DeWalt Planer / Thicknesser without a guard

[madmango]

I picked up this beauty for a very reasonable price, it needs some TLC - new blades, new rollers, but most importantly, it's missing a blade guard.

I was considering going with a pork chop style guard, seems easier to DIY something like this, but I've never used a planer before, and I'm going to feel a bit safer with the cutter completely covered for now.

It came from the factory with this style of guard:

There are a couple of videos of this model, but none of them had the guard installed, not sure how good the factory guard was.
I saw other P/Ts with a similar type of guard on a sprung arm, and at least on the cheaper end of the spectrum, they all seemed a bit.. floppy?
I'm leaning towards finding a used guard from a Sedgwick or a Wadkin and fitting that. The kind that is installed to the side and can raised, lowered and moved to the side for jointing.

I think I could mount/weld a piece of metal to those bars that remain from the mortising attachment.

I could drill that piece of metal and insert the bar holding the guard.

Alternatively, there is some room in the round bit that houses the mounting points for the cutter block.

I could drill it from top and bottom, where the bar for the guard would be inserted, then tap from the sides for some bolts to hold the bar in place.

The second option feels less elegant, but this way the guard is not off to the side.

The guard being offset might not be a problem though, depending on what spare I'm able to find, for example this Wadkin had an offset:

I think both could work, but not sure if I should attempt this or stick with the original sprung design, I'd love some advice from people who used both.

Thanks,
Mat

 

[Orraloon]

This may be an idea.
Plywood & Aluminium Jointer Guard - YouTube
Regards
John

 

[Fitzroy]

I picked up this beauty for a very reasonable price, it needs some TLC - new blades, new rollers, but most importantly, it's missing a blade guard.

View attachment 193250

I was considering going with a pork chop style guard, seems easier to DIY something like this, but I've never used a planer before, and I'm going to feel a bit safer with the cutter completely covered for now.

It came from the factory with this style of guard:

View attachment 193249

There are a couple of videos of this model, but none of them had the guard installed, not sure how good the factory guard was.
I saw other P/Ts with a similar type of guard on a sprung arm, and at least on the cheaper end of the spectrum, they all seemed a bit.. floppy?
I'm leaning towards finding a used guard from a Sedgwick or a Wadkin and fitting that. The kind that is installed to the side and can raised, lowered and moved to the side for jointing.

I think I could mount/weld a piece of metal to those bars that remain from the mortising attachment.

View attachment 193251

I could drill that piece of metal and insert the bar holding the guard.

Alternatively, there is some room in the round bit that houses the mounting points for the cutter block.

View attachment 193252

I could drill it from top and bottom, where the bar for the guard would be inserted, then tap from the sides for some bolts to hold the bar in place.

The second option feels less elegant, but this way the guard is not off to the side.

The guard being offset might not be a problem though, depending on what spare I'm able to find, for example this Wadkin had an offset:

View attachment 193253

I think both could work, but not sure if I should attempt this or stick with the original sprung design, I'd love some advice from people who used both.

Thanks,
Mat

I have that machine with the guard. I’ve taken the tables off as I only use it as a thicknesser now, it I can take some photos and video of the guard if you would like.

 

[madmango]

This may be an idea.
Plywood & Aluminium Jointer Guard - YouTube
Regards
John

Huh, that looks really good, the idea of fixing the guard to the base hasn't occurred to me.

I have that machine with the guard. I’ve taken the tables off as I only use it as a thicknesser now, it I can take some photos and video of the guard if you would like.

That'd be great, thanks! Have you used it in planing mode with this guard? I wonder if you have any thoughts on how well it works?

 

[Sideways]

As someone new to the PT, you are prioritising the right thing. The guard needs to be there, needs to be easy to adjust so that you always set it properly, and needs to be robust / rigid enough that if you trip, lose balance and push on it while the block is spinning, you don't lose your fingers.

I don't like pork chop guards.
I would look to fabricate something in steel, in the style of a sedgwick guard, but with the rise and fall based on those two steel bars. That had the potential to be better than what Sedgwick do and better than the dewalt original.

Check out this thread Post #70 onwards for some ideas. This was someone's replacement of a factory Sedgwick guard and I think it is better than the original. There is a photo which includes the guard back at the start of the thread too.
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/threads/sedgwick-mb-planer-thicknesser-full-refurbishment.136008/page-4

The yellow piece could certainly be made from thick aluminium.

 

[Fitzroy]

Huh, that looks really good, the idea of fixing the guard to the base hasn't occurred to me.



That'd be great, thanks! Have you used it in planing mode with this fence? I wonder if you have any thoughts on how well it works?

Not sure I know what you are asking and if you mean fence or guard, so I'll answer in a couple of ways.

I have used the machine for surface planing with the factory guard. I think it's a pretty good design, it rises as the workpiece passes under it and then drops back to the bed. I feel it would be harder to contact the blades with this guard design than with the guard on my Wadkin bft9. I have never tried to purposefully push it out the way, simulating a loss of balance, so don't know how it would fair in those circumstances.

The fence is not great, I have used the unit to edge workpieces after flattening one face and it was ok for smaller boards. Where it struggled was when the work piece became larger, ie 20+cm wide boards 30mm thick, 1500mm long, placing these on edge against the fence would cause the fence to flex and getting a consistent perpendicular edge along the whole piece if difficult.

Fitz.

 

[madmango]

Sorry @Fitzroy, I did mean the guard, I've edited the post now. That's good to hear, I think an additional advantage the factory guard has is that you don't have to take it off, or flip it around when switching between modes, it's always there.

Check out this thread Post #70 onwards for some ideas. This was someone's replacement of a factory Sedgwick guard and I think it is better than the original. There is a photo which includes the guard back at the start of the thread too.
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/threads/sedgwick-mb-planer-thicknesser-full-refurbishment.136008/page-4

I made a quick prototype, I think this could work quite well if I get my hands on a mig welder and make it out of steel, and not pine
Oddly enough, the bars are different diameters, one is 18mm, the other 19.

The only thing I'm not sure how to achieve would be a slot on the round bar, so that it 'indexes' at 90 degrees when the bolt clamps it down.

I'll wait until Saturday before I go and start buying welding machines though, there's a local guy that buys and sells lots of older machines / spares, and he told me he might have something for me this weekend as he's got some more stock coming in and he might have a guard I could retrofit.




PS, I know the guard would have to slide side to side as well, I just wanted to see how it could mount to the machine

 

[Orraloon]

It does not need to be steel. All it needs to do is keep your hands from contacting the blades. The original guard would have been aluminium. The steel blades can easily chew through that but as it will go no lower than the outfeed table then the worst the blades can do is perhaps slightly scar the underside of the guard. It can be plastic or wood and still do the job very well. Steel on steel would be a bad idea.
Actually that prototype you have rigged up could be the base for a pork chop style guard. All you need is a return spring and no height adjustment needed. My first planer had a pork chop guard and I actually think they are better. Anyhow plenty of U-toob clips for ideas.
Regards
John

 

[Jacob]

I picked up this beauty for a very reasonable price, it needs some TLC - new blades, new rollers, but most importantly, it's missing a blade guard.

View attachment 193250

I was considering going with a pork chop style guard, seems easier to DIY something like this, but I've never used a planer before, and I'm going to feel a bit safer with the cutter completely covered for now.

It came from the factory with this style of guard:

View attachment 193249

There are a couple of videos of this model, but none of them had the guard installed, not sure how good the factory guard was.
I saw other P/Ts with a similar type of guard on a sprung arm, and at least on the cheaper end of the spectrum, they all seemed a bit.. floppy?
I'm leaning towards finding a used guard from a Sedgwick or a Wadkin and fitting that. The kind that is installed to the side and can raised, lowered and moved to the side for jointing.

I think I could mount/weld a piece of metal to those bars that remain from the mortising attachment.

View attachment 193251

I could drill that piece of metal and insert the bar holding the guard.

Alternatively, there is some room in the round bit that houses the mounting points for the cutter block.

View attachment 193252

I could drill it from top and bottom, where the bar for the guard would be inserted, then tap from the sides for some bolts to hold the bar in place.

The second option feels less elegant, but this way the guard is not off to the side.

The guard being offset might not be a problem though, depending on what spare I'm able to find, for example this Wadkin had an offset:

View attachment 193253

I think both could work, but not sure if I should attempt this or stick with the original sprung design, I'd love some advice from people who used both.

Thanks,
Mat

The one in your 2nd pic is the normal design of guard for a planer. You adjust it as low as possible over the workpiece. Means you can't accidentally pop your fingers in. Very effective.
Always use two push sticks to keep your hands well away, even when using the guard. The standard design is best, avoid fancy clever variations. It takes a bit of practice to get dexterous with them but its well worth it for safety and for making the work much easier

 

[madmango]

I'm still waiting to hear on the guy that might potentially have a spare guard.
In the meantime @Fitzroy , any chance you've had to replace your feed rollers yet?
Mine are shot and not sure if it's better to recondition them or just grab a new set.

I had a look at the feed mechanism over the weekend, it's been put together slightly wrong, nothing that would have damaged the machine but slightly odd choices and the wheels weren't engaging fully, looks a lot better now.

The only thing that's slightly odd is that the lever for disengaging the feed mechanism seems to slightly undo the bolt holding it in place on the inside of the machine.

Not sure if that's just a design flaw, and you have to re-tighten it every so often, looking at the parts diagram, it doesn't look like anything is missing.

 

[Fitzroy]

I'm still waiting to hear on the guy that might potentially have a spare guard.
In the meantime @Fitzroy , any chance you've had to replace your feed rollers yet?
Mine are shot and not sure if it's better to recondition them or just grab a new set.

I had a look at the feed mechanism over the weekend, it's been put together slightly wrong, nothing that would have damaged the machine but slightly odd choices and the wheels weren't engaging fully, looks a lot better now.

The only thing that's slightly odd is that the lever for disengaging the feed mechanism seems to slightly undo the bolt holding it in place on the inside of the machine.

Not sure if that's just a design flaw, and you have to re-tighten it every so often, looking at the parts diagram, it doesn't look like anything is missing.

I have not replaced the rollers, one of mine is a little worn and I did look into replacing a few years back. At that time spare were available but expensive, and recovering them looked a better option but still expensive.

This is my worst roller area, perhaps 1mm of eroded rubber. I had some issues with the rollers slipping on the wood but I solved this by cleaning and waxing the bed of the thicknesser.

The feed mechanism on mine doesn’t look odd or that it would loosen anything.

Fitz

 

[Fitzroy]

Here’s a bunch of pictures of the guard. More for future reference than anything.

 

[madmango]

Thanks for both sets of photos!

These are my rollers for comparison, they need to go



Not sure what's up with my lever then, it looks pretty much the same, but with every push on that lever, the nut becomes slightly undone.
If I tighten it down any more, the lever doesn't move freely.
Maybe it just all needs a good clean, there might be too much friction in there with the rust on those small parts.




As for the guard, I'll stick to making an overhead style mounted on the side, what you sent looks really good, but I think it would be too hard to replicate.

 

[Fitzroy]

Thanks for both sets of photos!

These are my rollers for comparison, they need to go

View attachment 193606

Not sure what's up with my lever then, it looks pretty much the same, but with every push on that lever, the nut becomes slightly undone.
If I tighten it down any more, the lever doesn't move freely.
Maybe it just all needs a good clean, there might be too much friction in there with the rust on those small parts.

View attachment 193608
View attachment 193607

As for the guard, I'll stick to making an overhead style mounted on the side, what you sent looks really good, but I think it would be too hard to replicate.

Yes those rollers look shot, it’s interesting that it always seems to be the same end of the rollers that wears the worst.

The bolt on mine is tight and the lever rotates around the shaft end of the bolt, I expect as you say it needs a clean.

 

[meccarroll]

I had the Dewalt Planer that you now have the rubber rollers went same as yours and I replaced them (easy fix).

The original guard was quite good as it lifted as the wood was passed underneath. The guard also slid sideways to accomodate wider pieces of timber.

You need to ensure the guard can move both sideways as well as up/down as that way you can ensure yu have maximum blade cover over the exposed blades.

The idea of the guard is to cover any exposed parts of the cutter block not cover the wood being planed. If you have a large void to one side of the guard say when planing 50mm x 50mm timber your fingers could pass into the void on the left and engage with the revolving block.

 

[Phill05]

As for the guard, I'll stick to making an overhead style mounted on the side, what you sent looks really good, but I think it would be too hard to replicate.

Just come across this post I have a guard that's spare in the shed I can go look it out and get back to you with an image to see if you can use it.

Edit: add images.

Any questions let me know.

 

[madmango]

Just come across this post I have a guard that's spare in the shed I can go look it out and get back to you with an image to see if you can use it.

Edit: add images.

Any questions let me know.
View attachment 193612

View attachment 193613

That looks great! Would you mind checking how long it is? I'd need at least 26cm, fingers crossed!

 

[Phill05]

Who's a lucky so & so. overall length to cover blade is 265 mm x 80 mm wide the slot is 230 mm x 8 mm, the L shape bracket is 295 mm x 180 mm but you could make your own bracket to suit the planer.

What is even better it's Free just pay postage, If it works for you PM me your details.

 

[madmango]

PM sent, thank you! I think I can make it work.

 

[madmango]

Thanks again @Phill05 , it works like a charm!

It folds away with the table, so even better than what I had in mind initially!

I just need to make a longer guard so that it covers the entire block and make the whole affair a bit prettier.

I was just excited to see it work, I tried a few things that flopped.

I wanted to mount it to these bars on the side originally, so I wanted to straighten the bar but I couldn't get it hot enough with my puny camping stove.



Annoyingly, I got it just hot enough for me to be able to whack it out of square, but not hot enough to straighten it out. I had to heat it up again to get it back to square, but I used a different gas bottle that time which helped.

Then I tried something that I should have tried in the first place (this is going to be a recurring theme), and I checked what it'd look mounted to one of the tables.

It turned out it was the perfect length to be mounted on the side without hitting into anything.

I didn't want to tap any new holes into the table, but there's already one bolt holding the table in place which I replaced with a longer one so that it could hold one side of the mount.

The other mounting point is where the original guard was mounted I think.

I didn't want to make it out of wood initially, because wood could theoretically split if I bumped into it, I think I was just being paranoid and wanted to make it as sturdy as I can so I tried laminating some plastic and embedding a metal bar I had from a clamp into it.

The idea was that the metal bar would reach the mounting points on the table and the plastic laminated around it would hold the bar.

If anyone's ever tried to glue plastic together, you're probably chuckling to yourself right now cause you know what happened next. Plastic isn't very porous so even epoxy won't hold it.

I've cut some notches into the bar and epoxy held the metal really well, but the plastic bits could be broken with hand pressure, no good.





I ended up making the mount out of some oak I had left over from a project and it's rock solid. I need to grind one side of that bar flat for positive 90 degrees indexing, but even without it, it won't move.

The bar is held in place with a bristol lever, I tapped the oak with a very rudimentary tap that I made out of an M8 bolt and hardened. Probably didn't need to harden it for wood but it was fun to try



It works way better than I expected.

Two lessons learned in this project:

1. Try the simple thing first
2. DO NOT GLUE PLASTIC TOGETHER