How to Assemble a Hand Planer

Assembled hand planers remove small slivers of material from a wooden surface.

A hand planer uses a sharp blade to remove material or smooth uneven surfaces of wood used in furniture and cabinet building. When a planer becomes dull, you need to disassemble it to remove the blade. After you sharpen the blade, you will need to assemble the parts properly to ensure the planer works correctly. Deciphering the assembly order of the parts is vital to correctly assembling the hand planer.

Things You'll Need

• Flathead screwdriver

Instructions

1. Set a hand planer body -- flat side down -- on a stable work surface.

2. Hold the blade -- plane iron -- in one hand with the bevel facing up. Slide the blade into the angled section of the planer body. Set the straight piece with a curved end -- cap iron -- on the plane iron with the curved end sitting over the blade bevel.

3. Align the center slot of the cap iron with the center threaded hole of the plane iron. Turn the small cap iron screw clockwise to thread it in the plane iron. Slide the cap iron to expose 1/16 inch of the beveled blade edge. Turn the cap iron screw clockwise with a flathead screwdriver to lock the two pieces together.

4. Slide the assembled pieces in the planer body with the exposed beveled cutting edge pointing toward the front of the body. Turn the cam lock -- located at the top of the planer body -- clockwise to lock the assembly in position.

5. Lift the assembled hand planer in one hand. Flip it over. Loosen the cap iron screw with a flathead screwdriver and move the cap iron if the planer blade does not sit evenly with the bottom of the planer body.

References

• Oregon State University: Building Bigger Things
• Using-Tools: Planes for Woodworking, Usage and Maintenance