Working with Babinga

[dodgeram99]

I bought some Babinga to make a box. When I went to plane it started to chip out. I know its not dull knifes i replaced them right befor starting the Babinga. I tried smaller cuts but it still chiped out. Is ther any thing I can do to help/stop this frome happening

[Mister Pants]

I've tried the dampening a board trick with curly maple before which helped reduce tearout. You could try that (as well as the light passes you mentioned). Never had an issue planing bubinga myself, though haven't done much with it. Is it figured at all? Couldn't tell from the photos.

[wdwerker]

I use my drum sander for wood that has figured grain. You have to take tiny amounts each pass and work through the grits but you can achieve a flawless surface with no tear out.

If you have no drum sander work through the grits with a belt sander and then an orbital sander. Maybe you could use a cabinet scraper at some point.

[Boatworks Today]

Try feeling the direction of the grains before running through the planer. When you rub your hand down the face of the board in one direction it will probably have more of a coarse feel than rubbing in the other direction. If you feed the board through the planer against the grain on figured wood it will have a tendency to chip or tear out. Running the board through in the opposite direction may take care of the problem. Not always on figured wood but there will probably be a noticeable difference..

Good luck

[dodgeram99]

Thanks for all the great info.

[Tom Conover]

I have had good luck using my low angle jack plane with the iron ground at 40 degrees. I do a final honing of the iron on a 10,000 wet stone.

I'll also use my low-angle block plane to cleanup small areas of highly figured wood.

[tombuhl]

Not sure I'd consider Bubinga in same context as other figured woods. Besides reversing, swirling grain, it is hard (very). If using planes and such, besides beginning with ultra-sharp tool, you'll have to consider sharpening frequently. I've used it quite a bit and after basic milling tend to go with scraper and sandpaper. Only use hand planes for preliminary work, even with straight grain material. I have a low angle smoother, and haven't tried it with Bubinga. Will give it a try sometime.

If using drum sander, take light passes as suggested and also watch closely for burning. Usually, I notice the smell first. The oils will gum up the sanding strips fairly often. Not always, but....beware. Once gummed up, they are not salvageable. Replace.

Working with Bubinga I tend to go even more than usual with relative dimensioning. Meaning I have a thickness in mind, but once it is flat, I stop...when the design permits.

The Bubinga I've used has mostly been stable and flat, so not as much milling as with many materials.