# Helix planer head -- comments pls.



## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

Hi,

I have the opportunity to pick up a helix head for my planer, SteelCity 40200. I've read a bunch of comments from a variety of sources with mixed reviews. Some of the pros in the cabinet world prefer straight high speed steel (HSS) blades for nice clean work, carbide for hawking off material and helix seems not recommended except for hobbyists.

I'd welcome opinions as to your preferences and actual experience with helix heads. I can pick up a helix head for the price of four sets of HSS knives. (I'll be burning through knives soon working with hard, dried, sugar maple)

Thanks for the help.


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Hi Ron,
I thought about switching to one as a retro fit on my King, but it was several hundred dollars. They are supposed to be quite a bit less noisy and need less power. Were the bad reviews about getting everything the same height? I had heard bad reviews on carbide knives regarding chipping when hitting hard knots such as Western Red Cedar. Maybe they have come up with a better grade since then.


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

Hi Charles:

Thanks for the reply. 



Cherryville Chuck said:


> Hi Ron,
> I thought about switching to one as a retro fit on my King, but it was several hundred dollars.


The only way that I can justify it is that there's actually four blades on the helix but two on the straight knives. Mine are reversible. Mine are $40 per set of 3 so that's 5 sets for the price of the helix. I figure I'm going to go through that this year alone. 



Cherryville Chuck said:


> They are supposed to be quite a bit less noisy and need less power.


Haven't heard that part yet.



Cherryville Chuck said:


> Were the bad reviews about getting everything the same height?


It was something along those lines. They were commenting that the helix left slight lines. That said, I use scrapers to finish all my work so that becomes a moot point.



Cherryville Chuck said:


> I had heard bad reviews on carbide knives regarding chipping when hitting hard knots such as Western Red Cedar. Maybe they have come up with a better grade since then.


The comments I saw were along the same lines for the carbide. Also that the carbide couldn't be sharpened as sharp as the HSS.

Thanks Charles. Talk soon!

Ron


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## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

Ron, since we know spiral cutters make cleaner cuts than straight bits this seems like a good idea. Carbide can be sharpened the same as HSS, this is a quality issue. If people are not getting good clean results it sounds like a design problem.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi

Mike the Ford man has one on his machine and likes it. drop him a PM/Email and I'm sure he can help with your questions..


===


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## Phil P (Jul 25, 2010)

Hi Ron

Spiral indexable carbide tips are used in the pro world, but generally in conjunction with a thickness (wide belt) sander as they can leave parallel witness marks down the surface of the work

Regards

Phil


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

Ron, 
one other point in favor of HSS knives is the homemade sharpening jig posted by Derek Willis a little while back. Using his jig and the microfine sandpaper we get from Lee Valley, you should be able to sharpen your own blades most of the time.


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

Phil P said:


> Hi Ron
> 
> Spiral indexable carbide tips are used in the pro world, but generally in conjunction with a thickness (wide belt) sander as they can leave parallel witness marks down the surface of the work
> 
> ...


Hi Phil:

Thanks for the insight. I've heard of the thicknessing sander but, unfortunately, I have a sanding drum. Besides, I use a scraper for finishing.

So the question remains -- given my situation would you switch to helix or stay with straight blades?

;-) ain't I a pain in the ---?

Ron


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

Cherryville Chuck said:


> Ron,
> one other point in favor of HSS knives is the homemade sharpening jig posted by Derek Willis a little while back. Using his jig and the microfine sandpaper we get from Lee Valley, you should be able to sharpen your own blades most of the time.


Hi Charles:

Ok, my concern is with such a small exposed cutting edge, any sharpening will throw off the dimensions of the blade. My straight blades are only 1/2" wide and 1/8" thick. Remove even a 1/64th will change their dimension. The actual cutting protrusion is barely a 32nd, if that. Sharpening even a little could have a dramatic effect. That said, I've just found that Ryobi planer blades fit as well. They're $30 per set of 3.

Thanks for the comment Charles. Definitely worth considering and perhaps testing.

Ron


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## AxlMyk (Jun 13, 2006)

I put a Byrd SHELIX on my DeWalt DW735 and love it. Instead of waking the dead in the cemetery 5 miles away, I can use it without hearing protection. It requires less work of the motor.

The lines it leaves are very slight, and can be removed with light sanding or a cabinet scraper.
It's nice to change when a cutter does go bad. Remove it, put a new one on, and away you go.

There is another type of cutter that often gets confused with the Byrd. It's a Helical head. It has straight knives that wrap around the cutting head. They cut on an angle to shear the wood off, as does the Byrd. But when you nick a knife, you replace the whole thing, not just one small cutter.

I'm restoring a 1938 J.D. Wallace 8" jointer right now. It has what they called a SKEW head. The knives are straight like on any other jointer, but the gib slots are cut on an angle, or skewed. An early helical head. Since the knives are skewed, they have a slight crown in them to make up the difference in height needed. They need to be sharpened, or jointed, while mounted in the cutter head.
Here's a pic of it.


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## Phil P (Jul 25, 2010)

allthunbs said:


> I've heard of the thicknessing sander but, unfortunately, I have a sanding drum. Besides, I use a scraper for finishing.
> 
> So the question remains -- given my situation would you switch to helix or stay with straight blades?


As long as you are happy to scrape or sand afterwards, yes. TC-RT tips are really cheap and easy to replace as said elsewhere - I use quite a few TC-RT router cutters in my job and I'm very happy with them. I brought up the issue simply to point out that you won't necessarily get a ready to use finish off these cutter heads

Regards

Phil


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

Hi Phil:



Phil P said:


> As long as you are happy to scrape or sand afterwards, yes.


One of the selling points of planers is that there need not be sanding or scraping after planing, yet here's a situation where sanding or scraping are all recommended by those who use them.

On the other hand, I've used planer knives well beyond their replacement requirements just to use a "scrap" blade on softwood. That left ridges and scallops where the blade was nicked or where the softwood was torn, not cut. I can just imagine the trouble I'll have on hardwoods.



Phil P said:


> TC-RT tips are really cheap and easy to replace as said elsewhere - I use quite a few TC-RT router cutters in my job and I'm very happy with them.


What are TC-RT tips? How much is "really cheap"?



Phil P said:


> I brought up the issue simply to point out that you won't necessarily get a ready to use finish off these cutter heads


Excellent, that's what I'm looking for. Thanks for your candour.

Ron


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

Hi Mike:

Thanks for the comments.



AxlMyk said:


> I put a Byrd SHELIX on my DeWalt DW735 and love it. Instead of waking the dead in the cemetery 5 miles away, I can use it without hearing protection. It requires less work of the motor.


Ok, things are getting a bit squirrly. I need you to picture your cutterhead in your mind. All of your "inserts" are lined up in a row and at an angle to the axis of the head. Steel City supplies Helical Heads for several of their planers but the "inserts" are spaced all around the head. The only place I've seen a picture is in the manual for the Steel City 40300H. I could easily see that this head would be alot quieter since only one tiny cutter is cutting at any single moment. I could see improved chip extraction since the chips are coming faster and fewer at a time. However, they caution that the cutterhead must be kept clean, especially when changing "inserts."

Does any of this match your experience?



AxlMyk said:


> The lines it leaves are very slight, and can be removed with light sanding or a cabinet scraper. It's nice to change when a cutter does go bad. Remove it, put a new one on, and away you go.


Sounds sort of like the impression left on the end of a board from snipe.



AxlMyk said:


> There is another type of cutter that often gets confused with the Byrd. It's a Helical head. It has straight knives that wrap around the cutting head. They cut on an angle to shear the wood off, as does the Byrd. But when you nick a knife, you replace the whole thing, not just one small cutter.
> 
> I'm restoring a 1938 J.D. Wallace 8" jointer right now. It has what they called a SKEW head. The knives are straight like on any other jointer, but the gib slots are cut on an angle, or skewed. An early helical head. Since the knives are skewed, they have a slight crown in them to make up the difference in height needed. They need to be sharpened, or jointed, while mounted in the cutter head.
> Here's a pic of it.


At this point I list three helical cutterheads: the Byrd which you have, the Hermance which appears to be the German-built equivalent and the one used by SteelCity. Does anyone know of any others?

Thanks for the comments Mike.

Ron


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

*partial summer for your comments pls.*

This summary deals specifically with cutterheads that use small square "inserts" that are arranged in a pattern around a planer or jointer cutterhead.

This summary is intended as a reference for 13" planers of the "portable" class used by many hobbyists and small cabinet shops.

- They are a lot quieter. Noise reduction is considered the major benefit.

- they put far less stress on an electric motor so the motor runs cooler

- they do not produce as smooth a surface as long High Speed Steel knives. This may be satisfactory for immediate glue ups but furniture needs to be sanded or scraped.

- they handle difficult and chippy materials better than HSS straight knives

- material is always removed in the rotation direction sometimes leading to material blow out on the side the chips are removed from - that said another comment is that spiral produces less tearout (I would think this the same as "blow out.")

- extended run times between blade changes

- faster feed speeds - possible but this is anecdotal and I have no proof.

- potential problem with staining - it seems that stains are absorbed differently when using helical heads as opposed to straight heads. It might have something to do with the angle at which the "inserts" are ground. I quote 

Helical cutterheads 

_Contributor B_ "No matter how much we sanded, those carbide teeth (rubs, I guess) stood out like a sore thumb"

I welcome any comments you might have. This is posted to solicit discussion, not to state fact and is based on hearsay and not evidence.

*Possible manufacturers/vendors:*

http://www.byrdtool.com

http://www.hermance.com

http://www.aceco.com (AceCo is rumoured to have a helical head but I can find no evidence of it.)

There is the "Newman Whitney Quiet Cut head" but it is a spiral cutterhead and not a collection of individual "inserts" spaced around the head. The "Whitney" is called a Helical but for our purposes it is considered a "solid knife" head.


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## Phil P (Jul 25, 2010)

allthunbs said:


> What are TC-RT tips? How much is "really cheap"?


TC-RT = Tungsten carbide replaceable tip or turn-over knives, etc. From what I've seen these heads tend to use multiple tips of 12 x 12 x 1.5mm size with a cutting edge on each face (thus four "uses" before replacement). I use tips like that on router cutters and my supplier currently charges about £1.27 per tip or around US$1.60 when you take the UK sales tax off (see TK12/TK12B), bought in tens. 

From a practical point the guys selling these are not telling the truth when they say that the cutters leave no witness lines. Any multi-segment cutter will always leave witness marks, even when new. This is caused by variations in maching the cutter block, variations in the thickness of the tips themselves, dirt or dust on the cutter beds, etc. (all of which may only be a few thous - 1/1000s of an inch - but they are cumulative) not to mention the fact that the turn-over tips take a lot more of a pounding out at the extremes of the inserts which leads to rounding of the tips, another source of witness marks when the tips are turned. On that subject you will need to establish a method of working when you are turning the tips, clockwise or anticlockwise, as well as recording the number of times you've turned the tips - all this ensures that you don't waste time turning all the tips only to find that you're re-using already worn-out ones (a taped note under the cover should suffice)

In real terms on conventional planers and thicknessers knives are often run with minor nicks in them rather than swapping them out for fresh cutters because you pretty much always need to sand-out planer ripple marks (scallops) on finished surfaces. RT helical cutter heads are no different in that respect, and in the same way if they allow faster feed speeds (because the moter is under less strain) you are going to get coarser scallops to deal with in sanding

Regards

Phil


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## Cherryville Chuck (Sep 28, 2010)

allthunbs said:


> Hi Charles:
> 
> Ok, my concern is with such a small exposed cutting edge, any sharpening will throw off the dimensions of the blade. My straight blades are only 1/2" wide and 1/8" thick. Remove even a 1/64th will change their dimension. The actual cutting protrusion is barely a 32nd, if that. Sharpening even a little could have a dramatic effect. That said, I've just found that Ryobi planer blades fit as well. They're $30 per set of 3.
> 
> ...


Ron, 
Sharpening to different sizes doesn't make a difference on either my planer or jointer. Both use blade setting jigs that set the blades exposed edges compared to the cutter head. The backs could be running at a good angle and it wouldn't make any difference at all. Unless yours uses some other method it should work the same. 

I have never finished a board from either machine that I didn't have to sand or scrape first to remove chatter marks. You are using a rotary head on a flat plane, it is the nature of the beast. Much slower feed speeds and lighter cuts help but don't eliminate the problem.

I saw the comment that someone couldn't get even staining. I wonder if some of the segments were dull and were burnishing the wood? That would close some of the pores and cause the problem described. Light sanding wouldn't even help.

I, like you, am interested in the member input here. Thought about changing my 16" King about ten years ago but couldn't justify it at the time. Mine will take 1/8" cut with its 2hp 220v motor. Quieter would be nice but I have good ear muffs. The one big selling point for me would be the ability to change only the affected segments when something causes nicks, and it will happen no matter how careful you are. (I have cut western red cedar in near darkness with a chain saw and you can watch the sparks fly from grit grown into the wood. Stellite was invented in the 50s in Indonesia to solve a similar but more severe problem there.)


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

Hi Phil:



Phil P said:


> TC-RT = Tungsten carbide replaceable tip or turn-over knives, etc. From what I've seen these heads tend to use multiple tips of 12 x 12 x 1.5mm size with a cutting edge on each face (thus four "uses" before replacement). I use tips like that on router cutters and my supplier currently charges about £1.27 per tip or around US$1.60 when you take the UK sales tax off (see TK12/TK12B), bought in tens.


Good info for Brits.



Phil P said:


> From a practical point the guys selling these are not telling the truth when they say that the cutters leave no witness lines. Any multi-segment cutter will always leave witness marks, even when new. This is caused by variations in maching the cutter block, variations in the thickness of the tips themselves, dirt or dust on the cutter beds, etc. (all of which may only be a few thous - 1/1000s of an inch - but they are cumulative) not to mention the fact that the turn-over tips take a lot more of a pounding out at the extremes of the inserts which leads to rounding of the tips, another source of witness marks when the tips are turned. On that subject you will need to establish a method of working when you are turning the tips, clockwise or anticlockwise, as well as recording the number of times you've turned the tips - all this ensures that you don't waste time turning all the tips only to find that you're re-using already worn-out ones (a taped note under the cover should suffice)


Ok, all of this info cannot be lost. That said, the helix head cutters for the SteelCity Planers have an index mark on the cutters. They also only cut on two sides. Position the index mark in one position for "side 1" and rotate 90 degrees for "side 2."



Phil P said:


> In real terms on conventional planers and thicknessers knives are often run with minor nicks in them rather than swapping them out for fresh cutters because you pretty much always need to sand-out planer ripple marks (scallops) on finished surfaces. RT helical cutter heads are no different in that respect, and in the same way if they allow faster feed speeds (because the moter is under less strain) you are going to get coarser scallops to deal with in sanding


I'm going to answer this in Charle's message below.


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

Hi Charles:



Cherryville Chuck said:


> Ron,
> Sharpening to different sizes doesn't make a difference on either my planer or jointer. Both use blade setting jigs that set the blades exposed edges compared to the cutter head. The backs could be running at a good angle and it wouldn't make any difference at all. Unless yours uses some other method it should work the same.


The SteelCity 40200 has two small alignment pins for each blade. There are two matching slots in the blade. The blade is positionned on the pins and slid over to one end of the slot. Tighten it down. Should the blades get nicked, loosen off one of the blades and slide it over the length of the slot. The nicks won't line up and you get a relatively clean cut.

These alignment pins preclude the possibility of sharpening the blades. There's barely 1/32" that protrudes beyond the breaker.



Cherryville Chuck said:


> I have never finished a board from either machine that I didn't have to sand or scrape first to remove chatter marks. You are using a rotary head on a flat plane, it is the nature of the beast. Much slower feed speeds and lighter cuts help but don't eliminate the problem.


I agree. I've become quite accustomed to using a cabinet scraper on maple but on structural stuff like posts and beams, I just us a sander. Most of the time it's just going to be painted.



Cherryville Chuck said:


> I saw the comment that someone couldn't get even staining. I wonder if some of the segments were dull and were burnishing the wood? That would close some of the pores and cause the problem described. Light sanding wouldn't even help.


That's a plausible explanation.



Cherryville Chuck said:


> I, like you, am interested in the member input here. Thought about changing my 16" King about ten years ago but couldn't justify it at the time. Mine will take 1/8" cut with its 2hp 220v motor. Quieter would be nice but I have good ear muffs. The one big selling point for me would be the ability to change only the affected segments when something causes nicks, and it will happen no matter how careful you are. (I have cut western red cedar in near darkness with a chain saw and you can watch the sparks fly from grit grown into the wood. Stellite was invented in the 50s in Indonesia to solve a similar but more severe problem there.)


Interesting comment. It's not very often that dirt is considered in wood. That stuff can really wreck a set of blades. 

Time for a rethink.

Thanks all for the input. 

Ron


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## BigJimAK (Mar 13, 2009)

*Sharpening*



allthunbs said:


> Hi Charles:
> 
> Ok, my concern is with such a small exposed cutting edge, any sharpening will throw off the dimensions of the blade. My straight blades are only 1/2" wide and 1/8" thick. Remove even a 1/64th will change their dimension. The actual cutting protrusion is barely a 32nd, if that. Sharpening even a little could have a dramatic effect. That said, I've just found that Ryobi planer blades fit as well. They're $30 per set of 3.
> 
> ...


Ron,

If they're dinged then you're right, just replace them, but I've friends who claim great results honing the back side with an 8000 grit waterstone to bring the edge back. They say trying to sharpen the bevel does exactly as you say.

Still, my ionfo is second-hand. YMMV.


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

BigJimAK said:


> Ron,
> 
> If they're dinged then you're right, just replace them, but I've friends who claim great results honing the back side with an 8000 grit waterstone to bring the edge back. They say trying to sharpen the bevel does exactly as you say.
> 
> Still, my ionfo is second-hand. YMMV.


Hi Jim:

Thanks for the info. I have some really fine sand paper so it might be worth a try. I'm trying to use the scary sharp system so it just might work.

YMMV? Sorry, I'm still in the dark ages when it comes to internet acronyms. 

Thanks again.

Ron


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

YMMV=Literally means "Your mileage may vary" but is often used in forum talk meaning that your results will vary.

=======


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

allthunbs said:


> This summary deals specifically with cutterheads that use small square "inserts" that are arranged in a pattern around a planer or jointer cutterhead...
> 
> but for our purposes it is considered a "solid knife" head.


I'm going to add the following comments:

In all of the discussions above, there are clearly advantages to using a helix head with inserts. The flip side of the coin is that the inserts can suffer the same indignities as a blade and the cost of replacing inserts becomes an expensive proposition. If at $2.50 per insert, I replaced all of the inserts in a head, at $65 I'm well past the replacement cost of a dual sided blade. Sure, with my SteelCity helix head I get two uses per insert but so do I with the blades at half the cost.

Now, I've also discovered that the Ryobi planer blades are the same as for my machine. At $20 per pair, this is by far the cheapest option so far.

I'm definitely going to try Jim's suggestion of honing the blades but I fear dirt is my major enemy and would be just as destructive on inserts as on blades.

In this discussion I also "discovered" that my planer allows the blade to be shifted 1/4" thus reducing the effect of nicks. Is this capability built into all machines?

I also have to consider the bookkeeping involved. Imagine that I've changed three or four inserts on a head but the rest are getting dull and it's time to change them all. Do I persist with the now used "new" replacements or do I replace them all? If you're like me, keeping track of what is new and what is old would be a royal pain in the a--! The result is increased cost of consumables and the requirement of even more inserts "on hand."

I figure if I kept two packages of Ryobi blades, that's $40. Three for my planer head and the fourth "just in case." That fourth could also be used in the next blade swap. I've just read the description for the Ridgid 13" three knife planer and the description says that they use the same blades. I wonder how many do???

So, the next question is what machines use which blades? The Steel City 40200 (non-helix) version uses the same blades as the Ryobi planer. The Ryobi are $20 per pair and the SteelCity are $40 for three. Do you know of any other match ups that I could include in the article on planers???

Perhaps in commercial environments the helix head would be more effective but given my track record I feel staying with a straight blade machine a better use of my money.

Thanks to all for your contributions to this discussion.

Ron


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## Phil P (Jul 25, 2010)

allthunbs said:


> The flip side of the coin is that the inserts can suffer the same indignities as a blade and the cost of replacing inserts becomes an expensive proposition. If at $2.50 per insert, I replaced all of the inserts in a head, at $65 I'm well past the replacement cost of a dual sided blade. Sure, with my SteelCity helix head I get two uses per insert but so do I with the blades at half the cost.


Hi Ron

I think that you are oversimplifying the case here. First off the tips I've seen used are 12 x 12 x 1.5mm square tips. That type gives you FOUR changes of edge per tip. So your $65 is actually FOUR sets of replacement blades (which for a Ryobi would be $80). Secondly because the tips are made from tungsten carbide they are already going to give you a life of something like 3 to 5 times that of a HSS blade, and 6 to 10 times the life of tool steel blades. Even ignoring the convenience and speed of that that means a $65 loading or carbide tips is the equivalent of 4 (sides) x 3 (minimml life extra) = 12 HSS cutters or 4 x 6 - 24 WS cutters (cost from Ryobi circa $240). Unless they are double sided in which case that cost would be $120. For a two-sided tip the figures are half what the four sided tips giove you, so a lot less financially favourable IMHO. 

All this makes a for a recommendation to seriously consider the availability and cost of any tips used in any woodworking machine or cutter, such as router cutters. If your cutter is specific to that machine/tool then the supplier is probably going to charge a premium - if it is a commonly available type then you can start looking for discount prices. Maybe there is an equivalent tip to Ron's Steel City tip out there from a different source.



allthunbs said:


> In this discussion I also "discovered" that my planer allows the blade to be shifted 1/4" thus reducing the effect of nicks. Is this capability built into all machines?


No. Some cutters have slots for the adjusters built in and they geberally can't be moved far enough (if at all). For those interseted the machines which used to have them were built by Robland in Belgium



allthunbs said:


> I also have to consider the bookkeeping involved. Imagine that I've changed three or four inserts on a head but the rest are getting dull and it's time to change them all. Do I persist with the now used "new" replacements or do I replace them all?


Replace them all. Much simpler. Remember that by swapping round or replacing a damaged tip (cost $2.50) you are in effect doing the equivalent of resharpening a pair of blades 

Just my personal thoughts and with apologies for the cost-management approach taken

Regards

Phil


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## allthunbs (Jun 22, 2008)

Hi Phil:



Phil P said:


> I think that you are oversimplifying the case here. First off the tips I've seen used are 12 x 12 x 1.5mm square tips. That type gives you FOUR changes of edge per tip. So your $65 is actually FOUR sets of replacement blades (which for a Ryobi would be $80). Secondly because the tips are made from tungsten carbide they are already going to give you a life of something like 3 to 5 times that of a HSS blade, and 6 to 10 times the life of tool steel blades. Even ignoring the convenience and speed of that that means a $65 loading or carbide tips is the equivalent of 4 (sides) x 3 (minimml life extra) = 12 HSS cutters or 4 x 6 - 24 WS cutters (cost from Ryobi circa $240). Unless they are double sided in which case that cost would be $120. For a two-sided tip the figures are half what the four sided tips giove you, so a lot less financially favourable IMHO.


I'm sorry, I was speaking specifically about the helix head for the SteelCity 40200. The carbide tips are not available for it and you only get two edges with those tips. The blades are $39.95 for three from a SteelCity stockist but the Ryobi are $19.95 per pair for the same thing, different package. I guestimate that the SteelCity inserts for the helix head are about $2.50 each and requires 26 for a complete change.



Phil P said:


> All this makes a for a recommendation to seriously consider the availability and cost of any tips used in any woodworking machine or cutter, such as router cutters. If your cutter is specific to that machine/tool then the supplier is probably going to charge a premium - if it is a commonly available type then you can start looking for discount prices. Maybe there is an equivalent tip to Ron's Steel City tip out there from a different source.


That would be nice but nothing I'm taking for granted at the moment. My finding matching blades was purely a fluke.



Phil P said:


> No. Some cutters have slots for the adjusters built in and they geberally can't be moved far enough (if at all). For those interseted the machines which used to have them were built by Robland in Belgium


The blades specifically for this planer have a 1/4" slot on both ends of the blade that corresponds to pins on the head. This sets the blade location. Set it to one side and when you have a nick slide one of the blades over. 



Phil P said:


> Replace them all. Much simpler. Remember that by swapping round or replacing a damaged tip (cost $2.50) you are in effect doing the equivalent of resharpening a pair of blades


I'd flip the blades and use the other edge. These blades are reversible.



Phil P said:


> Just my personal thoughts and with apologies for the cost-management approach taken


No apology necessary. Your approach is perfectly acceptable and logical. Thank you for your candour.

Ron


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## amaonline (Jan 1, 2011)

I have a helix type head on an 8" jointer that I purchased from woodworkers supply. I love it and it leaves a great finish every time.Each blade has four edges with an index mark on 1 corner. Turning a couple when you get a nick is very simple, I will not go back. Your over thinking this. The helix head with carbide blades is a no brainer. I have a ton of experience with both. Well worth the investment and superior to straight blades. I have spent less time and money in the long run.


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## AxlMyk (Jun 13, 2006)

When I get a nicked cutter, I mark the edge with a black marker, turn it to the next edge, and go back to work. That way I can keep track of the edges I've used.


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