OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE
PLANING FOR FINISH
Planing for a smooth finish as well as thickness is best accomplished by taking light cuts on the board. However, several other things are
important besides light cuts to achieve a smooth finish.
Always feed the board in a direction that allows the planer blades to cut with the grain. This aids the knife in severing the wood fibers rather
than lifting and tearing the fibers. Torn fibers give a fuzzy appearance to the surface. Feeding against the grain can also cause your knife to
lift large chips from the board’s surface, causing a very unsightly appearance.
THICKNESS PLANING
Thickness planing is the sizing of material to a desired thickness, while creating a smooth surface parallel to the opposite side of the board.
The art of thickness planing consists mainly of using good judgement about the depth of cut in various situations. You must take into account
not only the width of the stock, but the hardness of the board, its dampness, straightness, grain direction, and grain structure.
The effects of these factors upon the quality of the finished work can only be learned through experience. It is always advisable, whenever
working with a new type of wood, or one with unusual problems, to make test cuts on scrap material if possible prior to working on your
finished product.
FOR ADDITIONAL PLANING
If more material needs to be removed, hand crank the cutterhead no more than 3mm and complete another pass. Repeat this process until
the desired thickness has been reached.
LUBRICATION
1. The recommended lubrication for roller chains used in medium to slow speed operation is to simply wipe the chain clean. When there is
an appreciable build-up of dust, dirt or wood-shavings, coat chain with a light film of oil but never pour the oil directly on the chain.
Over-oiling defeats the purpose of the lubrication, since it simply tends to hasten the collection of dust, shavings, etc., and works them into
members of the chain. This hastens wear and leads to premature replacement. This applies to the speed reduction and height adjustment
chains, as well as the elevation screws.
2. The bearings on the cutterhead are factory lubricated and sealed. They require no further attention.
PERIODIC MAINTENANCE
Buildup of sawdust and other debris can cause your machine to plane inaccurately. Periodic cleaning is not only recommended, but
mandatory for accurate precision planing.
1. Close-fitting parts, such as the lockbars and the planer cutterhead slots should be cleaned with a brush and freed from clinging foreign
matter and then replaced in their respective positions, slightly dampened with oil.
2. Remove resin and other accumulations from feed rolls and table with a non-flammable solvent.
