Dewalt 734 Planer questions

[new2woodwrk]

Hello all,

It's been awhile since I was last here as real life has been knocking me in the head.  That and the fact that the temperature in my shop makes it impossible for me to work :(

Anyway, hopefully, someone can help me with these questions if you don't mind...

I've got my new/remanufactured Dewalt 734 set up and ran a few boards through it - all pallet boards (I break down pallets for the boards and make sure there are no nails int them with a metal detector).

A few questions if you please...

I'm noticing on the left side where the gauge is seems to cut better than the right side - is this normal?

When I run a board through it, it does not remove all of the top layer - is this because the wood maybe bowed or do the blades need replacing? It does take off about about 1/2 of the layer but leaves spots every few inches.

Is it normal to run a board through and then have to adjust the depth before running the other side through?

In the video's I've watched they only show running the board through and adjusting the height only on the first pass so very confused if I'm doing something wrong, or if the planer or blades are defective or the wood is just really poor quality.

Thanks as always in advance

[gee-dub]

A planer tries to make the cut surface parallel to the surface that is against the platen.  If you have not face jointed a reference surface you would get irregular results.

Great planer BTW, I ran one for years.

[Chestnut]

So the blades can become dull quickly when running material with dirt and debris through these planers. I suggest removing all of the dirt and debris you can before running the boards through.

When i plane material that is rough it generally takes multiple passes to clean the entire face of the board with adjustments to the cutting depth with each pass. When i flip the board (if the opposite face wasn't jointed or otherwise cleaned up) the process starts over. It wouldn't be uncommon for pallet wood to have twist or cup that would require 1/8" of material to be removed. for the DW735 (1/16th removed per wheel turn same as yours) it takes me 2 full turns of the wheel to remove 1/8". I generally do this in 4 passes.

[Ron Swanson Jr.]

I'll second what @Chestnut said and add this -generally speaking a planer will not remove twist or bowing or cupping. Sometimes it'll take cupping out but a lot of the time it'll smoosh the workpiece flat on the bed and Plane it, and when it pops out those defects will still be there. Rule of thumb is you have to use a jointer or a hand plane to take those defects out. (Or figure out another way to joint the stock. Some guys rig a router, some do edge jointing on a table saw with a sled)

Edited August 21, 2018 by applejackson
Typo

[Coop]

I agree with others. Apparently you don’t have a jointer or you’re not using it. The planer is only hitting the high sides of the board. The jointer will flatten one face, allowing the planer to flatten the other to make both parallel. 

[Chestnut]

You can make a jointing sled for you planer as well. I believer Geedub has a great one that i'm sure he would link to if asked politely. There is also this.

 

[Chip Sawdust]

I have that planer and love it. I've had it three years and still haven't swapped the blades. I mostly cut white oak, cherry and alder but have run some pine through it. No pallet wood yet, but I'm not against that. 

I think your other questions have been answered so that's all I have to add.