Shopsmith Forums

I purchased a used Shopsmith planer several years ago. I don't use it that often, and it is just now needing the knives sharpened. I received the 555471 Planer / Jointer Knife Sharpener and conical disc with the planer. But, there was no instructions on how to use the 555471. Can someone please point me to a link to download these instructions, or a video showing how to use it. Thank you.

Insert one planer knife or three jointer knives fully and secure the three clamps.

Adjust the table for the grind angle desired(if different from 'normal' table setting).

Install rip fence on table at approximately the distance needed.

Advance/adjust the quill for grind feed. A minimal grind is desired to minimize heat buildup and material removal.

Slowly slide knife holder past contact line of conical disk while insuring contact against the table and the fence.


Be careful to not contact spinning disk.

Paraphrased, but that is essentially 'it'.

I assume you use the 150 grit. Do you follow with a finer grit? If so, where do you get it? Shopsmith doesn't offer any finer grit.

To keep the factory angle (looks to be 45) do you keep the table at zero, or 4 degrees as when sanding?

Looks like you could nick a knuckle if you're not careful.

I think 150 grit is fine enough for grinding. They CAN be honed after grinding.

Grind angle varies with intended type of wood to be planed.

BTW the conical disk is closer to 3° than 4°.

IIRC setting the table at '90' yields about a 42° grind angle.

One caveat, make sure the blades are fully inserted correctly into the holder.

Following the instructions JPG has already given you. Leave the table set at 90 degrees as per the instructions. Use very light passes and once should be enough unless you have nicks in the blades or are changing the angle. For more than one pass advance the Quill slightly.

chapmanruss wrote:Following the instructions JPG has already given you. Leave the table set at 90 degrees as per the instructions. Use very light passes and once should be enough unless you have nicks in the blades or are changing the angle. For more than one pass advance the Quill slightly.

VERY slightly!

I also suggest an additional pass with NO adjustment.

If you still want the manual, I scanned mine for the Planer/Jointer Knife Sharpening Jig and it is at the link below:

OH YEAH lowering the table also deepens the grind. I fergit that!

The Adjustable Stop Collar is a good accessory to use if you want to use lowering the table for additional passes. It will give better control over the depth of the grind than advancing the Quill. It works on both the Main and the Extension Tables. See it at the link below.

https://www.shopsmith.com/ownersite/cat ... collar.htm

I've used it to sharpen 10" planer blades from an older Ryobi benchtop planer, using self-adhesive sandpaper on the infeed table of a jointer.