How to Use a Wood Working Jointer as a Planer
A surface planer is a great tool to have in your workshop. Unfortunately, many woodworkers don't have the workspace or budget for this single-purpose tool. A jointer can be used to flatten the surface of a cupped board or smooth the face of rough lumber. After smoothing, flattening and squaring three sides of your board, you will need a table saw to square the fourth. One or two finishing passes on the jointer will give you a flat, square board. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Jointer
- Square
- Board
- Straight edge
- Table saw
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Instructions
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Unplug your jointer.
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Set the jointer fence to a 90-degree angle from the jointer's bed. Check the angle on both the in-feed and out-feed beds with a square.
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Set the depth of cut on the in-feed table to no more than 1/16 inch.
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Inspect your board for cupping and grain direction. The easiest way to get a flat, smooth face on your board is to place it on the jointer with the concave face down and the grain running in the same direction as the cutter heads.
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Plug the jointer in. Turn it on and make a single pass with the board across the jointer.
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Check the planed surface of the board with a straight edge. Make as many passes across the jointer as necessary to remove high or low spots in the board.
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Joint one edge of the board. Check the angle between the face and the jointed edge with a square. You should have a 90-degree angle the entire length of the board at this point.
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Plane the second face of the board by placing it face down on the jointer bed. Place the jointed edge against the jointer's guide fence and make as many passes as necessary to flatten it. Check the second face with a straight edge after each pass.
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Rip the board to the proper width on your table saw. Place the jointed edge of the board against your table saw's rip fence and rip it to 1/8-inch larger than your desired finished dimension.
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Make one or two passes on the ripped edge over your jointer to smooth and dimension your board.
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Tips & Warnings
The width of your jointer's blades will determine the width of the board you can successfully surface plane.
Use push blocks when passing your board over the jointer's cutter heads.
Wear appropriate eye and hearing protection while operating any power tools.
References
- Photo Credit pialla image by UBE from Fotolia.com
