Hello All
I was wondering how well “refurbed” Dewalt 735 planers are holding up ?
Any problems so far ?
Any suggestions regarding spare parts ?
What is most likely to fail ?
What manuals or drawings should I have on hand ?
What calibration or alignment tools and jigs work for you ?
Spare blades, what do you like ?
Sorry for the number of questions, I have never
tried tuning up a 735
Al
Replies
Thanks for the reply
No I have not purchased a 735 as of yet.So far the reviews have been mixed.
When these units are working properly people seem pretty happy.It also seems that people who run the gauntlet of
trying to get Dewalt to make them happy are not satisfied.My interest in this item is that it might be ok as I don't
have any particular expectation beyond availability
of spare parts and some evidence that the design is sound.So what kind of bad luck are you having ?
Concerning DeWalt Service:
I bought mine new from a local hardware store, and waited for the feeder to stop working after reading about it here. It finally stopped after about 16 months. I took it to the local DeWalt service depot, but didn't have the receipt The service guy just asked me where I bought it, then said it was under warranty. Fixed it no charge.“Expectation strolls through the spacious fields of Time towards Opportunity.”
Umberto Eco, The Island of the Day Before
Edited 11/1/2005 5:17 pm ET by Frozen
Was this the bearing siezure problem ?Do you know if the belt is damaged as result ?
As far as I know, it was the sprocket problem. I was told that the sprocket was designed to break if the machine was overloaded, sort of like a shear pin. As others have said, the newer replacements are holding up much better.“Expectation strolls through the spacious fields of Time towards Opportunity.”
Umberto Eco, The Island of the Day Before
I have had mine almost 2 years and have ran quite a bit of wood through it with no problems, it leaves a great finish on the wood in both speeds.
The only problem reported to my knowledge on the 735 was the sprockets (on the drive chain) that failed; I had 3 machines before they replaced the sprockets. Of course, I later bought 3 sets of spare sprockets but they are so good I haven't had trouble with them yet. My guess is that a refurbished machine has had new better sprockets installed and would be okay. Someone else may have had problems other than the sprockets but I haven't seen anything reported. I LOVE the machine; way ahead in features to the Delta I previously had.
I'm guessing the sprocket issue is why there are so many refurbs are out there. And as others have said, hopefully the refurbs have a better sprocket, thereby eliminating that problem.
I considered the 735 refurb, but was just kind of unsettled about spending that kind of $$ on a refurb item. The 735 gets rave reviews for a lot of its features, but it is getting close to the price of a stationary machine. It is neither fish nor fowl in a way. The refurb prices bring it much more inline with the other benchtop planers.
That said, I got the new Delta 2-speed and I am very happy so far. Leaves a super smooth finish on what I have been planing (western cedar) and the dust chute clears almost all the dust/shavings with just my shopvac hooked to it. Plus, the $300 pricetag new was appealing.
The problem that was first thought to be sprocket failure was actually bearing seizure that caused the sprocket to blow out. Seems the bearings would seize when they got hot but by the time you got the sprockets changed they were cool again and everything seemed fine until the next seizure. That was a 2004 production run that was recalled. Since then there haven't been any complaints from my customers.
As for refurb's, you get what you pay for and usually there is a reason for every failure beyond just replacing a couple of parts. The question is, do you feel lucky.
Steve
"You can either be smart or pleasant, I was once smart but now I'm pleasant. I like being pleasant better." Jimmy Stewart - Harvey
So...Does anyone have part numbers for the bearings and sprocket ?
Any problems during field replacement ?How about blades ?Has anyone used anything besides those sold by dewalt ?
FWIW, if it wasn't the sprockets why did they redesign them? The new sprockets ,just from looking at them, are significantly different from the older ones I had. Maybe they did both but when I put the new sprockets on the same machine, I have had no problems. If it had been the bearings, I would have expected a failure despite the new sprockets.
Here's Tool Guy's original post on the DeWalt problem (whatever happened to ToolGuy anyway?). For those who didn't cross paths with him, IIRC he is a tool dealer with a goodly sized shop who sold to hobbyists and contractors alike:
[From June 2004]: Just an FYI for anyone who has had problems with broken sprockets on these machines. The problem is caused by a design flaw which causes the bearings to seize and the sprockets to break. This problem has been corrected in models produced after February of 2004. There is a date code/bar code on the side of the box that indicates the production run. If it reads 2004 its O.K. if it reads 2003 then there is a chance that you will have a problem. It is not occuring on every planer and other than this the planers are performing well above average.
The customers that I have sold them to and have not had a problem are saying nothing but good stuff. Those that have had problems are still saying good things because DeWalt is addressing the problem in a highly professional manner and taking very good care of their customers. forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
Just got mine from a buy on ebay. Factory refurb. Works great! The handle was damaged but one call and they are sending a replacement. (black tape is going to work till it arrives) I have spare blades on hand. The fan assist blowes very hard and fills my 1hp dust collector bags without turning it on.
"The fan assist blowes very hard and fills my 1hp dust collector bags without turning it on." Cracks me up! I will forever remember the post made by a canister-filter DC owner who hooked up his DeWalt 735 with too short a run of hose from the planer to the DC. Darned thing worked so well, the inside of the cartridge became impaled with wood! Yep, that fan works reaaaalllllll good!
Enjoy, glad you got a good one!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
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