I was looking to replace the spiral blade on my 653 Rockwell Planer. Would a blade for a 126 also work in the 653? They look very similar. If anyone has the answer let me know. eBay has a listing for some Rockwell spiral blades for the 126 if they work in the 653 it would be a really good buy.
NO
Well That was short and sweet, Thanks Ace just saved me a few bucks. I was wondering do you have a good source for Blades?
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You can sharpen the older solid ones and get a lot of years out of em. There are lots of adjustments on the 653 as the blade gets smaller.
I have 3, 2 running and 1 in pieces. I am getting old and hope this is a “lifetime supply”.
I do not use the 653 as much as I used to, switched over to that lighter weight Skil 100 after some pinched nerve problems. There are things you can do with the 653 that no other planer can do. Just have to tame the beast.
What do I know, I cut em out with a Worm drive saw, my rail bands are sloppy, I use a power sander and I finish em with 60 grit.
What Ace said - though I once did find a brand spankin’ new steel 653 blade in the miscellaneous odd parts bin in a used tool store. You never know.
Myself, I prefer the steel blades. Not only can they be resharpened more than the carbide, they’re sharper to begin with.
hope that’s of use.
doc…
Doc is back!!! Good to hear from you, where have you been all this time? Or did I miss any post by you?
Ah, my friend, I’m hard to get rid of, like an embarassing itch.
And a Rockwell 653 question draws me like a moth to a flame.
It’s seed season in the shellfish business, when I get hundreds of thousands of tiny clams and oysters from the hatchery and try very hard not to kill too many of them. And then it rolls into time to bring in the stuff that’s a couple of years old and big enough to sell … which is nice, as the seed needs to be paid for and all that. Plus it’d be nice to have money and food and all those odd things we get used to.
More importantly, how have you been?
Best regards
doc…
Looks like I need to find someone who can sharpen the blade. Might look into buying one that can be cannibalized.
The blades do come up on ebay from time to time. The ones I’ve seen have been listed for $200.
To get it sharpened- ask at your friendly neighborhood machine shop. Or your friendly neighborhood gunsmith. The cutter isn’t a whole lot different than a milling machine cutter, same tooling can be used to sharpen 'em… unless you can come across the really rare and hard to find sharpening attachment that Rockwell/Porter Cable made for the thing. I have one- paid pretty silly money for my 653 because it came with that attachment.
You could also ( if you have a buddy who’s a good machinist) set up something on a lathe with a grinder attachment or similar.
I’d also call around to any local or reasonably local tool repair shops or tool stores that have been around a while, ask them to check their back shelves for a Rockwell or Porter Cable part, part #43288.
And lastly - if by some odd chance you know soimebody who does investment casting in steel, well now… my friendly neighborhood gunsmith is the kind of guy who would treat that as a really fun challenge.
hope that’s of use
doc…
If you know any carpenters, ask them where they get sawblades sharpened. A decent shop that handles carbide will be able to sharpen the cutter very easily. Cost about $50.00. They may have access to replacement cutters as well.
Thanks for all the replys
l the trigger on 3 blades for the 126,when ace saved me from a $50.00 - $75.00 mistake. I'll start looking for some old in need of repair 653 planers. and keep an eye out for some blades.
Hey guys, I just scored a 653 from Keith Melville. (thanks Keith). I’m looking to attach it to my existing vacuum system. Does anybody have any pics. or good ideas for this? Thanks guys, Barry Snyder
(thanks to Tom Mahady for giving me this)
Opps looks like someone beat me to it…Well WHEN we tried to hook one up to a vacuum system we cut a big hole in the top of the exhaust part. Than had a piece made at a machine shop that covered the sides of the exhaust port openings and had a pipe that fit into the vacuum hose. It worked I just did not like the extra resistance added to the already heavy tool. Plus the vacuum system just seemed to cripple my shaping style.
Found a carbon steel blade but it has a nick in it, I now have to find someone that can do a repair.
Hi artz -
Those HSS spiral cutters can be sharpened way down. On the planer itself, there are some screws (along the side) that allow you to adjust the rear sole and (through 2 vertical slots next to the depth adjust lever) the front sole. You can keep adjusting those after each sharpening until there's nothing left of the cutter.
I usually set my soles for a zero cut with the depth lever at 'zero' and 1/8" max cut but if you choose, they can be adjusted to take off a much deeper cut. You just won't be able to take a zero cut with the sole adjustments at those settings... I.E. with depth lever at zero you'll still be removing material.
I'll post some photos of The Blades later today I found on e bay one needs work the other looks to be in perfect condition. I plane to use the 653 to shape a SUP.