Bob Cumming
08-29-2015, 11:48 AM
Newbie here, first post.
Although I'm not an experienced woodworker (deck building/light carpentry and similar projects), I acquired a 13" Rockwell RC-33 planer from the estate of a very good friend who was an accomplished woodcrafter, carver, Kentucky rifle maker, and 16th century printing press builder whose work is known throughout this country and many others. When he passed, his shop remained intact until his wife (suffering from worsening dementia), moved to a managed care facility with the family dog. His name was Richard "Dick" Hicks whose reputation may be known among some members of this forum. Dick's son, Steve, is a furniture maker with great talent who, like his father, has made and sold his craftwork throughout the U.S.
Unfortunately, Dick was--as his wife once told me--not a goal oriented person. Rather he was a man whose talent was rooted in processes. When he died in his late 80's, his shop was completely disorganized, full of wood dust and shavings that accumulated since the 1970's when he built his house that he and his wife lived in. He had little or no need for operator's manuals; One of his prize tools was an enormous machinist lathe on which he turned and bore rifle barrels that must have weighed a ton at least. Like all his tools, Dick simply used them until they no longer held tolerances. Then he'd jerry-rig some kind of fix-it that allowed him to continue working. As a result of his lack of appreciation for keeping essential paperwork or small maintenance tools unique to each machine, the Rockwell RC-33 planer that I purchased didn't come with that all important knife gauge supplied with the machine. We did, however, locate the original instruction manual. This model 22650 planer was made in Brazil in September 1989, Ser. No. 7075 (shown on the data plate).
Despite not being used for many, many years the planer fired right up and was surprisingly accurate when I performed a test with a piece of redwood 2X6. Because I'm only now getting the hang of how to use it, I have a few questions:
KNIFE GAUGE: Assuming I'll be forced to use another type, I'd appreciate knowing what aftermarket gauges do a decent job that can be used on this planer;
PROBLEMS:
a. Engaging feed roll: T-lever push/pull type. When pulled out, T-bar disengages by itself rather than remain engaged.
b. Depth of Cut Adjustment: With or without both lock knobs tight, the elevating handle rotates when knives engage the work piece;
c. Crabbing: Work piece sometimes "crabs" as it exits the out-feed side of the planer.
d. Knife Gauge: Anybody have a spare that they're willing to part with?
A little about myself: I'm a custom knife maker. Following my retirement in 1997 from overseas Federal service, I completed my workshop which I outgrew before it was half finished. My shop is thus filled with a variety of metal-working machinery including a full-sized Bridgeport vertical mill, a Gorton pantograph mill, a modified surface grinder that utilizes 72" abrasive belts rather than a standard stone, a multipurpose variable speed band saw, 1970's era Rockwell variable speed drill press, a shop-built 16" variable speed disc sander, my pride and joy: A Bader III belt grinder, a Baldor extended shaft buffer, and a smaller buffer that I use mainly for polishing leather sheaths. For years I've toyed with the idea of machine-stitching the leather sheaths that I custom-make for each knife that I complete, but I've resisted the temptation and continue to sew them by hand.
So why did I buy a wood planer? Good question and I'm glad you asked! I just tore off 1/3 of my 850 sq. ft. exterior deck that, unlike the other two-thirds, was not roofed over. Because we get significant amounts of snow where I live, snow melt caused a lot of wood root which I had to replace or go to prison for allowing an attractive nuisance to exist. Because a significant amount of the 2X6 redwood decking was salvageable, I decided to re-purpose some of it. When not building custom knives, I enjoy restoring vintage aluminum boats, and am now on my third. This little boat is at my family's summer cottage in East Tennessee and has become my "vacation" project when I'm there. So, the idea is to utilize the salvaged redwood to build floorboards for the boat. I'll trim up what I've planed so far and haul it to Tennessee next month where I'll re-saw it into 2 and 3" widths (yes, we have a good collection of power equipment there, too).
I look forward to adding photos of how this project eventually turns out and in the meantime also look forward to hearing from those of you who might be able to offer some good advice. Since I do have some machining experience, is there any possibility that I could make a duplicate original knife gage? If so, would anyone on the forum be able to photograph theirs and provide dimensions? My private email address and phone number is:
cumming@comcast.net
505-286-0509
Thanks in advance.
Best regards,
Bob
Although I'm not an experienced woodworker (deck building/light carpentry and similar projects), I acquired a 13" Rockwell RC-33 planer from the estate of a very good friend who was an accomplished woodcrafter, carver, Kentucky rifle maker, and 16th century printing press builder whose work is known throughout this country and many others. When he passed, his shop remained intact until his wife (suffering from worsening dementia), moved to a managed care facility with the family dog. His name was Richard "Dick" Hicks whose reputation may be known among some members of this forum. Dick's son, Steve, is a furniture maker with great talent who, like his father, has made and sold his craftwork throughout the U.S.
Unfortunately, Dick was--as his wife once told me--not a goal oriented person. Rather he was a man whose talent was rooted in processes. When he died in his late 80's, his shop was completely disorganized, full of wood dust and shavings that accumulated since the 1970's when he built his house that he and his wife lived in. He had little or no need for operator's manuals; One of his prize tools was an enormous machinist lathe on which he turned and bore rifle barrels that must have weighed a ton at least. Like all his tools, Dick simply used them until they no longer held tolerances. Then he'd jerry-rig some kind of fix-it that allowed him to continue working. As a result of his lack of appreciation for keeping essential paperwork or small maintenance tools unique to each machine, the Rockwell RC-33 planer that I purchased didn't come with that all important knife gauge supplied with the machine. We did, however, locate the original instruction manual. This model 22650 planer was made in Brazil in September 1989, Ser. No. 7075 (shown on the data plate).
Despite not being used for many, many years the planer fired right up and was surprisingly accurate when I performed a test with a piece of redwood 2X6. Because I'm only now getting the hang of how to use it, I have a few questions:
KNIFE GAUGE: Assuming I'll be forced to use another type, I'd appreciate knowing what aftermarket gauges do a decent job that can be used on this planer;
PROBLEMS:
a. Engaging feed roll: T-lever push/pull type. When pulled out, T-bar disengages by itself rather than remain engaged.
b. Depth of Cut Adjustment: With or without both lock knobs tight, the elevating handle rotates when knives engage the work piece;
c. Crabbing: Work piece sometimes "crabs" as it exits the out-feed side of the planer.
d. Knife Gauge: Anybody have a spare that they're willing to part with?
A little about myself: I'm a custom knife maker. Following my retirement in 1997 from overseas Federal service, I completed my workshop which I outgrew before it was half finished. My shop is thus filled with a variety of metal-working machinery including a full-sized Bridgeport vertical mill, a Gorton pantograph mill, a modified surface grinder that utilizes 72" abrasive belts rather than a standard stone, a multipurpose variable speed band saw, 1970's era Rockwell variable speed drill press, a shop-built 16" variable speed disc sander, my pride and joy: A Bader III belt grinder, a Baldor extended shaft buffer, and a smaller buffer that I use mainly for polishing leather sheaths. For years I've toyed with the idea of machine-stitching the leather sheaths that I custom-make for each knife that I complete, but I've resisted the temptation and continue to sew them by hand.
So why did I buy a wood planer? Good question and I'm glad you asked! I just tore off 1/3 of my 850 sq. ft. exterior deck that, unlike the other two-thirds, was not roofed over. Because we get significant amounts of snow where I live, snow melt caused a lot of wood root which I had to replace or go to prison for allowing an attractive nuisance to exist. Because a significant amount of the 2X6 redwood decking was salvageable, I decided to re-purpose some of it. When not building custom knives, I enjoy restoring vintage aluminum boats, and am now on my third. This little boat is at my family's summer cottage in East Tennessee and has become my "vacation" project when I'm there. So, the idea is to utilize the salvaged redwood to build floorboards for the boat. I'll trim up what I've planed so far and haul it to Tennessee next month where I'll re-saw it into 2 and 3" widths (yes, we have a good collection of power equipment there, too).
I look forward to adding photos of how this project eventually turns out and in the meantime also look forward to hearing from those of you who might be able to offer some good advice. Since I do have some machining experience, is there any possibility that I could make a duplicate original knife gage? If so, would anyone on the forum be able to photograph theirs and provide dimensions? My private email address and phone number is:
cumming@comcast.net
505-286-0509
Thanks in advance.
Best regards,
Bob