Surface planer question

[Bob Glenn]

I scored some free oak shelving boards from the local library that are stained and finished with varnish or poly. I would like to run these through my surface planer to remove the finish prior to reuse, however, I have just put new blades in the machine and am wondering if the finish will ruin them. Anyone care to comment? Your input welcome. Bob

[George Bokros]

I would strip them first or run them through a drum sander, ruined sandpaper is cheaper than replacing planer blades.

[Bob Glenn]

Sounds good, except I don't have a drum sander and stripper is time consuming and messy. Thanks for the thought.

[Jim Mackell]

I've done this many times with used lumber. The paint, shellac, varnish, etc are all softer than any wood you're ever going to plane. No harm at all.

[Matt Day]

I would suggest NOT running them through a drum sander even if you had one. I would guess that your paper would gum up and burn by the time you saw the first board come out the other side.

[Erik Christensen]

i have done it a number of times with no issues but only after making sure there is no dirt/metal embedded - but i have a helical cutter with carbide edges so not sure how applicable that is to your steel planer knives

[Chris Padilla]

I would take a handheld power sander to them myself rather than run them through a planer. Do you have a belt sander or a ROS? Certainly a planer is faster but go real gentle on the dial so you minimize the amount of wood removed.

[Jon Nuckles]

I wouldn't be at all concerned about dried finish damaging planer blades, and I'd feel better about the dust collector taking away the chips than having a handheld sander putting it in the air.

[Chris Padilla]

I'd use a Festool ROS. :D Zero dust. :)

[Bob Glenn]

Thanks guys. I'm mostly a hand tool guy, so I think I'll try one of my smoothing planes first and see how that goes. Thanks for your ideas. Bob

[Chris Padilla]

Scraper, Bob!! Tune it up and you should be able to take that finish right off.

[Frank Pratt]

I think it might depend on the finish. I tried planing the solid exterior stain off some cedar & it dulled the blades after about 50 linear feet. I know it wasn't a dirt issue because they had never even been outside; it was some surplus that I stained years before & never needed.

[Kent A Bathurst]

Sounds good, except I don't have a drum sander and stripper is time consuming and messy. Thanks for the thought.

I cannot see an issue - assuming you have reasonable dust collection. I can't see how varnish woudl damage planer blade steel - nor dull it more than, say, oak.

IF there is dirt and grit on the surfaces, though - I'd take an ROS to it with 30g - 60g, one fairly quick pass, just to strip off the surface 3 jink.


Then - let 'er rip......ummmm.........errr.......plane.

[Kent A Bathurst]

I'd use a Festool ROS. :D Zero dust. :)

Chris at home, relaxing after work: :p


http://file.vintageadbrowser.com/nngr3x9lrbu9ld.jpg

[Jim Matthews]

Try a painter's scraper.

If the finish comes off easily, a planer should manage.
If the finish is powdery, or tacky - it may melt onto the blades.

[Alan Schwabacher]

Try a painter's scraper.


That's the right tool. Carbide wears well.

[Bob Glenn]

Scraper, Bob!! Tune it up and you should be able to take that finish right off.

Good idea, Chris. I use a card scraper all the time. I don't know why I didn't think of it. Thanks

[Bill Adamsen]

If I do this sort of thing on the planer (hate to admit ... I have) I do empty the Cyclone bin first, and then dispose of the shavings "with finish" in the collected waste-stream.

[Mark Wooden]

If you plane a lot off- at least a 32nd- you should be able to avoid dulling the knives planing off the surface. A lot of finishes have silicates in them that will destroy HSS knives very quickly and carbide shortly thereafter, I'd scrape it off with a good shavehook (handled scraper) first then plane. Don't sand before planing either- sanding grit wrecks knives too.

[Fidel Fernandez]

I have done it so many times with my jack plane, thin cuts and it is faster that anything. You won't even touch the wood, just the finish layer.

[Chris Padilla]

Chris at home, relaxing after work: :p


http://file.vintageadbrowser.com/nngr3x9lrbu9ld.jpg

Oh Yeah!!!

[Art Mann]

Somebody gave me an old oak church bench a while back. After removing the ends and separating the seat from the back, I had two large slabs of glued up oak. I ripped them up into narrower boards and the sent them through my planer a couple of times each side to remove the stain/varnish and get them to a uniform thickness. I didn't have any trouble with dulling the planer knives and the wood was very nice (for oak). The finish on your lumber may be different and your results may not be as good.