Unsafe? Broken planer cutterhead lock
(OK, so my second question on the same day… you can tell I’m trying to get a lot done!)
Two days ago, as I’m rushing (shame on me) to get some new designs ready for a show next month, my cutterhead lock breaks on my almost-three-year old, Delta, 12-1/2″, one-speed benchtop planer. The knob just spins and spins. I spent a certain amount of time trying to figure it out myself, and I think I know where the problem lies, it’s just buried so deep in the machinery that I’m sure I’ll ruin the whole thing if I tear it apart.
The customer service guy at Delta was friendly but not very helpful. I called the local authorized Delta repair folks, and they were pretty dodgy about what the problem might be and how long it would take to fix it.
So, I decided to go ahead and finish the milling and planing job. I took very shallow cuts, in order not to overload the blades or motor, and regularly checked and compared the board thicknesses to make sure that they were staying consistent.
I know that the cutterhead lock is part of the snipe-prevention package. I didn’t notice any appreciable change, but I’m usually pretty careful about avoiding and accounting for snipe. I guess my real question is, is this dangerous, operating the planer without the cutterhead lock? I did keep out of the line of fire, just in case, but I still have more milling to do before these current, urgent projects are done. As far as I can tell, the planer is working perfectly, otherwise.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts.
David (yeah, the guy whose tablesaw motor fried itself last week, too!)
“The world that was not made is not won by what is done” — Mundaka Upanishad
Replies
Most early planers didn't have cutter head locks and they are not a safety item. The locks are meant to help reduce snipe but you can use the machine without the lock in complete safety. At most you'll have a little more snipe and it is possible, but not probable, that the thickness setting could change slowly as you are using the machine. Ive used a lot of machines and they usually have the same amount of snipe with or without the lock engaged.
John W.
Well, It wouldn't bother me safety wise about the lock, just that it might have broken off, and harmed some other part. Or it might fall off and further damage the machine. Anything bent or hanging that might come into contact with the knives is bad. If you can tell what is wrong, and if it doesn't look like it will be a problem, then that might answer your question.
Tom
John and Tom, thank you both for your quick replies. I'm glad to know the cutterhead lock has nothing to do with safety, other than making sure a loose part doesn't get ejected while the blades are spinning.
I'm also glad to know that I haven't lost a second machine in as many weeks!
David"The world that was not made is not won by what is done" -- Mundaka Upanishad
Davamoore,
I hardly ever use the lock..I have long infeed and outfeed tables don't need it. You have seen the parts list on delta's support page?...that helps diagnosis..
Thanks BG... yeah, I used the parts pages that came with the owners manual when I was trying to diagnose the problem and when speaking to the Customer Service rep... if you know how to read them, those parts pages and assembly diagrams are pretty helpful!
David"The world that was not made is not won by what is done" -- Mundaka Upanishad
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