figure that the hearing I've got left is worth a few bucks more. Since hearing damage is cumulative, it's beyond me why anyone would not wear hearing protection.

As others have pointed out - it's easy, but the machine must be running.

[Steve Turner]

Yes, absolutely. I have the Grizzly G0453 planer and the Grizzly G0440 dust collector. I don't know how many decibels these things kick out (Grizzly doesn't say in their data sheets), but it's a LOT, and I would think that just turning either machine ON (without running anything through them) would be enough noise to warrant ear protection. Because it has an induction motor this planer is relatively quiet compared to the lunchbox models with universal motors, but that ain't even half the story. I don't know what other planers sound like when you hook them up to dust collection, but the noise level on this one increases SIGNIFICANTLY when that monster collector is sucking air past the spinning knives. The planer ROARS when the collector is running (which it always is; running a planer without dust collection is madness), and that's before I even start milling wood. I can't imagine the hearing damage you would incur if you didn't wear ear protection while running a planer...

[Chris Friesen]

Mine is a Canwood. Basically the same as Pioneer but branded for the canadian market. Seems to be essentially identical to the Jet JWP-15HH.

Chris

[SonomaProducts.com]

Hmm, haven't heard of either brand but did look at the Jet (just now). Have you done any adjustment with the bed rollers and how is that working out? That is my biggest grip withthese mid range planers. They could be such better machines with better bed roll adjustment capabilities.

[Chris Friesen]

What sort of adjustment capabilities were you thinking of? Mine are on jack screws so I set them a couple thou above the bed.

Chris

[Jack]

I live in a townhouse in Northern VA and work in my garage on the ground floor. My Wife can tolerate the DW735 in the Family Room directly over the garage, She said the JDSAir Tech 750 dust filter bugs her more. My neighbors come over and talk any time they catch me in the shop, they have never commented on noise. One of them does ride a Harley...

I'm retired from the Navy and still use the wood shops on the bases (Boling AFB in DC has a superb shop), so the only comparision is against huge (24 inch) planers. But I'm pretty happy with the performance of the DW735. Jack

[Leon]

Why not spend a few hundred more and get a Grizzley stationary planer? The DeWalts are way over priced IMHO.

[Leon]

Believe it or not, the foam plugs you roll up and let expand in your ear cut

33 db... I was shocked.

[Leon]

My stationary Delta is louder when the collector is running and attached. Still quieter than the typical lunch box and or shop vac. :!)

[Puckdropper]

Ron S wrote in news:e31d5c7d-5ef7-4488-a861- [e-mail]:

Yes, it is loud. Hearing protection is a must, but if you're working with power tools inside you need hearing protection. I got a pair of Peltor H10As I use all the time in the shop.

The Shop Vac seems to be about the same loudness, maybe a little quieter than the 735.

The trickiest thing with the 735 is probably going to be chip collection. With the diverter installed, it will spew chips all over the shop. Any kind of bucket you may direct chips in to will probably fly all over the shop. A decent dust collector (or maybe just a cheapy) will be essential.

I've only had mine a few days, but it's been good so far. I'll probably have to build infeed and outfeed tables for it soon. Lowes had just the DW735 planer (and knives) for down to $550. My local one had it at $535.

Puckdropper

[Dr. Deb]

I read a review of planers a couple of issues back in the one of the wood working mags and the Ridgid came out as the third best but the most economical. Being married to a "downeaster scot" that was an important consideration. I have never regretted the purchase. It leaves a finish almost as smooth as I could/would sand and the snipe is not bad.

As a tip, I have found that if I give a bit of up pressure on the board as it exits the planer snipe almost disappears.

Deb

[Doug Miller]

In article , Puckdropper wrote: [...]

The DeWalt input/output tables show up on eBay from time to time. That's where I got mine, for about 60% of retail price.

[Larry Jaques]

On Mon, 12 Apr 2010 19:26:37 -0500, the infamous "Leon" scrawled the following:

Yeah, they work very well. But don't use the hard foam style, like HF sells. they're uncomfortable and don't dampen noise as well. The soft, orange plugs in a bell shape work the best for me, installed with the wide part of the bell inside. I sleep with earplugs and they don't hurt if they're installed backwards like that. I sleep on my side.

The $2 HF earmuffs work well, too, but I upgraded to their electronic muffs. They give you the ambient sound until a loud noise hits, then it immediately cuts out, in milli- or microseconds. They're $15 on sale quite often and work well at the range. Just me and my tinnitus, with the occasional soft pop just before something disintegrates downrange.

For hard rock concerts, wear both plugs and muffs and the sound is wonderful. ;)

-- Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn. -- John Muir

[Ron S]

I thought about the Grizzly. I took a shop class a couple years back and they had a monster 24" planer with steel infeed rollers. You had to plane something like 1/8" or else it left serrated marks in the wood. Have always been nervous about the stationary planers and if they could skim the wood and still leave a clean finish.

Amazon has the DW735 for $549 so going to a Griz would be about double the price :(