mustanggt Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Setting up the shop with this model planner. Lot's of good reviews convince me to purchase this unit. The first two projects will be end grain cutting boards for my mom and aunt for their birthdays in April. TWW and many others say not to plane end grain and others planned dozens of end grain boards through it with nary a problem. Do it this way and that and you won't get tear out and kick back. I'm probably going to break out my hand plane to accomplish it but would love to use the planner. It amazes me the contradiction between the two camps on their experiences. Not sure what to do yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Have you ever seen the carnage of a portable planer exploded after catching end grain? My opinion, don't If you do, wear a cup. A router sled can be built for about any router with scrap most of us have laying around the shop. Flatten one surface, flip, repeat, sand. Is it worth your $600 machine on a "lets see what happens" Btw, have fun flattening an end grain board with hand planes. Possible, absolutely. Torturous, certainly. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardA Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Do not run your end grain boards through that planer, unless you want to buy a new planer! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Don't use your planer to flatten end grain. A drum sander is best but if you haven't got one a low angle bevel up plane works really well. A random orbit sander will also work well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minorhero Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 I have used a flat head knife planer for a cutting board and I have used helical head planers as well. Both are bad ideas but the flathead was really bad. It chewed up my cutting board even when taking the lightest cut. The helical head just chewed up the end and I built in extra for that purpose. I didn't have a hand plane at the time, but that is definitely the safer route to take. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustanggt Posted January 24, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 I don't plan on doing it after ready the awful experiences of some. I just thought it was so strange that some did it many times without incidence and others had it happen right away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cochese Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 There's always a difference between can and should. Best practice dictates you don't try this. Your best bet for a happy experience with a cutting board is to take great care and time getting your glue ups right and as close as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Drum sander! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustanggt Posted January 24, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 I'm taking a look at drum sanders right now. I appreciate the advice fellas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheperd80 Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Another vote for setting up a router sled. Ive used mine on several end grain cutting boards and it works great. I dont think youll have much luck with a handplane either. Amana 1-3/4 planing bit is what i use. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Cliff Posted January 24, 2016 Popular Post Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 35 minutes ago, TIODS said: Drum sander! It's unfortunate that one of the first things a new woodworker would make is best made with a tool a woodworker may not get for several years. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 3 minutes ago, Cliff said: It's unfortunate that one of the first things a new woodworker would make is best made with a tool a woodworker may not get for several years. The is extremely accurate! I was one that held off for ever and then kicked myself for not doing it much earlier! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustanggt Posted January 24, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 The reason I chose the end grain cutting board is that it was different and really cool and was something I could do with reasonable success given my skill level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 1 minute ago, mustanggt said: The reason I chose the end grain cutting board is that it was different and really cool and was something I could do with reasonable success given my skill level. We all get it. The point is that there is no faster and better way to achieve fantastic results quickly than with the drum sander. Planing end grain may be possible, but you are one bad experience from tool replacement or the hospital. Hand tools can make this work, but it is SLOW and takes really sharp tools. The router sled idea (up or down) is a great way to Flat but still takes work for Smooth. End grain boards are a great beginner project, but they will take time to finish where guys with a drum are done in half the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 End grain cutting boards are fun projects! They're also a project where the addition of 1 tool (drum sander) makes them much easier and faster to build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Bob Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 1 hour ago, Cochese said: There's always a difference between can and should. Best practice dictates you don't try this. Your best bet for a happy experience with a cutting board is to take great care and time getting your glue ups right and as close as possible. I agree that it is not best practice, but I am going to be the odd man out and admit that I have done this. In December of 2010 I did a cutting board "marathon" and made 17 in 3 weeks. I was in a hurry and did not have a drum sander and used my 735 to flatten them. I knew I wasn't supposed to do it and had read the horror stories, but stuff like that has never stopped me.. According to my notes, I made a 1/4" ply sled and shimmed the boards, then took very light passes. I had one minor tear out on the trailing edge of one board and had to change to blades when I was done. But there were no disasters and the planer still works like a champ. I have a drum sander now and shouldn't have to repeat this but I wouldn't hesitate if the need arises. As always YMMV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pwk5017 Posted January 24, 2016 Report Share Posted January 24, 2016 Drum sanders certainly speed up the process and make it more convient. It's been awhile since I made one board at a time, so it's hard for me to comment on the one off production. I'm one of those dumbasses that makes end grain boards on the side for shop income. I usually make them in batches of 6 or more at a time. In this case, drum sander is insanely faster because you set the machine and feed them 3 at a time depending on how wide they are and how wide your drum sander is. In a one off case once I set the machine and get the paper on, I might have been able to belt sand a 12x16 board in the same amount of time. And that brings me to how I did my boards prior to owning a 37x2 sander. I was outside with a respirator and a porter cable belt sander with belts from 50 grit to 150. A router sled is okay, but it always left me with a fair amount of tear out that needed to be cleaned up with a sander. Go on Craigslist and buy a belt sander for $50. If you go the hand plane route, keep your stones within reach! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barron Posted January 25, 2016 Report Share Posted January 25, 2016 Flattening an end grain cutting board with a random orbit sander isn't hard, it just takes a while. Start with 60 or even 40 grit, put some good tunes on your phone or MP3 player and zone out while you sand. If you use a plane it's a good idea to moisten (as in soak) the surface with denatured alcohol or mineral spirits and bevel all the edges to avoid tearout. Either way, a good use of cauls to keep the strips even during glue up will make your life easier. A drum sander is nice, but a big investment for a couple of cutting boards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheperd80 Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 Ive done it with a belt sander and with the router sled. In my experience the router sled was faster and gave better results. If you set it up, it gives you true flat surface. Cut only left to right to reduce tearout. Then follow with an orbital. . The belt sander takes a little more finesse to get it truly flat and i found that i spent way more time trying to remove scratches from the sander, whereas the router was easy to clean up after as soon as i stopped cutting back and forth. The right to left passes left so deeeeep tearout. . Ymmv Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 Yep, I like the router fir flat, followed by ROS for smooth. Using the planer, even if it doesn't explode, you'll probably still need to sand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris H Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 I've never tried it on an end grain cutting board, but I would think the router sled flattening would be a viable option. I had some end grain on a through tenon on a reloading bench and it wasn't an issue. Much larger scale, but same concept. You'll still need to ROS but it's cheap and effective way to flatten anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustanggt Posted January 26, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 Thanks for all the replies fellas. I'm still thinking about how I'm going to do this. Not going with the planer for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 If I was in your shoes, I'd throw together a quick and dirty router sled. It doesn't have to be sexy, just functional. This was my dedicated cutting board jig. Super simple and did exactly what I asked of it. I immobilized the board and shimmed. Moved the jig along. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 I was watching YouTube last night, rather than EDC. I noticed the dude from MTMWood, that makes nothing but end grain cutting boards, apparently. His standard practice is to flatten the board with his planer, a 20" (I think) Jet floor model. Sounded like helical cutters, too. He avoids the edge breakout by gluing long grain pieces across the front and back, then sawing them off afterwards. I would probably frame the entire board with long grain before even thinking about running it through the planer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted January 26, 2016 Report Share Posted January 26, 2016 3 hours ago, wtnhighlander said: I was watching YouTube last night, rather than EDC. I noticed the dude from MTMWood, that makes nothing but end grain cutting boards, apparently. His standard practice is to flatten the board with his planer, a 20" (I think) Jet floor model. Sounded like helical cutters, too. He avoids the edge breakout by gluing long grain pieces across the front and back, then sawing them off afterwards. I would probably frame the entire board with long grain before even thinking about running it through the planer. He also has a full video in response to this topic showing how He does it and why he does it knowing the risks. I'll try to find it and drop the link in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.