Darned jointer! Well, darned jointer operator! Had 4 pieces of maple to mill tonight. No biggie. First piece was a quick, smooth operation, second piece *^&#$% awful — ended up tapered and all messed up. Lost track of the various profiles it presented before I finally gave up (it was too thin on one end for my project). Proceeded on to #3 and #4 — they turned out great!
Redeemed myself by pulling down a really, really warped and crooked piece of beautiful quilted maple and crosscutting it in the exact right spot to be able to mill down one piece beautifully flat and square — and 3/4″ thick!
So, at least it’s not the machine, but for Heaven’s Sake! please save me from these lapses! Off to the lumberyard……
forestgirl — you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can’t take the forest out of the girl 😉
Another proud member of the “I Rocked With ToolDoc Club” …. :>)
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FG, remember when you are flattening stock to go to the planer, you don't have to completely smooth the entire surface. The planer will do that, you just need it close enough to register to the tables. Every now and then you get a twisted piece that will take quite a few passes to get ready, but for most stock, it only takes one or two flattening passes. With hard species like rock maple, I take a lighter cut, less than 1/16" so I don't have to out muscle the cut and beat up on my jointer blades. I usually wait until later in the project to screw things up, like make a cut just a wee bit short on one end. The other end is always still good. It's always a pleasure when you put a big ding in a project as it's going out the door. Making a mess when surfacing is minor. I'm off to the lumber yard, I already picked through the stacks and took the good stuff, maybe they've replenished the racks.
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
"...you just need it close enough to register to the tables." That's what I was trying to do, LOL. No such luck. Every time I took it to the tablesaw table to check the bottom surface, there was a gap or gaps that would have yielded a corresponding problem on the other face if I'd run it through the planer.
I suspect there was some twist in it that I didn't pick up on at the beginning. Twist seems to be the culprit in most of my jointer disasters. Ya think?forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
Maybe I am "overthinking" my jointer work. My routine is to run the face over once or twice (whatever feels right) and then lay it on the tablesaw table and if I see gaps, run it over again, until it lays flat to the table. Too much?forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
I guess this is pretty basic but, I have to consciously think about it when flattening a surface. That is to keep the pressure only on the in-feed table until I get at least half way across the stock then I shift to the out-feed table.
Huh, I didn't know that. I guess really you want to avoid flexing the board at all, let the jointer do the work.
Thanks for that.
"let the jointer do the work." Yes. I'm often guilty of a lapse in that department. Not sure that "half the work" needs to pass over the jointer head though. I've always thought of the outfeed table as the "reference" for the board, and after 8" or so have passed the cutterhead, I start transferring pressure.
On this particular ill-fated board, I think I just got too focused on the darned thing and didn't "let the jointer do the work" as you said.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
Since it was the trailing edge that was disappearing, that's probably not it. Generally, I start the transfer of pressure after about 8" or so has passed over the cutterhead, considering the outfeed table as the "reference" for the board.
forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
Amen to that mcoley. Especially important when you're making face frame for cabinets like I do a lot of.
Even pressure, good.
Tim
Don't worry about gaps, as long as it does not rock, it will run through the planer just fine. Remember, flat, not smooth.
Napie,
"Don't worry about gaps, as long as it does not rock..."
What you said is true, depending on the thickness of the stock, and the manliness of the feed rollers on the planer. It is possible for thinner (3/4" or less) stock to be deformed by the pressure of the feed rollers, and spring back up after passing thru the machine.
Regards,
Ray Pine
That would be the "light cuts" required until its flat.
"It is possible for thinner (3/4" or less) stock to be deformed" My concern exactly. This is pretty thin stock and not very wide so very easy to be pressed down by the rollers.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)Another proud member of the "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>)
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