Dewalt 733 planer repair conclusion

Completing the repair on the Dewalt 733 planer. Installing the new bearings and chain.

[@joshstabler3438]

The "screws on the bearing block.........." Well, those took me OVER 6 HOURS to remove. They were incredibly tight, and the Phillips indent in each screw promptly rounded off. many hours with vice grips. Those allen bolts at 7:23 are NEEDED! I was thinking of that, too.

[@iiRR3lephanttt]

WARNING ‼️ those bearing blocks are NOT the same on all four sides. Do not install with play, turn it 90 degrees if your roller moves back and forth!

[@caseylindsey4019]

Just came across your video. I might be 7 years too late, but the bushing are wider in one direction and narrower in the other. It appears from the video that at least the first roller’s far side bushing may have gone in incorrectly. Just trying to be helpful.

[@MyRobertadams]

Thanks! You may be right. Luckiy I haven't had any problems. I don't use it every day but Idid use it this morning for 1 board and didn't have any problem. I thought I had saved the old ones but looked this morning and couldn't find them or couldn't remember where I might have put them. I was going to check the sizes but oh well.

[@lamontcranston2627]

You are correct that they are not symmetrical, however, I am finding that putting them in correctly (longer side in line with planer bed) result is pinning the rollers if you tighten them down all the way. The result is a melted drive belt. I've ordered new ones, but not sure how to loosen up the rollers. Thoughts?

[@lamontcranston2627]

I'm doing a complete tear-down and rebuild on a DW733 Type 1. I find that if I tighten the roller brackets screws to be set; i.e., hand tight, one roller is very difficult to turn and the other will not turn at all. This, of course, before I put back the gear-chain assembly. I tried it out anyway and it resulted in quickly melting the synthetic belt. Yes, I did put the bushings in with the wide side parallel to the plane bed and lubed everything with a good grease. Thoughts?

[@robpollard7022]

My brand new dw733 does not automatically draw in the timber ,has to be pushed through.

[@jarrod-smith]

Tip to you and all DW733 owners: I noticed a squeak/whine in this video when the cutting head was being raised/lowered. Get a can of teflon or graphite aerosol (they carry this stuff at home depot now for $4-$5 in a rattle can) and spray it on the threaded rods. It makes the mechanism perfectly smooth and noise free, and won't attract sawdust (like oil or WD40 would). My table saw also uses a worm-type setup for raising lowering the blade and it works great there as well.

[@daviddavis5689]

Any dry lube works well and most do not collect dust and many claimtorepeal it.

[@thorman925]

THANKS FOR THE VIDEO! IT WAS VERY HELPFUL & WAS IMPRESSED WITH YOUR MECHANICAL ABILITY. THOUGH I DO HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS. I'M MAKING AN ASSUMPTION OF YOUR SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE BASED ON THE TOOLS YOU OWNED & USED & YOUR ABILITY TO TAKE APART & REASSMBLE THE DEWALT 733 PLANER. MY QUESTION IS WHY DIDN'T YOU USE ANY GREASE ON ANY OF THE PARTS YOU INSTALLED ESPECIALLY THE ROLLER ENDS THAT WENT INTO THE NEW BERING FITTINGS? ALSO, WHY DIDN'T YOU USE LOCKTIGHT ON ANY OF THE SCREWS SINCE THAT PLANER DOES VIBRATE? LASTLY, I NOTICED YOUR HANDS DID GET GREASY FROM TAKING APART THE PLANER BUT YOU DIDN'T SEEM TO WORRY ABOUT GETTING GREASE ON THOSE RUBBER ROLLERS WHICH I UNDERSTAND IS A NO, NO. I'M NOT TRYING TO BE CRITICAL BUT CURIOUS IF THERE WERE REASONS BEHIND YOUR DECISIONS? YOU DID A FANTASTIC JOB ON TEARING IT DOWN & REASSEMBLING THE PLANER WITH THE NEW PARTS. WAS IT MENTIONED ON THE DEWALT WEBSITE RECCOMENDING NOT TO GREASE THE PARTS BECAUSE OF THE FINE SAWDUST?? AGAIN, YOU DID A GREAT JOB & IMPRESSED WITH YOUR TOOLS & SKILLSET. JUST CURIOUS ABOUT THE 3 THINGS I HAD QUESTIONS ON. THANK YOU!!

[@MyRobertadams]

Thank you and thanks for watching! Regarding not greasing the bearings/bushings, there is no need to as they are not made to be greased or they would have grease fittings, With the slip fit most of the grease would have been pushed out when sliding them on anyway. The grease on the rollers was minimal and hasn't caused any problems. As far as not using any loctite, one, never thought about it and they would have been harder to get loose if they had had any on it to begin with. Again, haven't had any problems with anything coming loose. Thanks again!

[@drowization]

Your a wizard dude, well done good sir. GOD BLESS you....

[@piazza-studios3097]

NEED HELP Great video, was hoping this would be my problem as well. I have a DW733 with very little use. The problem of the stuttering as seen in the video is the same. Leaves rollers marks and a small indentation from the blades. So after a DIY with no solution, I brought it to an authorized Dewalt service center and they have replaced, rollers, bushings, drive chains and bed. The problem of stuttering is STILL there. Hoping someone out there might have an ANSWER. Thanks

[@johncole5899]

Great video. Like another guy who commented, I'm glad you left in your first attempts at fixing the problem. I'm just about to buy a used 733 so I'm now prepared should this problem crop up. Can't image how 6 people actually clicked on the thumbs down icon, they're probably jealous of your know-how!

[@mjb12141963]

should the need arise most bicycle shops can add or remove links from chains of that kind

[@kris1000kolev]

No need for even vistitting a bicycle shop. Just buy the right size chain breaker tool and you can do with all the chains. I think all the chains on this planer are the same size, same pitch. Plus, a chain breaker tool could always prove useful when doing other repairs and chain replacements :)

[@dryshaveable]

great information and couple of questions. That bushing on the rollers, (that you replaced) should those all be lubricated and with what type of grease, bearing grease, white lithium? vaseline? Oil for the chains I figured out. And the two compression spring rings that sit on top of the height adjustment screws, (just under the handle crank) 16:25 - 17:31 in video... what is the purpose of those, and is there a specific amount of adjustment that you make to allow for those spring clips. Thanks again lots of great info on maintaining a great little planer.

[@bs8899]

I followed the diagnosis and repair tips. I replaced the bushing blocks (two were worn), the chains, and the sprockets. The DW733 worked perfectly after the repair. I didn't take off the whole planar head as in this video. If you have an angled Philips driver, you won't have to. Great tips in this video.

[@dannywise1312]

I have a problem with getting the head off the drive rods do to a piece of metal shaved off of the upper spring clip. Any ideas on how to remove it? This is the only problem that I've ever had with the 733. Problem is, that I can't adjust the height as I the crank won't turn. I believe a piece of the spring clip sheared offed and stuck in the screw drive. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

[@donswaner4305]

i would like to know where to order these same parts, i just need 1 bushing and should i order the chain(s) also? will they be stretched due to the bushing egging? your video was very very helpful, thankyou!

[@charlieadams9460]

Just got a used DeWalt like yours this morning. I'll be going to the shop later today to begin to check it out. I know I must switch or replace the blades and I'm going to take it apart a you did to lubricate the roller bearings or replace them if needed. Thanks very much for doing this video!!!

[@tralfazy]

Hey Robert! Please add new grease to your bearing blocks. 20 year old grease is why the bearing blocks wore out in the first place! If you grease those bearings up every few years they won't wear out again. Ya can't trust old grease residue ya know. :o)

[@hereusethis]

A note to all the remaining DW733 planer users out there. Check your cutter pulley tightness! Remove the belt, and if there's any wobble, don't just tighten the nut. Instead, yank the pulley and inspect all the keyway components. If you catch it early in it's a quick fix (maybe just a $1 key), but once the shaft is totally gone it's a huge fix. Had I left mine as is and ignored the occasional screeching sound, the entire planer would have been spare parts by summer.

[@kimchee94112]

Did the same to mine. It skips (or didn't move the wood smoothly even when new) for a long time then completely stop. Replace all the bushings, one was cracked open in many pieces. Bushing deformation seems like a feature on all the 733s and maybe carry over to the 734s. Good thing is those replacement parts are available and also cheap. Rubber rollers were never great as I crank down on it to feed the wood then more pressure on the bushings. It's been 40 years, time to either replace the 733 or get new rollers (not so cheap).

[@MyRobertadams]

They should really make these machines with real bearings instead of bushings. I wouldn't think it would add that much to the cost but they get by as cheap as they can. If yours has lasted 40 years though, you're doing good. Best wishes!

[@kimchee94112]

@@MyRobertadams In addition to the deformed bushing the first time go around, also had a broken gear so not able to feed. Today the sucker skips again, looks like another deformed bushing. Watching your video again to see the sequence of removal/installation. It's been a long while. This time should be much faster replacing the bushings due to your video, thanks!

[@MyRobertadams]

@@kimchee94112 Best wishes and success!

[@richardhyman6981]

I can't thank you enough for posting these videos. My DW733 started having issues a couple of months ago and I found your post while researching the issue. After being intimidated by it for some time I finally watched your videos again and decided to fix the thing. My problem mirrored yours so closely I went ahead and ordered the same parts (since they were cheap) on a hunch it would be the same issue. Sure as the world I had the same egg shaped worn out bushing that was cracked in the same way yours was. Even had screws strip same as you. One thing that I did have different was that one of my chains had dried out so bad that when I removed it from the cogs it was stiff as a board. Would hold it's shape all on it's own. I'm sure that was part of my skipping problem as well. I replaced the screws with hex head bolts as you did as well. Well worth it. IF anyone is interested I used Socket Head Cap Screws M5-.80x12. Picked them up from Lowes (U.S.) Thanks again for posting this. It really made it possible for me to go at this repair with confidence.VR,Richard

[@SpikeRess]

Wow, what difference youtube has made in our lives. My dw733 just started doing the same thing after more than 12 or more years of service. Your two videos saved me a lot of time. Parts ordered, fix underway. Thank you very much.

[@reve2000]

Thanks, Good job. I would lubricate new bushings. Best regards from Poland

[@michaelwhite8136]

Thanks a lot for making this video I borrowed this planer from a friend and it’s doing the same thing thought I was goin to buy him a new one !

[@Radtke_Makes]

Thanks so much for going through the process of taking the whole head off - I've inherited a 733 and it's somehow out of alignment (i think that the previous owner was cranking on it when the chain had fallen off) so once i remove (carefully) the head, i can clean it up and replace it in the same way you did... Thanks again!!

[@carguy4sp]

Parts worn out due to lack of lubrication yet you put it back together with no grease ?

[@brucejohnson1264]

Thanks for this video. Was getting ready to install a helix head, and after watching this video, I checked my bearings and they had the same wear. I'll replace them and the rollers at the same time.

[@gary24752]

Wondering why you didn't replace the rollers or at least clean them while you had them off.

[@gary24752]

I just emailed Dewalt to see if the planer blade head for the 744 fits the 733 since they have discontinued the planer head replacement for the 733. I figured if I had it apart to replace things might as well change the cutter head to a three blade unit.

[@JoshuaJonah]

Don't do that, the 734 has un-sharpenable blades, you need to buy new ones every time.

[@jflutube]

Thanks. I have the same problem. Took it apart following your instructions, I had to drill out 2 of the screws too, and found the bad bearing block looking pretty much identical to yours. You saved me hours.

[@jarrod-smith]

Nice video, thanks for taking the time to make it. So glad you left part 1 as-is and didn't edit that out - it made for some drama. When you first ran the planer with the cover off I immediately saw the slop in the one shaft and thought "does this guy ever figure out that it's the shaft and not the chain?" Of course in the very next cut you had. Haha. Not to beat a dead horse but I also had the same thought/comment about greasing the bushings - I definitely would have done that. Great job overall though - it was great to see some genuine ingenuity at work, especially in part 1 even though the tensioner didn't end up working out. ;-)

[@Runslik3Wind]

Thanks. Appreciate it i just got one of these and it has the same problems.

[@jasonlittle806]

awesome video,got the same planner with the same problem ordering parts in the morning you made the fix look easy,hope mine goes that smooth.cheers

[@josephlovell6951]

Thanks I had a broken gear and replaced it before I understand what the real problem was. It broke after 5 minutes of using it. And was going to do the same thing you where doing. Never would have thought the bearings where junk. That a bad decision for that kind of bearings.they need to be oiled daily to last. Thanks again

[@MyRobertadams]

I don't think you can get to them to oil them. They may be oil impregnated bearings. Thanks for watching!

[@tralfazy]

..and oil your chains too. The amount of oil and grease that comes on the new parts is not enough.

[@SupFromCz]

what kind of material is this spares? They can be bought or I have to make them? thnx.

[@saidchoucair9247]

nice to see the x ray of this machine. big hug from brasil. thank you very much

[@ThePtwiddy]

A great lesson on the tear down. I have learned so much from your efforts. Just great. GREAT.

[@MyRobertadams]

Thank you! Best wishes!

[@Panchdara]

Nice video demonstration of how this works. I too, had similar issue, but found the replacement bushes are not square. They are 22x25x25 mm (if memory serves) - not quite square - so should check which way they fit in (when removing them). Other than that, great show... most of part 1 is almost irrelevant :)

[@emp0rizzle]

Slack is normal.. excessive slack is not. HTH.

[@BrianDoesStuff873]

great video parts 1 and 2, i bet this problem is common on these that is used alot, its good that the parts are cheap, i was wanting to buy one of these and i wonder if i should buy new or used? if i buy used then i could get the same model as this but since you said they stop making these i wonder why? This looks like a great planer can you tell us what was changed on the newr models compared to this one? Thanks a million for making this video.....

[@BrianDoesStuff873]

thank you for answering...

[@MarkSWilliams27]

Great video! To the point, and well shot. Well explained. I don't even own a DW733 and found it interesting. The knowledge will no doubt be useful to Delta owners or owners of a DW734. Thanks.

[@DanielSanchez-hk6vh]

Adjust dw733 scale

[@harrybates5545]

Would it be a good idea to put some grease on the roller shafts when you put the new bearing blocks on?

[@MyRobertadams]

Harry Bates Yes I should have done that, thanks

[@joanellison9679]

Thank you! Your thoughtful humility is inspiring.

[@hereusethis]

I just got a HEAVILY used one of these planers for $50. It works, but has some issues. It's not cutting the cleanest, which I thought meant it needed new blades. Though after pulling, I've determined these are nick-free and very sharp. There is a lot of gunk/residue on them. I'm starting to think someone was running painted wood or plastic through it. I'll clean the blades up and give them a quick hone but otherwise they're good to go. The bigger issue(s): 1. The front roller is chewed up. Has chunks out of one section. It still feeds fine, but I'm guessing a chewed up roller is not good for accuracy. Any thoughts on that? Replacements are $50-70 each which seems kind of ridiculous, so I'm thinking of trying to fill and smooth, but if anyone knows up front that it's a bad idea, let me know. BTW, the rollers don't seem to have any play so I'm hoping the blocks are in decent shape. 2. There's a rubbing/screeching noise that comes and goes when the planer is running. When I pulled the big yellow shroud, I found little piles of metal dust directly below the bearings on one side. That leads me to believe I've got either a spun or frozen bearing (and it has been that way for a while). I'll dig in more to see if I can find out the culprit. If you have any thoughts or suggestions, please let me know. Regardless, I'll post back when I have more info (or have fixed it) in an effort to add some more info to your great video!

[@hereusethis]

Thanks. I just got it apart, after I stripped the same screws as you. Instead of an easy out, I ground a slot in them and then removed them with a hand impact driver (hammer activated). Worked well. But Dewalt using Allen screws from the beginning would have been even better. Oddly, it's only the front feed roller that is messed up. The rear looks fine. I'm going to swap front and rear and see what that does before I got the epoxy or liquid rubber route. BTW, the bushing blocks are in good shape. Thanks again for your help.

[@hereusethis]

Update: My planer is now pretty much rebuilt. That "silver dust" I mentioned above? That was the blade-shaft pulley (aluminium). At some point it must have loosened up and managed to wallow out the woodruf keyhole in the hardened shaft, grind the key down to nearly nothing, and destroy the key mating section of the pulley. The previous owner must have realized the pulley was loose and they just tightened it, but I think it was too late by then. All that did is push the edge of the pulley against the the bearing surface, allowing the wobble to grinding away the aluminum surfaces (hence the silver "dust"). I got a new pulley and key ($14 from Dewalt ). While I was waiting for that I popped all the bearing seals I could reach and cleaned out the metal dust, re-greased and replaced the seals. I decided not to pull & replace the bearings because a) it would have been a pain and b) I wasn't sure the new pulley would fix things, and c the bearings felt great). I also cleaned and dry lubed (moly powder) all the linkages, chains, and depth adjustment rods. The square roller block bushings were in good shape so I just cleaned and rotated the position of those and lubed them well. I filled in the big pits/cracks on the rollers with E6000 and then swapped the front and rear rollers. Finally I cleaned and honed the blades (I actually ordered and have new blades but after I cut my finger badly just lightly handling the old blades, I decided maybe they'd be fine with the gunk removed from them). Old ones had no pits or cracks and shined up nicely with a hard oil stone. So now have spares. Once I got the pulley, I cleaned everything really well with no-residue parts cleaner. Then I put a small dab of JB weld in the key area of the shaft, then centered the key in there. I had test fit this earlier with the key and super glue so I had good idea of the necessary position. I then coated the inside of the pulley and its keyway with Vasoline (hoping to avoid sticking), then pressed it on and let it dry. 24 hours later I pulled the pulley -- it came of fairly easily -- cleaned up the shaft again toremoved the Vvasoline residue. I used loctite Red the shaft, the pulley, and the pulley keyway. The bolt got locktite blue. If I need to work on this later, I should be able to remove the bolt, then break the loctite red bond with a light hammer blow, or heat if necessary. In the meantime I'm hoping the extra "glue" will take some of load off the keyway connection. Overall I'm pretty happy with how it went together. I must have made a small mistake when either seating the key or the pulley when did the initial JB Weld work -- I probably should have bolted it down rather than press fit -- because it's not perfectly straight. That said, I'm not terribly worried. There enough clearance that nothing scrapes (and if it does start scraping, I'll consider it an "early warning" because it means the key connection is failing again), and the belt stays perfectly placed while running. Oh, and I sanded the rust on the top cover, applied rust converter, then gave it a new coat of black paint. Not perfect but it looks presentable now. I fired it up and ran a dozen or so feet of wood through. Other than the mess (this didn't come with dust collector port and I'm not about to pay Dewalt $50 for one. I'll fab up something), I was really happy with it. Everything came out clean and smooth. No weird screeching noises anymore, and the rollers seem to pull the wood though the planer perfectly. Hooray! I probably wouldn't have tackled all of this without watching your video a few times (after the first watching I thought "no way"). But once I got into it I found it was all very doable. Thank you much for the resource!

[@daviddavis5689]

Good job ;as its said all is well that ends well.

[@roberthelveston2823]

Thanks great video..Learned a lot

[@nigelthrower8025]

I have a JET Planer that uses the same design. I am having a similar problem with intermittent feed. Thanks to your video I will now check mine, and feel confident that I will solve my issues. I am planing some reclaimed teak planks, which are a bit on the tough side anyway. Many Thanks