Replies

1. 
   SgianDubh | May 20, 2003 03:38am | #1

   "I then glued two pieces together to make about 2 5/8 squares. After glue up I reflattened one side ....and put all sides through the planer.....perfect parrallelograms...gees!"

   There's your problem right there, BG, starting with the phrase, "I reflattened one side ....." You didn't true and square the adjacent edge to the flattened side. Slainte.

   Website                                            The poster formerly known as Sgian Dubh

1. 
   BG | May 20, 2003 05:05am | #2

   ...son of a gun..I just assumed

   thanks

1. 
   SgianDubh | May 20, 2003 07:48am | #3

   Ha, ha. Slainte.Website                                            The poster formerly known as Sgian Dubh

2. 
   ChasStanford | May 20, 2003 02:20pm | #4

   When you flatten one side you have to 'chase it square' all the way around the post.  Flatten one side, square the next adjacent side to that side, then the next, and then the next. 

   You can have a piece that's say, 1 1/2 inches thick but 1 3/4" wide and still be a perfect rectangle as long as all the sides are square to each other.

3. 
   MarkRoderick | May 20, 2003 02:36pm | #5

   It sounded to me as if when you handplaned that first side, you got it a little out of square with the adjacent sides. Then when you used that side to run it through the planer it did the same thing to the opposite side, and thus the parallelogram. I personally have a hard time keeping a side perfectly square when I'm planing it by hand. Let me clarify that. Under no circumstances am I able to keep a side perfectly square when I'm planing it by hand.

1. 
   BG | May 20, 2003 06:31pm | #6

   Mark,

   Actually, I kinda did the thing backwards.  I cut a 3" strip from a very rough piece of 6.5" stock after running the whole piece of stock through the TS using an aluminum straight edge.  I then cut the 6+'x3" board into about 16" chunks.  My intent was to flatten first and then square up the edges....hand planed one side and ran through planer.  After glue up I planed the side that had the glue line thinking that the planer would do the other side....and I assumed I had a 90 angle with the adjacent side...what is the old saying...assuming is making an a** of U and Me...lol

   Anyhow, as Richard and Chass pointed out..ya gotta chase square around the four sides...that is what I've learned.

   I have the same problem with planing square...that is one reason I cut into 16" pieces (easier to correct)...what I did not have, of course, was a perpendicular side to put the square against...  I guess I've just gotta be more conservative....lol  

2. 
   ChasStanford | May 20, 2003 07:46pm | #7

   It might be helpful to start with a rasp to work a post into square.  Use a straightedge to find the high side or areas of one face.  Take them down with a rasp; I have used a four-in-hand for just this purpose.  Once you have one face flat then test the next face off it and use your rasp to get it square to the one you flattened... and so on from there for each face.  Of course, the process of squaring a face to the first one you flattened flattens that face as well.  That was a mouthful. 

   Once the post is a rectangle, go back with a smoother or a scraper plane and remove the rasp marks, or go on to use hand planes to bring the post to finished dimensions while carefully and frequently testing the faces to assure that they are staying square to each other during the process.  The "during the process" part is the most important aspect.  Don't let it get out of whack too much or you risk having to go below finished dimension to bring it back on course.

   This is not an unchallenging part of hand tool woodworking.  The first time I did it I had a really flippant attitude and ruined some pretty nice stock, or at least made it unusable for the project it was intended for.  I screwed up.