Howard Ferstler

I have a Ryobi AP1300 thickness planer and I have no complaints about how it works.

What I do NOT like, however, is the situation that has developed with the cutter blades. They are no longer sold at Home Depot (where the planer had been sold and where the new AP1301 is now sold), and the price with a direct purchase from Ryobi is outrageous. The blades cost more than the thicker and heavier blades still sold at Home Depot for the much more expensive Ridgid 1300 version.

It makes no sense at all for the cheaper Ryobi planer to require replacement blades that cost more than those for the more expensive Ridgid planer. In addition, the Ridgid blades are thicker and heavier. Even more weird, apparently the newer AP1301 model uses the same blades as the Ridgid.

Anyway, does anybody here know of an off-brand source of sanely priced blades that will fit the Ryobi AP1300?

PS: I discovered that HD sells 12.5-inch replacement blades for a Delta thickness planer - a planer that they do not sell. Worse, they want even more for those blades than what they want for the bigger and heavier Ridgid blades, and they also cost more than the Ryobi direct blades for the AP1300. And, no, the Delta blades will not fit the Ryobi. They are too short.

Who on earth decides the pricing in this business? There seems to be no correlation at all between blade quality and blade price.

Howard Ferstler

Woodchuck1957

Your lucky you still have a Home Depot. The one in our city closed it's doors this summer, so no easy access to Ridgid tools for me any longer. But yeah, I know what you mean about the blades, I have a older Ryobi that I had to replace blades in also and was shocked at the price. They are only high speed steel, and not much of it either, plus I'm sure they are imported. I don't know what to tell you other than do a price search on the net. I'll bet you will baby those new blades like I do mine now. Thank god there are two sides to them.

sweensdv

Have you tried M & D? I'm assuming that the price is for 1 set of 2 blades but a call to them would clarify that.

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Dave

Howard Ferstler

I do have a spare set already, purchased over a year ago when they were still available in the store for about twenty bucks.

The package I purchased includes two double-edged blades, but I am not sure if the versions M&D are offering are packaged that way or packaged individually. I'll have to check. In a double package, what they offer is an OK deal. On the other hand, a one blade each price is not a particularly good deal, since you can get two Ridgid blades for their model TP1300 for about $30 bucks at Home Depot. As I have noted, the newer Ryobi AP1301 may also use those Ridgid blades.

This weekend I removed the old blades from my AP1300 as part of a cleaning, adjusting, and libricating operation and checked the edges that had been used so far and (surprise!) they were in excellent shape. The things seem to be holding up well. So, with the spares I have on hand already and the blades already installed I am in decent shape, although I certainly will need to get blades eventually.

Incidentally, some who own the AP1300 have mentioned problems removing the old blades the first time, but I had absolutely no trouble at all. I did not use the cheezy Ryobi allen wrench (which some have said stripped out easily), but instead used a premium allen tip mounted in an impact wrench. The screws came out like a charm.

Thanks a BUNCH for the M&D info. The site has parts lists and schematics for several Ryobi tools (not the AP1301, unfortunately, for those who own that model, nor the later BTS-21 jobsite saw that replaced the BTS-20 that I use), most of which I printed out. Very helpful.

It is odd that an outfit that seems to specialize in gas motors and law-care gear and the like would also sell Ryobi power tool parts, but what the heck, who cares. They carry Ridgid parts, too, so that will also help me a bit.

Again, heaps of thanks for the info.

Howard Ferstler

dbhost

I guess that is one thing i can be glad of that I have the AP1301.

As far as cost goes, search the Home Depot website. The replacement blades for the AP1300 are $19.99, the AP1301 / Ridgid 13" blades are $29.99

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/...ctId=100097321

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Howard Ferstler

I would like to think that the $19.00 price would include two blades in a package, although the listing you referenced says the price is $19.99 "each.". (I already have one pair on hand as spares, and they were purchased at HD years ago in a two-blade pack.) However, sometimes blades are sold one item at a time. If the Ryobi blade price is for a replacement pair, that price you note is a good deal. However, if that is the per-blade price that is not such a good deal. The Ridgid price is definitely for a two-blade pack, so if the Ryobi price is just for one blade they would cost more than the per-blade Ridgid price.

Howard Ferstler

jeffreythree

I just ordered some of the Rigid replacement blades from homedepot that also fit the AP1301. They come 3 to a pack, the Rigid planer uses three blades, I guess, and mine only uses two, making one spare. Of course when they send the ones for the AP1300 it makes it a little hard to plane some hard maple with old dull disposable blades. I definitely need to get a different planer, maybe the new Steel City spiral cutterhead portable one.

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Gerry KIERNAN

Check with American National Knife, and see if they can supply you with blades for your Ryobi planer.

Gerry

dbhost

I Googled that Ryobi part #, that appears to be price per set of blades...

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Howard Ferstler

Hard to say. I phoned Ryobi parts today to get a quote (and maybe even purchase) and they said that the two-blade set was $41. Heck, that is more than double the price listed elsewhere. I gave them the exact part number off of the blister pack container for the spare set I already had purchased some time ago.

Anyway, in a month or two (after my wife has recovered from witnessing the stock-market collapse) I'll order the set - even at the inflated price.

Howard Ferstler

ksuquix

Sorry for resurrecting this thread, but it seems related. Anyone know where I can get blades that I can sharpen for this planer? I'm on my 3rd set of blades now, and I keep staring at my old ones and sighing.