Milling rough lumber

[David Nelson1]

I believe you are the only woodworker in 100 years to pass 400 BF oak boards through a planer and get a stack of flat lumber.

Recently I ran 200 BF of quarter sawn white oak about 50 years old through my shop. Without the jointer, it would have been a disaster. Actually some where 15" wide for a table top and I used the sled method for those. But still, even as nice as a pile of lumber this was, I had plenty of warps and twists which needed to be taken out.



-Steve

nope only 8 boards so far and I'm just going far enough to see the grain so I can decide what is good and what is not. Believe it or not is all pretty flat to start with but checking is a major problem.

[Frank Drew]

If the boards are more or less flat prior to planing, they can come out flat, barring post-planing wood movement. I bought some wide, resawn Old Pine from Mountain Lumber years ago and it didn't need any prep before planing; beautiful stuff.

However, that's the ideal; the real world often presents us with less perfect raw material.

[David Nelson1]

I have to agree Frank, but I still have plenty of reservation though. I got a chance today to use the helper board on the 6 in face I jointed. I think the next time I do it I'll get some of that stairway tread (sand paper stuff) and use it to hold the the 2 boards still. BTW that was the cats meow for slightly large boards. I think someone called a limitation of around 8 inches makes sense to me with the over hang.

[Tom Killian]

The first step, is to buy only flat boards. No cupping, twisting, or warping.

That would be great if it were possible. However, it is not possible to buy flat lumber, even lumber in your own shop with start to warp over time.

Tom

[Mike Harrison]

Tom,

I suggest you purchase your material elsewhere.

...even lumber in your own shop with start to warp over time.

Interesting.... and if you build something and leave it in the shop??

[Prashun Patel]

Mike, I'm with Tom on this one...
I do buy s4s lumber on occasion - and more times than not it's good to go and doesn't require acclimatizing. Specifically, if I need a few pieces of 3/4" red oak, maple, or poplar, the BORG stuff tends to work well off the rack.

But with thicker and wider stock, it often does move once in the shop. In fact, it can move after machining. It's not just a function of moisture but also of interior tensions in the wood that are released during machining.

It's almost never an issue after assembly, because you have glue and mechanical fasteners and other pieces of wood to hold things in place.

[Matt Day]

Sorry for the typo in my description. This graphic might help those who were struggling with trying to visualize it.

[David Nelson1]

Got it. I tried it the other day worked great.