One very important point @12.35... one of the screws that holds the gearbox is about 2mm shorter than the rest... even though they look the same, they're not!! I mixed my screws up and ended up damaging the threading on the large height adjustment screw. Now waiting for a replacement to come in before I can get back to planing :/
I just did my planer and found it hard to adjust the height when it was higher, I sprayed some lube on the threads and seemed to work better but would get stiff a bit....went back to the video and saw your comment, yup I wrecked the threads for that one hole, the large screw for height is OK but your comment made everything make sense lol
@@jonerscc haha yeah it sucks! Be careful when you take out the height adjustment rod so that you don't rotate the chain at all, otherwise your planer wont be level.
@@dpav7994 my height rod is fine, I just stripped the threads for the gearbox machine screw, I ended up using some blue loctite on it so it stays in there. Gearbox seems solid with just 3 but figured the 4th screw should be there since that’s how it came lol
By far, and I mean by an extreme distance, this is the best video hands down for disassembly of the Ridgid planer. Thank you for making this video. I could not have done this with as much ease as I did without you.
Thanks for the video. It saved me on the install. I will say mine (from woodcutters) did come with the 24mm nut and I didn’t have to do any modifications to the cutter head like you did. All in, I think it took me 3 hours thanks to your instructions. If you have this planer you have to buy this upgrade.
H there! Thank you for the well-put-together video which I watched many times and influenced my decision to upgrade my Ridgid R4331 planer to a Lux Cut III helical head. I got the head from MyWoodcutters and it has been installed as per your instructions, the whole job took about 2.5 hours. No problems along the way, everything went smoothly. Now my impressions of the head. I ran several board feet of various wood species ( curly maple, apple, zebrawood, walnut and wenge) and the results were impressive. No tear-out whatsoever, very little snipe and no difference whether I ran the wood with or against the grain. The head produces a scalloped surface with ever so slight valleys and ridges, but light sanding gets rid of that ( from what I've read, this is a normal effect of the helical head ). Compared to my spiral head on my 8-inch jointer, the jointer produces less ridges and valleys, but I think that is because the jointer knives are perpendicular to the feed direction and the edges are straight rather than cambered as in the Lux head. Overall a well worth upgrade. The new Lux Cut III heads are correctly sized now, and they come with the 24 mm nut for the driveshaft. The Lux Cut III head is an awesome product and the service from MyWoodcutters is unmatched. Thank you for the help you provided in this video
Excellent comment that should add value for others. Thank you! As you probably did as well, I first did heavy thinking about just buying a new/used machine that came with a helical head but the price of upgrading was still several hundred dollars less. I wish I had done it earlier as the results are awesome. Thanks again for the well informed comment.
One important point I forgot to mention. After inserting the head into the bearing holes, I installed the left and rightmost knives before tightening the end gasket and installing the large belt pulley. I noticed that the right knife was rubbing slightly on the bearing carriage ( not the bearing itself). The knives appear to protrude a little beyond the head in one corner and if the head is not centered properly, they could rub against the carriage where the bearings sit and possibly chip the knife. Thankfully, I spun the head before tightening all bolts and noticed this. Luckily I was able to reverse the head position about 1/16 of an inch and there was enough clearance without compromising the ability to tighten everything in place. Just wanted to caution anyone who is upgrading to this head. I am thankful that I read the comments to your video and was cautioned about the shorter bolt that holds the gearbox and did not strip the height adjustment rod :) Thanks again and happy woodworking !!!
This is a great video, but I noticed several differences. I suspect both the helical head and the planer have been tweaked since you upgraded you machine. I'm writing this in 2024, and I bought my planer back in 2022. The first problem was that I could not remove the 2nd/larger pulley with the cutter head still mounted. I could not use the gear puller because there wasn't enough space behind the pulley to grip it. Without removing the larger pulley, I was still able to remove the lock mechanism and the plate from behind it. I ran into another problem removing the cutter head (more on that in a sec), but once it was out, then I could use the gear puller and I found freaking loctite around the pin! I recommend scraping it out before reinstalling. The second problem was one I saw mentioned in the comments here, which is that the locating pins are too long and the old cutter head won't fit through the housing. The steel the pin is made off was too hard for my hacksaw or files to cut. The only tool I found that worked was a dremel with an aluminum oxide grinder, but it worked very well. The last point I'd like to make is that the hollow dowel is a golden tool for this project. I cut holes in hardwood scraps and stacked them, but most of the split after a few whacks and they'd get caught up on different obstacles as the new cutter head gradually advanced. It got home eventually, but a good hollow dowel would've been a very elegant solution.
The video is terrific and I watched it many times. I have just finished installing a helical head made by Sheartak. I had a couple of issues that you did not have. First, one set of the pins that hold the cutter blades on the old Ridgid head were slightly too long to allow the head to be withdrawn through the mount hole. The other set went through Ok as they were just slightly less proud. I had to shave the higher pins down using a Dremel. Not a major problem as the old head was destined to be toast. My second issue was with the small locking piece that needs to be transferred from the old shaft and installed on the new one to lock the major pulley in place. You show removing it with pliers. Mine would not budge, even when I clamped it and tried to rock the shaft back and forth, and then used heat. No go and the steel was soft enough that even pliers marked it. In the end, I made a new one from a piece of steel bar (piece is 5 mm x 5 mm x 11 mm with rounded ends). That did the trick After the planer was put back together it worked really well. Thank you for the video. I don't think I would have attempted this change without it.
@@mechalchuk It's perfoming well. Much better, of course than the original two-bladed head. I've used it on hard maple, cherry and other softer woods and it does a good job.
Great video. I’m thinking of upgrading to the shelix and doing all the homework I can on it. Will definitely be watching this video a few more times. And your Autism shirt is the awesome, my son is on the spectrum and makes me smile every day also. Thanks
Thanks. The Shelix should go in the same. My son makes me smile every day as well. Both he and I are at family weekend with ESP right now. It's a great organization. We are part of JavaJoy.
I noticed the gearbox on your unit seems to be closed, while on other units (older?) I saw online and in the OEM repair sheet they have an open gearbox? I haven't disassembled mine to check. I wonder if this is a relatively recent upgrade Ridgid made? Mine is so ridiculously noisy, it just doesn't sound right, and maybe part of it got better with an enclosed gearbox?
Honestly don't know how old but don't it is even close to recent. I bought it at least 5 years ago and I bought it from one of those places that sell returned and refurbished tools. If you do move forward, take a picture before each step and my to about laying ask the pieces down on a table or something left to right as you remove week be crazy helpful. That way you just move right to left when putting things back together. Also take note of bolt size to each hole as some have commented correctly that not all bolts are the same length. If love to hear back from you on how it goes.
thank you so so much for the detailed and informative video. I have the Shelix helical cutter head not the Lux but I am curious if the shelix has the same issue about not fitting like you ran in to with the Lux. I haven't attempted to instal yet; might this weekend though.
So in order for this to work, we have to provide specific measurements to mywoodcutters so that they ship the right fitting part? What measurements are those?
It was back in the January or February time frame. If you ask woodcutters.com I'm sure they will remember this issue as they worked a lot with me on it. They were super helpful.
I'm sorry I don't remember but I'll go back to my emails with mywoodcutters.com and check. I will say that very recently they contacted me and assured me that Lux Cut has changed the sizing and all will have correct dimensions.
Quieter? Yes. Quiet? Not even close. You'll still definitely need hearing protection and right now I'm in a subdivision with closely packed houses so I only use it between 9am and 8pm as my neighbors have small kids.
It was once they worked out the sizing. They have that taken care of now. A couple bolts were tough to unscrew but it was not bad at all. Really makes a difference.
Ok I’m looking to purchase a planer. Options for me are this Ridgid R4331 $500 plus the lux-cut $750 or the grizzly G0940. Grizzly comes with helical cutters. 15mm inserts costs $700-$800 plus $75 shipping. Grizzly less expensive. But is the Ridgid lifetime service agreement void with this modification?
I am going to assume it will void the warranty but honestly I don't know. I bought mine used so no warranty for me anyway. Not sure where you are but $500 for it seems high.
Wow prices I think went up. I got mine used pretty cheap but at that point they were only around 350 or so. Tough choice. I don't know the grizzly model but for less cost you get the helical included
I will be using this tutorial in the up and coming two weeks to complete the exact modifications to my Ridgid R4331 planer. Also, the suggestion below to make this upgrade successful.
I will do that and did get a nut with the purchase. I came back. I followed the video really close except for a couple things. The one thing I did is I pulled the keyway out of the shaft for the pulley as soon as I removed the pulley. That way it didn't get lost. I suspected it took me 3 hours or so to get the replacement accomplished. It would have been substantially longer if video wasn't there. Also, I took my own pictures for my own references to make sure things got put together for my own comfort zone. I also used a deep well 15/16 socket on the big nut because I didn't have a metric that size. Thank you for the video.
That video was a HUGE help on how to do it. Do you plane wood often and was it the amount of times you had to replace the HSS blades that made you take the plunge to spend that kind of money? I read some of the comments here and other videos and it sounds like it was worth the investment.
Form me it was totally worth it. I had a bad habit of getting a nick in the straight blades and replacing them when they were still sharp because of the nick. The differnece in cut is crazy awesome. BTW... Lux Cut has fixed the sizing issue so no worries if you have this planer.
@@BronkBuilt Wanted to give update that I took the plunge because I needed to cut hardwoods and the maple wasn't getting cut with the HSS so I got the Lux carbide. Impressed with the quietness (compared to the HSS) and actually I think the DC was louder. Your video was very helpful as I watched it about 3 times and wrote down the steps. I did contact mywoodcutters saying it would be nice if they supplied the nut as you mentioned and they said it should have been with the order. Anyway I bought the nut at Ace Hardware for $3.29. While it takes a 24mm socket (deep socket) the thread on the shaft is 5/8-16 fine regular thread (not the 5/8-12 reverse on the OEM Ridgid shaft). I brought that up only because maybe it'll help someone else as I bought the 12 pitch thread and had to go back). One other thing, I did the 1" dowel with 3/4" hole but I'd suggest 1-1/4" only because you don't want to damage the plastic filler on the bearing between the inside and outside metal. I took a 1/4" pc of plywood about 2x 2" with 3/4" hole as a buffer between the dowel and bearing. I really appreciate you taking the time with the video it was a lifesaver!
@@timmartin6748 So, are you seeing as big a difference in cuts as I did, especially in the maple? To me I would not say it was night and day, but it certainly was dusk to day :)
@@BronkBuilt imo I say night and day because the HSS blades dull after a 1/64" cut or less and sounded like I was cutting a forest down. I think I'll need to cut 11" wide maple boards less than 1/64 but they'll cut compared to what I was getting. The carbide is the key plus smaller shavings for DC. I'm cutting blanks for cutting boards to be engraved so I need something that'll be pretty consistent and think this'll get me that.
Not having that model I can't say for sure. I would guess if not the same, well be very similar. Maybe screws to disassemble a bit different? Very interested to know so I'd love it if you comment back after you are done.
@@BronkBuilt your video is very helpful so far, even though mine is the 1300. I can't go any further until I get a pulley puller. Lol. One good thing is I found my retaining clip tool set. I figured was lost in the black hole of my basement. Ohh I'll add that bearings came installed on my head, and it came with the nut you had to buy as well. It is a left hand thread now.
@@BronkBuilt ran into a problem. The lead screws that everything rides on for thickness adjustment, is in the way off cutter head. Totally different position than your model.
@@dougprentice1363 glad it came with bearings assembled. Mine was supposed to. It's it in a different position than mine, but correct position for your planer?
I'm getting ready to dive into my lux cut head on the Ridgid R4330. I imagine the process is basically the same as your 4331. Do you have any insight on the differences? This is an extremely fine video... Thank you for this.
Sorry I don't know the differences. I would also assume they are very similar. Come back and post after you upgrade so others will know about any differences.
I also have the Ridgid R4330 and Lux cut and will soon tackle the change out. I'm having a hard time finding any info on this project pairing. Thanks for the video.
@@thebigswede1736 Yes I got it in. Amazing results. I think I need to check the cut height on the left side. I may have skipped a tooth on the chain on the bottom that turns the turn screws.
Sorry for the long response... I'm a hobbiest for sure and I struggled with this... A lot. It is not cheap at all. I also struggled with just upgrading to a new machine with helical blades already in it but that would have been about another 50% or more in cost. Sure, probably would have been a better machine also, but it pushed it outside of my budget. Now to you question of is it worth it? Hard to say. For me, yes. I saved up for sure but I was just getting tired of the straight blades going dull so fast and worst getting a nick making me replace them. True, you would replace the blades many times before hitting this cost, but the quality of cut is far superior. I also had a problem remember to set grain direction, but sometimes I could not. ie: after glueing up a cutting board some strips are different directions. I had a problem with a lot of tear out, especially with maple which caused a bunch of sanding. Now, I have barely any, if any. Ultimately it comes down to your budget.
The reason the side screws were tight, is because it had steel screws screwed into aluminum. They were starting to seize. Should have used anti seize on them.
I don't remember how much it was, but it was not cheap. I think it was in the $300's but honestly do not remember. As for replacement blades, not sure as I have not looked at it. I've planed a ton of boards mostly dimensional lumber but a good bit of walnut and maple as well as some mahogany. I have not even had to spin the blades yet. The set of blades has 4 sides so you get 4 blade per each. I honestly don't see myself having to buy new blades for several years.
Did anyone figure out how to get the bearings off of the old cutter head to use on the new helical cutter head. Mine are in pretty tight and I can’t seem to remove them with out damaging them. I’ve started using the gear puller but quickly found out that this beginnings to indent the bearings essentially killing their fluid rotation. I need to find another way to get them off and this video skipped that step 🙁
I did not reuse the bearings from the existing/old cutter and I do not suggest you do either. Use new bearings. For that reason I did not remove the bearings from old cutter.
I wish your video came out two months earlier! I've been going thru hell trying to install the cutter head. Long story short, I finally got what I needed only to realize that the factory Luxcut III cutter head doesn't fit in the R4331. Did mywoodcutters send you a brand new one? I've contacted them and am waiting for their response. Unfortunately, considering the delay, I ordered and received my Luxcut III cutter head in February.
Yes, they sent a new one to me. I really can't say enough good things about MyWoodCutters.com. They worked with me a TON to make it right. Ultimately they gave me a list of measurements to get using my cheapo calipers. Sent the measurements and they sent a new one to my measurements and it went in fine.
@@BronkBuilt I've already contacted them. I'm waiting for their reply. How long did it take for them to send you the replacement after you provided measurements?
@@Rane1990 Only about 10 days +/- and that included the manufacturer getting a new one made to spec. That was a few months ago when they still had them on hand though.
It turns out that they're manufacturing a modified version to accomodate the R4331's that have the issue that you and I had. It's gonna take em 8 weeks. They suggested shaving off just enough metal in the bearing hole so that the four high spots on the cutter head can slip through.
I can not get the spline gear off. I wonder if there is a special tool to get it off. Work glove and channel locks are not working for me.. Edit* never mind. After spaying it with WD-40 and letting it sit, it came loose.
@@BronkBuilt Ridgid offers a lifetime service agreement or LSA on pretty much all of their products. I had to have a roller replaced on my planer (same model as yours) recently where they fixed it for free. To your point, I’m not sure it’s for the lifetime of the product or as long as the original owner has it. On the other hand, if you purchased it new, it is more than likely you would have voided the LSA.
Good to know, but given the choice of the helical head or the LSA I'd still go with the helical head. It produces such better results. I've even put maple through it in both directions with no tear out. For me, totally worth it. If something does go wrong, I guess I'll contact them and see what I get. Thanks for the info.
Respectfully, 100% disagree. You could do it in about an hour and the cut difference is night and day. If you say cost is too much, then that is a choice you need to make. If you are not willing to put an hour into maintenance of your tools then your tools will not have nearly the life they should. Yes it was more work for me because I think I was one of the first that bought the LuxCut III for that specific Ridgid Router so it took a lot of working with MyWoodCutters.com. They were completely awesome with customer service so just call them and reference this video, which they have on their site as well. Ask them if they have modified the size for these to fit correctly. if yes, then I highly encourage your to take the hour or so and do it. You will love the higher quality cuts.
So, you've put a diamond on a turd. 😂 it's a decent little planer. By the time you add this $500 upgrade, you're invested enough to buy a much better tool.
That is not true at all. Before I made this investment I did A LOT of searching for a better planer with a helical cutter head and at that time there simply was not one that was even close to the same price of my planer + helical head. Closest I found was still about $550 more. Would it have been a better planer? Probably. We all have budgets we need to stick in and at the time this was in my budget. I even searched FB market plance and CL. This was several years ago so now it may not be the same situation as there may be a lot more planers that come with the helical head standard. I don't remember what I paid for the helical head, I may have mentioned it in the video, but honestly don't remember. I don't remember it was $500 but possibly was. I'm still using this diamond on a turd and for my use it works extremely well, even on curly maple.
