I have about 180bf of Shagbark Hickory (ten 8/4 boards, 9 feet long by 12"
wide) that I need to get surfaced, but I seem to have misplaced my 12" jointer,
and this little 6" jobbie just ain't gonna be of much help. Normally when I'm
faced with the initial face-jointing of boards wider than my jointer I break
out the jack planes and the No. 8 Bailey and go to town, and usually have a
good time doing it. But with a giant stack of harder-than-nails Hickory? I
don't think so. I'd look like Popeye by the time I got done. I know that some
of you fart smellers forgo the jointer altogether and use the planer instead,
and since I have a nice big 15" Grizzly that eats Hickory for lunch I figure
it's time for me to build a sled. Any favorite designs? I know I could just
screw two straight and true tubafours to either side of the boards and run that
through, but I rather not run screws into the wood if I can help it. Side
rails on a plywood base with pointy setscrews locking the boards in place?
What about adjustability? I'd rather not build a fancy sled if it can't be
used on boards of varying widths. Any and all opinions welcome.

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