Popular Woodworking 2006-11 № 158, страница 54

Rough cutting the width of any cupped board closer to the size needed will eliminate unnecessary milling and produce less wasted stock.

get to meet many woodworkers around the country at woodworking schools, seminars and while answering e-mail messages. I find that one issue pops up repeatedly: ""What is the correct method for milling lumber?" You might be familiar with the basic steps that are required to bring the lumber to working order. But what you do, how you do it, and in what order you do it will influence the project from start to finish, and will make your projects run smoother.

To properly mill your stock using machines you will need to have a j ointer, a thickness planer and a table saw. In my opinion, these are the three most important tools in your shop. They don't need to be the "Cadillac" examples. I have been able to work with a number of benchtop models that perform extremely well. Just having and using them correctly will put you light years ahead in building your proj ects.

Do you look back fondly at the many articles in the woodworking magazines on how to "tune up" your tools ? Probably not. You may have even tired of these articles, but they are important. The accurate milling of your lumber is partially dependent on the accuracy of your machines. If your planer and jointer knives aren't level with one another, your cuts will not be level. Having the tools set properly is half the battle. The correct procedure is the other half.

You may be tempted to bypass a few of these steps and purchase lumber that has some of the milling complete. I'm not a fan ofbuy-ing lumber that is S2S (surfaced two sides). This wood, for the most part, comes through a double-sided thickness planer to the selected thickness. These machines exert so much pressure on the board that they flatten the stock as it enters the cutters. After it passes the knives, the board springs back to

the original shape. This machine does a good job with flat boards, which we seldom see. However, if your pieces are cupped, warped or twisted they will be that way as they exit the machine - even though they are now a consistent thickness throughout. I suggest buying rough lumber and milling the stock yourself.

Start With Smaller Pieces

Some woodworkers start milling the lumber in its full length and width as it is pulled rough from the rack. If you work this way you are trying to flatten a 6' to 8' length of wood that may be 9" or more wide. As you may have experienced, this

can turn a large portion of your lumber into shavings.

For example, if you have a bow over the length of the board, by the time you flatten one face at the jointer you might reduce the board below your target thickness. The same holds true with wide boards that are cupped.

Also, it's not possible to accurately flatten a wide piece of lumber by running half the width on the j ointer and then reversing the piece to complete the milling on the remaining half of the same face. I've seen many woodworkers attempt this feat.

The correct procedure is to first cut your pieces into a rough size

the right way to

Prepare

To true your wood with machines, the

steps you follow are -¹ -» —S

critical. This time- -»

tested procedure

is the best way we _^by ^Glen ^Huey

know of.

Glen is a contributing editor to Popular Woodworking. You ll find more information about Glen, his books and his DVDs at woodworkersedge.com.

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Popular Woodworking November 2006