Replies

1. 
   silver77 | Sep 30, 2003 08:08pm | #1

   Dressed lumber (s4s) should require no planing.

   If you are careful when selecting and eyeball straight edges then you won't have to joint.

   But if the edges are not straight(just hold it against your table saw fence and you shall see)

   then you will need to joint an edge. There are attachments for jointing on a tablesaw if you

   don't have a jointer.

   cheers,

   silver

2. 
   TomMGTC | Sep 30, 2003 08:34pm | #2

   I think it really depends on what level of fit finish you are looking for. I have never bought dressed lumber from a lumberyard that I have felt was ready for use (glue up) as is. It is never consistently flat or square. In my eperience it nearly always needs to be jointed and planed before use, by had or machine. I almost always buy rough lumber now so I have more control over the process.

   Tom
3. 
   Cheatah214 | Sep 30, 2003 09:26pm | #3

   I rarely rely on dressed lumber from the local dealer (HD/Lowes) to be ready to be glued up as is. It may look straight but your seams really need to be tight before glue is applied and clamped. If you want to produce quality projects, invest in a planer and jointer to ensure it meets your own strictest standards.

   Good luck

4. 
   Crunk | Sep 30, 2003 09:34pm | #4

   Attempting to build furniture with pre-dressed lumber is one mistake that I never made (about the only one) as a beginner.

   Rest assured that anything you buy will show some measure of cup, twist, bow, crook, etc. (if not all of these).  The best practices of the craft suggest that you should true your stock fairly contemporaneously with putting it into the project.  In building a hutch, for instance, you would dress your rough lumber, cut the joinery, and glue up the project over the week or so one of these types of projects would typically take the part-time hobbyist.  You wouldn't dress the stock and then wait three to four weeks later cut joinery and glue up. 

   
   

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   Edited 9/30/2003 8:16:37 PM ET by BossCrunk