I own a DJ20 8″ Delta jointer. I wanted to sharpen the knives. In order to sharpen the knives you need to remove the blades from the wheel. There are four tightening bolts to secure each blade. The directions said turn clockwise to loosen. 5 minute job right? Wrong. six of the bolts would not move and subsequently were stripped. I used WD 40, bolt loosening stuff, and got 2 of them loose this way. The remaining 4 I had to cut the bolts. I got em all out without any damage to the machine. now I need new bolts to replace the old ones. I looked at Delta’s website and they would sell them for .79 a piece and $7 shipping. $16.48 seems awfully pricey for 12 bolts. Here is the question. Is there anything special about these bolts that I would need to get them directly from Delta or can I just go to Home Depot and replace them with the same size bolts. I noticed the head of the bolts I took off were some what rounded at the top. I was thinking if I found the matching size at the hardware store i could round the tops on my sander. Any thoughts?
Kenney66
Replies
I would expect those bolts to be hardened. HD bolts are soft.
would you think HD would sell hardened bolts as well? They sure did not seem hardened while I was trying to get them off.
nevermind delta is sending me some free replacements, they were very nice
I would use the bolts from Delta. If you use ordinary hardware store bolts they may not work as well which could lead to a thrown knife. Also the rounded head of the bolt is important, if the head isn't evenly shaped the bolt will shift the knife out of position as it is tightened.
Of course, if the machine is new Delta should send you the bolts without charge, since they were apparently overtightened at the factory.
If the knives have already been replaced in the past, whoever installed the knives has probably been over tightening the bolts at least occasionally. The bolts only need to be tightened with moderate force to hold the knives solidly. Overtightening leads to crushing of the threads and eventually they will either seize or strip out.
Be sure to use a good wrench that fits the bolt heads properly, which probably means replacing the wrench that came with the machine. Also, be sure the bolt heads and threads are clean and smooth and apply a small touch of lubricant to them before threading them into the gib.
John White, Shop Manager, Fine Woodworking Magazine
John you are a good man. I thought that the round hheads had some major significance. I appreciate the advice. as I said a little earlier, Delta is sending 12 new ones at no charge.
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