Jwest Posted December 30, 2011 Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 So, I just bought a planer and I'm trying to learn as much as possible before I start using it. One question I have is in regards to milling wide boards. I was watching one of Marcs videos on milling and when he got to milling a wide board he built a sled. It was a wide piece of wood and he hot glued it to the plywood before running it through. Can someone explain why this needs to be done instead of just running a 12" board through the planer by itself. Thanks for the insight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwacker Posted December 30, 2011 Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 I haven't seen the video but he was probably face jointing the board with his planer since his jointer isn't wide enough. Don Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vic Posted December 30, 2011 Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 J, the reason for using a sled is to enable you to face joint the board, as was already mentioned. You hot glue shims on the underside to stabilize the board in the sled. If you were to run a twisted, bowed or cupped board thru a planer without doing this, it would do little to actually give you a flat face. It would simply follow the contour of the board and you have a skinnier board with the same problems as the same thicker board. It has become known that removing the same amount of material from both faces is helpful in the dimensioned board retaining its new flat form. This is because you are equally exposing the higher RH content of the interior wood more equally, allowing a more uniform drying (null) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jwest Posted December 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 Ok, makes sense. I was just mentioning to my wife that the more I get into woodworking, it seems I find out more things I didn't know or even think about. So, is the hot glue gun sled a good way to go about using my planer? Or are there better sled ideas out there? The hot glue gun seems to be pretty easy and low cost, but just wondering if there were any other ideas out there. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onboard Posted December 30, 2011 Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 Jwest, if you have issue #175 ( Jan/Feb 2005) of Fine Woodworking magazine, it has an article / plans for building a thickness planer sled. If you have a FW online subscription you can read / save a copy of the article here. Here’s someone who built a planer sled based on the Fine Woodworking article I just mentioned. There are a few pictures and some text explaining his planer sled build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted December 30, 2011 Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 Jwest, Do you have a jointer? If not, making a planer sled is a good idea. If you have a jointer, then you may never need a planer sled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jwest Posted January 3, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2012 No jointer yet. Bought the planer first, jointer is next. I'm going to save and spend the extra money to buy an 8 inch one. Thanks for the info on the sled. I'll check it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PMR Posted January 3, 2012 Report Share Posted January 3, 2012 Here's an 8 minute video from Fine Woodworking on building and using a sled with your planer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RenaissanceWW Posted January 4, 2012 Report Share Posted January 4, 2012 Since I'm already known as the "crazy hand tool guy" I figured I should interject on the last part of this conversation. A Jack plane/Fore plane/Scrub plane with a heavily cambered iron is cheaper, takes up less space, and can quickly remove any twist or rock from a board to allow it to lay flat on the planer table. Once the first face is planed, flip the board and make a flat, parallel face. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jwest Posted January 5, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 5, 2012 Hand tools, that is crazy! Just kidding. I would like to get some hand planes, I'm honestly just a little nervous about them. I don't really know how to use one properly, proper set up, what brands are best, etc. I was going to get a block plane first, since I don't have any hand planes. On another note, I know that after planing the wood can move again since a new layer with moisture has been exposed. So, how quickly do you all start assembly after running a board through the planer? How likely is the board to move after assembly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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