Cutter head assembly for a knife planer

A cutter head assembly for a planing apparatus, comprising:

• a rotatable cutter head body having a first end, an opposite second end and an outer periphery extending between the first end and the second end in a longitudinal direction;
• at least a first slot formed in the outer periphery and extending generally longitudinally, wherein a section of the first slot in elevation has a leading side that is defined relative to a direction of rotation of the cutter head body and is profiled and a trailing side opposite the leading side and trailing the leading side in the direction of rotation;
• a gib assembly positionable to retain a planing knife blade in the first slot at a desired position adjacent the trailing side, the gib assembly comprising an elongate gib and at least one gib screw, wherein a section of the gib in elevation has a shaped gib leading side, and an opposite gib trailing side, a gib bottom side extending between the gib leading side and the gib trailing side, and a gib outer side extending between the gib trailing side and the gib leading side,
• wherein the shaped gib leading side comprises a first angled segment, a second angled segment, at least one intermediate segment and a radiused segment, the second angled segment extending inwardly from a junction with the gib outer side, the one or more intermediate segments connecting the second angled segment to the first angled segment, and the radiused segment extending from the first angled segment to a junction with the gib bottom side, and
• wherein the profiled leading side of the first slot has complementary first and second angled segments shaped to contact the first and second angled segments of the gib leading side, respectively,
• wherein the gib screw is rotatable to move the gib trailing side toward the trailing side of the slot by contact between the angled segments of the shaped gib leading side and the profiled leading side of the first slot, respectively, thereby clamping the planing knife blade between the gib trailing side and the trailing side of the slot.