# DeWalt DW734 Problems



## Bleedinblue (Mar 4, 2014)

I can't win with planers.

Six months or so ago I bought an old used Craftsman. It worked GREAT the little bit I used it, but when I found I couldn't find replacement blades, and I stripped the bolts on the GIB cover, I sold it. 

I bought a DW734 (refurbished) from Tyler tool. I used it to plane down some red oak and it gave me fits, bogging down a lot and tripping the circuit breaker and/or power strip, even when taking off VERY small depths at a time. I chalked it up to the 12 inch wide board. I didn't need the planer for several weeks so it's been collecting dust.

I'm starting a big project and have a bunch of rough walnut to mill up. The planer is doing the same as it did with the oak, even though most of this walnut is only 3-6 inches wide. I'm telling you, after each pass I'm turning the handle MAYBE an eighth of a turn, and it's still bogging down and tripping the circuit breaker.

This was supposed to be a really good planer. It's possible I got a lemon, or I guess it's possible I've done something in the setup (?) Right now I'm missing the old piece of junk Craftsman...that thing seemed like a workhorse and in the limited use it got, never bogged once.

Any suggestions?


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## Buckbuster31 (Oct 28, 2014)

Mine will trip occasionally... But I'm usually giving it more than it can handle with dull blades when that happens


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## hokeyplyr48 (Nov 12, 2013)

How many Amps is it pulling? Are you sure it's drawing more than it's designed too? Could be it's working fine but there's just too much going on that circuit. 

Also are the blades sharp? Dull blades make a planer work a lot harder because it's scraping the wood away instead of slicing/cutting.


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## ryan50hrl (Jun 30, 2012)

Something seems wrong....I'd take it into the dewalt service center and see what they say.


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## MT Stringer (Jul 21, 2009)

ryan50hrl said:


> Something seems wrong....I'd take it into the dewalt service center and see what they say.


+1 What he said. I have run a lot of wood through my DW734 planer with no problems encountered. It varies from poplar to hard maple, and has included walnut.

So, yes, something must be wrong.
Have you inspected the blades?


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## BigJoe16 (Feb 20, 2012)

Check the blades. I would imagine the service center put new ones or sharpened the old ones beofre they sold it as refurbished. 


Try plugging it in to a circuit with nothing else on with no extension cord or power strip. Maybe it'll help.


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## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

Couple things could be wrong. Firstly, id check the blades. If theyre dull, the motor will have to struggle more to make the cut. While youre checking for sharpness, make sure the blades arent upside down. Second thing, check the power. Take the power strip out of the equation and try again. Are you running a shopvac or dust collector with the planer? If you are, and the aforementioned sucky device is on the same circuit, hey presto pop goes the breaker. Worst comes to worst, try the planer on a different circuit.

If all else fails, well, now you know why the last guy returned it!


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## MT Stringer (Jul 21, 2009)

The blades are reversible - two cutters. I don't think they can be put in backwards, but you never can tell.


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## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

MT Stringer said:


> The blades are reversible - two cutters. I don't think they can be put in backwards, but you never can tell.


Yeah, kinda hard to put a double sided blade in upside down :laughing: I actually meant make sure the bevel was facing up, like it should be, and not down. 

Sometimes, you never know


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## Bleedinblue (Mar 4, 2014)

I do need to check the blades. I know one at least has a nick, that was evident when I first tested the planer. HOPEFULLY the problem is in the blades, but when it cuts, it cuts pretty smooth so I'm doubtful. I was running any combination of a shop vac, a box fan and air cleaner on the same circuit. I'd think the circuit was just overloaded if not for the obvious bogging down by the planer motor.

I'll check what I can and go to the repair shop if I'm not successful, I suppose.


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## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

Bleedinblue said:


> I do need to check the blades. I know one at least has a nick, that was evident when I first tested the planer. HOPEFULLY the problem is in the blades, but when it cuts, it cuts pretty smooth so I'm doubtful. I was running any combination of a shop vac, a box fan and air cleaner on the same circuit. I'd think the circuit was just overloaded if not for the obvious bogging down by the planer motor.
> 
> I'll check what I can and go to the repair shop if I'm not successful, I suppose.


I just replaced the blades on mine. I was still getting smooth cuts on mine, but taking the blades out you can see that there isnt anything even resembling an edge anymore. Something about the blade spinning does a great job of hiding a blunt edge


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## Bleedinblue (Mar 4, 2014)

Good, hopefully that's whats robbing this thing of power. I really don't want to lug this heavy thing thirty minutes away for a repair if I don't have to.


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## Bleedinblue (Mar 4, 2014)

So I inspected the blades a few days ago and everything seemed OK. They seemed fairly sharp.

On my brother in law's suggestion, I tested the planer's power usage with one of those plug in type testers (tester plugs into outlet, appliance plugs into tester, it tells how much power the unit draws) It seems to be drawing in the neighborhood of 8.5 amps, when the machine is rated for 15. Granted that was NOT under load as there was no wood being fed through, but it seems to me like that if it's operating under half power that could be the problem.

Any thoughts?


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## Kansas Gary (Nov 13, 2014)

"I was running any combination of a shop vac, a box fan and air cleaner on the same circuit".

I think this is most if not all of your problem... That is WAY to much on a 15amp breaker.. Your planer should be on its own circuit. Then your vac,box fan and air cleaner needs to be on a completely different circuit..............


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## Bleedinblue (Mar 4, 2014)

I think you nailed it Gary. I just went and checked the shop vac, and it pulls 11+ amps all by it's self. Add in the fan and air cleaner, and I'm trying to spread 15 amps amongst machines that are using 20+ 

HOPEFULLY this is all that was causing the planer to bog down. I've got some painted brake calipers that are drying on my work bench, when I can move them out I'll test the planer on it's own circuit.


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## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

Bleedinblue said:


> So I inspected the blades a few days ago and everything seemed OK. They seemed fairly sharp.
> 
> On my brother in law's suggestion, I tested the planer's power usage with one of those plug in type testers (tester plugs into outlet, appliance plugs into tester, it tells how much power the unit draws) It seems to be drawing in the neighborhood of 8.5 amps, when the machine is rated for 15. Granted that was NOT under load as there was no wood being fed through, but it seems to me like that if it's operating under half power that could be the problem.
> 
> Any thoughts?


Wouldnt worry about that. Most electric motors draw way under their rated capacity when they aren't under load.


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## Bleedinblue (Mar 4, 2014)

epicfail48 said:


> Wouldnt worry about that. Most electric motors draw way under their rated capacity when they aren't under load.


Exactly. I've become a little more educated in the past 24 hours :laughing: The overloaded circuit was touched on very early in this thread but I was thinking of it more like a "light switch" other than a machine which power use rises and falls. Instead, it ran fine when under light load, but as more was asked of the machine it was suffocating for power.


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## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

It is rather odd that the planer stalled out on an overloaded circuit instead of the breaker popping. I'd get an electrician out to check that out if I were you


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