Maybe it’s just me (usually), but is there an easy way to make ready for finish, a piece of figured wht oak for example. I have a couple of pieces of figured wood. 1 wht oak and a piece of birds eye cypress. Ran them thru the planer small “chip out ” spots would happen. Slow it down…speed it up: take a little ..take a lot. Sooner or latter you have to finish it by hand. Or not …how do you guys and gals do it. I’ll post pics of the oak and cypress. In between sanding and steel wool I’ve use a thin solution of linseed oil/turp to “raise ” the grain. Is there something I’m missing here?? I love the stuff.. cuts thru crotch or roots etc. Or is this just “no pain, no gain”. Thanks to all. Bill D.
Replies
I'm fortunate enough to have a Performax 22-44 drum sander and I use that to bring fancy grained wood to the proper thickness and surface smoothness after rough jointing and planing. The drum sander is a fairly big investment but there is just no easier way, IMO, to surface fancy grain wood. It also takes a good dust collector to handle the dust.
I have a great assortment of LV and LN planes and scrapers that I can use on plainer woods when I am not in a hurry. But for the tough to finish surface boards the drum sander is a dream.
Bruce
Thanks to all who responded. But Since I don't have a large drum sander. I'm left to hand sand/work to get where I want to go. As others said "never in my wildest dreams could I afford one" The budget here is sooooo tight.
On the up side, It's a joy to see the grain come to life. When the first coat of wax or other finish goes on OMG...I love it, makes it all worth the time.
Again thanks to all.
Bill D.
"It's a joy to see the grain come to life."Isn't it, though! Don't skip sanding grits!Chris @ http://www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com(soon to be http://www.flairwoodworks.com)
- Success is not the key to happines. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
I'd recommend 1) a good quality scraper and a bit of research here and other places on how to sharpen and use it; 2) a good quality smooth plane combined with a similar effort. The plane doesn't have to cost a fortune (mine haven't) if you're willing to spend a little effort on it and learn how to use it. The kind of wood you're talking about will make the effort worthwhile. I'd do anything rather than sand it into submission! Verne
If a tree falls in the forest, and no one is there to cut it up and make something with it . . . what a waste!<!----><!----><!---->
Nice looking woods. Sometimes it is just necessary to slow down and use sanding rather than planing. The challenge is keeping things flat. ROS sanding too often wants to follow grain and leads to undulations that aren't so good looking. Wide belt sanders are nice, but not even in my dreams do I have one. Best compromise, unless you are a master with the belt sander, is to slow down and use a half sheet sander. Still, in the end you likely need some hand sanding.
On the other hand, my best stuff is based on 18th. century precedents, and in those case I break out my best hand plane, a wooden smoother with a very fine mouth and a York pitch. With the mouth so fine you have to go slow. I also use a card scraper, though my thumbs would appreciate it I went to a scrapper plane. Queen Anne and Chippendale reproductions need to have the gentle undulations on the surface to look "right"--wide belt sander flat and it looks like modern factory furniture what ever the style.
Bill,
I rely on my power tools to get me close to where I want to be, but never for a finish-ready surface. I finish off with a card scraper - it is quite quick!
Chris @ www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com
(soon to be www.flairwoodworks.com)
- Success is not the key to happines. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
Billy,
If you had a wide-belt sander you wouldn't be asking the question. It's a difficult problem to solve entirely, but you can try the following:
The planer blades need to be sharp. Before you run the piece thru the planer, wet it down a bit with a rag or sponge. The oldtimers used kerosene for this. (I've already been castrated by the safety patrol on Knots for mentioning this. I still maintain there's really nothing unsafe about kerosene, it just sounds suspicious...) So if you're young and cautious, use water. Plane at the slowest speed you can, and take the smallest bite you can.
That's about all you can do. Good belt-sander technique will help finish the job.
David Ring
http://www.touchwood.co.il/?lang=e&id=1
Bill,
Dave has given you the cheapest way to solve your problem, I will pinch your wallet a little bit. I have no idea what your planer situation is, but if you use these types of woods a lot you might think about retrofitting your planer with a Byrd Shelix head. The tear out from a Shelix at slow speeds sprayed with WD40 is nonexistent for the most part. I have planed crotch cherry with absolutely no tear out with it. Contrary to most urban folklore WD40 does not contain silicone or kerosene. Other than that, Dave has given you the best advice for power tools.
I have a Makita variable speed 3x21" portable belt sander. Makita makes a "shoe" for it - a shoe is a frame that the sander sits in and allows you to control the aggressiveness and otherwise widen the registration of the sander such that it is very easy to control and will not dig or otherwise do the things hand belt sanders can sometimes do. Works great on difficult grains and is much cheaper than a big drum sander.
This forum post is now archived. Commenting has been disabled