I have a Delta 12 inch planer. What is the shortest length I can safely
run through the machine?

Larry

On 1/28/2012 12:22 PM, Gramp's shop wrote:
I have a Delta 12 inch planer. What is the shortest length I can safely
run through the machine?

http://www.woodworkingtips.com/etips/2006/05/26/wb/


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In article , Gramp's shop
wrote:

I have a Delta 12 inch planer. What is the shortest length I can safely
run through the machine?

With a sled?

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Woodworking and more at http://www.woodenwabbits.com

On 1/28/2012 12:22 PM, Gramp's shop wrote:
I have a Delta 12 inch planer. What is the shortest length I can safely
run through the machine?

Besides the sled, butt the shorts end to end so the in-/out-feed rollers
don't have an edge to roll off of until overall end and the end friction
of the preceding/trailing piece also works to keep from tilting it up....

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On Jan 28, 4:26*pm, dpb wrote:
On 1/28/2012 12:22 PM, Gramp's shop wrote:

I have a Delta 12 inch planer. What is the shortest length I can safely
run through the machine?

Besides the sled, butt the shorts end to end so the in-/out-feed rollers
don't have an edge to roll off of until overall end and the end friction
of the preceding/trailing piece also works to keep from tilting it up....

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By butting pieces end to end when running through the planer, it also
keeps the planer from sniping the ends of boards. A common problem
with planers. For the original post, for just one short piece,
sandwich it end to end between two sacrificial pieces.

On 1/28/2012 12:22 PM, Gramp's shop wrote:
I have a Delta 12 inch planer. What is the shortest length I can safely
run through the machine?

Larry


Thanks, friends. A planer sled seems to be the right answer for what I
need to do.

Larry

On 1/28/2012 8:06 PM, Morgans wrote:
....

Myself, I do not run multiple pieces at one time for any reason. I also
will not run pieces shorter than the figure I used in the above first
line. If you have ever had a piece lift up under the cutter head, you
would never ever want that to happen again. It is a good way to tear up
the planer.

Suit yourself, but you're certainly limiting the usefulness of the tool.

In 40+ years, I've never experienced such a lift using the butted-feed
technique. (And, iirc, the old original Delta/Rockwell planer manual
for the Model 7 is where I first saw it.)

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On 1/28/2012 12:22 PM, Gramp's shop wrote:
I have a Delta 12 inch planer. What is the shortest length I can safely
run through the machine?

OK, after my last posting sorta' chastising, I guess I oughta' 'splain
the reasons...

Caveat is, I've never used or even seen up close to inspect internals
one of the current generation lunchbox or four-column planers--my
experience is all w/ traditional heavy planer design from the small
Rockwell/Delta Model 13 thru the Model 240 Powermatic, etc., etc., ...

In those there is a cast pressure bar/chipbreaker directly behind the
cutterhead w/ only 1/8" or less clearance behind the knives and that
runs just barely above the planed surface; ideally it touches but adds
essentially no friction when adjusted properly.

Therefore, as long as a piece is long enough that it still is being held
down by the infeed roller by the time the front edge gets to the
pressure bar an inch or less behind the cutterhead, the "rise up" simply
cannot happen. Butting the piece behind (and optionally in front) does
have the benefit of not having a roller run on/off the short piece end
and thereby eliminates the upward force that can occur as well as the
rear piece providing the force to push the front piece on through by
being in contact w/ the infeed rollers while the shorter is reaching the
outfeed.

As far as the multiple pieces, if one has a 12/13 or a 20+ inch planer,
unless one is only working on a single board, it's simply a waste to not
fill the throat w/ as much material as one can--besides cutting down the
time required to do a bunch of material, it evens out the wear on the
knives more uniformly across them...

So, there is a shortness limit below which one really shouldn't try it,
but it's based on the length from the infeed to the pressure bar for the
planers I'm accustomed to, not the longer distance between the in- and
outfeed rollers.

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In article , Gramp's shop
wrote:

On 1/28/2012 12:22 PM, Gramp's shop wrote:
I have a Delta 12 inch planer. What is the shortest length I can safely
run through the machine?

Larry


Thanks, friends. A planer sled seems to be the right answer for what I
need to do.

Larry

I also use a sled to plane wood to 1/8" or even thinner. I think we may
have the same planer, too... Delta TP300, 12"?

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Woodworking and more at http://www.woodenwabbits.com

On 1/29/2012 8:37 PM, Morgans wrote:
....

Sorry if I implied it, but I have no problem at all with running pieces
through but[t] to but[t].

-- Jim in NC
....

OK, the use of "never" w/ multiple pieces made me think you were also
implying it wasn't a good technique.

As noted in my other followup, however, imo not filling the throat to
capacity or as near as can is simply wasting time and capacity if limit
oneself to only a single small board at a time when have multiple to
do...the machine has a particular bed size for a reason

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