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Ridiculous planer idea...or is it?

Started by ayerwood, August 11, 2013, 03:32:41 PM

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ayerwood

Hello again all.  Before I am able to purchase my "dream" planer/molder, I was thinking of putting together a cheaper, temporary 2-sided planer for use on some boards.  A family friend has a small woodworking shop at his house with one of those DeWalt(forgot the model) planers and I have planed some boards with him.  It's a nice little machine for a smaller scale of boards.

My ridiculous idea is...could you use this 1-sided planer(or one similar) and fabricate it inline with a second upside down planer to get a "2-sided planer"?  You could buy the two planers for around $1200.  But, upside down?  Could it work?

I had seen a little bit of this idea in the FF search, and am not a planer expert by any means, so I was wondering if I could get some thoughts.  Or pointed in the direction of a similar project.  Or just tell me its ridiculous.  ;D

Thanks everyone!

beenthere

Now you don't really want to be told it is rediculous....... right?   ;D
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

scsmith42

The problem that you will have is that the bottom head serves a different function than the top head in a double sided machine.  Typically the bottom head (jointer head) is used to flatten stock, and the top head (planer head) is used to dimension stock.

Planers use a roller feed mechanism that will mash a cupped board flat.  Automatic jointers use a spring tooth belt feed mechanism that will feed the board past the jointer head w/o changing it's shape.

If you feed flat stock through your double planer idea, it will be fine.  However, if you feed cupped stock through it, you run the risk of having cupped stock come out of the back end.
Peterson 10" WPF with 65' of track
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Tom's 3638D Baker band mill
and a mix of log handling heavy equipment.

pineywoods

Do able if you can come up with a way to mount the up-side-down planer. Then there's the ticklish situation of adjusting for different board thickness. Probably be more trouble than it's worth, just set up 2 planers, run the board through #1, flip it over and through #2.
1995 Wood Mizer LT 40, Liquid cooled kawasaki,homebuilt hydraulics. Homebuilt solar dry kiln.  Woodmaster 718 planner, Kubota M4700 with homemade forks and winch, stihl  028, 029, Ms390
100k bd ft club.Charter member of The Grumpy old Men

Planman1954

Piney: I need to come to your house and figure this one out....and then mount my 2 routers on the outfeed!  BOOM... 4 sided planer.  8)
Norwood Lumbermate 2000 / Solar Dry Kiln /1943 Ford 9n tractor

GeneWengert-WoodDoc

What you need is a jointer for the first head.  Top head planers are not common, but do exist.  But it would be so much easier To get a board flipper as Pineywoods says.
Gene - Author of articles in Sawmill & Woodlot and books: Drying Hardwood Lumber; VA Tech Solar Kiln; Sawing Edging & Trimming Hardwood Lumber. And more

red oaks lumber

spend the money and buy a 2 sided planer. your idea is just looking for an accident to happen ;)
the experts think i do things wrong
over 18 million b.f. processed and 7341 happy customers i disagree

Ianab

Be better to look for an "Old Iron" planer, even if it needed some rebuilding. At least the engineering has already been done, and if it's been working for 50 years, it should work for the next 50, with a bit of maintenance.

Also those portable planers are limited. Sure they can plane a 12" wide board, or take off 1/8" in one pass. But they wont do both....

Ian
Weekend warrior, Peterson JP test pilot, Dolmar 7900 and Stihl MS310 saws and  the usual collection of power tools :)

ayerwood

Ok.  This idea will go in the trash.  Figured It couldn't be that simple or others would be doing it. Just thought I'd throw it out there and get some thoughts anyway. Thanks guys.

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