Here at Infinity Tools we get a lot of questions about our Jointer and Planer Knife Hones (item DKH-002) and how to use them. These hones make sharpening your jointer and planer knives quick and easy. In this post, we'll show you exactly how to use them to get the edge back on your carbide-tipped and high speed steel planer and jointer knives.
How do I use the hone?
Using the hone is easy. First unplug your planer or jointer machine (safety first, as always). Next, open up your machine so you can access the cutter head and the knives. The Hone has two stones, both positioned differently. One stone is held at 90° and the other at 45°.
Place the stone that is held at 45° against the back or bevel of the knife and make a few strokes down the entire length of the knife. I typically make 3 or 4 passes. We're not trying to remove a lot of material, we're just getting rid of the dull edge, which takes very little effort when compared to a full resharpening.
Now take the hone and turn it over. Place the diamond stone that is held at 90° against the face of the knife and make three or four more passes. In this step, we're removing the excess steel or carbide that folded over from the other side of the blade. This is also called "de-burring" the knife. Usually, the wooden handle of the hone will be able to rest against the front of the cutter head, making it easy to keep the hone square to the knife.
Once you have honed the front and back of the first knife, simply rotate the cutterhead and repeat the process for the remaining knives in your machine. We recommend making the same number of passes on the front and back of all knives to maintain even sharpness and exposed material across all the knives.
Keeping your jointer and planer knives sharp and ready for whatever project you undertake is pretty simple, isn't it? Remember, this is a great task to add to your standard maintenance around the workshop and it should be performed frequently to keep your planer or jointer operating at peak efficiency. Much like a chef using a sharpening steel on his knife, honing your jointer and planer knives will help maintain a sharp edge.
If it is time to replace or sharpen your current planer or jointer knives, we recommend picking up one of these diamond knife hones from infinitytools.com. They'll help extend the life of your new knives and allow you to replace them less frequently, saving you both time and money.