Basic newby planer question

[Cosmos Krejci]

I've never owned or used one. If I get one, I assume it will take the warp out of boards. My main question is how good is the surface when done. Does it still need to be sanded or can you get it smooth enough to finish. Thanks!

[Bill White]

A thickness planer will not normally remove warp. That's a job for a jointer.
Surfaces will be pretty good, but not ready to finish. Scrapers or sanders are used for final surface prep.
Bill

[Roy Harding]

A planer makes the rough surface parallel to the reference surface. If the reference surface is cupped/bowed/otherwise warped, that's how the rough surface will turn out. A jointer makes a surface flat. That's its' reason for existence (you can do other things on a jointer, but making a surface flat is the primary purpose of having one). Once you have a flat surface, that becomes the reference surface for the planer.

As far as the finishing goes - Bill already said what I would have.

[David Eisenhauer]

Above answers are correct. A power planer does leave a surface that will look much better if sanded out some rather than using the surface straight off the planer to apply finish to. However, you will only need to "finish" sand rather than sand to remove thickness for fit up - big difference. When first starting out, lots of new woodworkers try to sand away thickness and that is a very slow way to go. In the general scheme of the project, finish sanding after planning is fairly painless as compared to sanding to achieve fit up.

[glenn bradley]

I've never owned or used one. If I get one, I assume it will take the warp out of boards. My main question is how good is the surface when done. Does it still need to be sanded or can you get it smooth enough to finish. Thanks!

As stated; Jointers make surfaces flat, Planers make the opposite side parallel to that already flattened surface. They work as a team. I got by with a planer sled for quite sometime until I could afford a wide jointer so, if I was going to get only one, it would be the planer.

Sharp knives leave a semi-smooth surface but, not finish ready for me. By nature of the geometry at work, scalloping is present. Spiral heads leave a smooth finish also but, suffer from the scalloping as well. Depending on material and feed rate, we are talking about very minor irregularities but, neither cutterhead leaves a finish-ready surface.

I don't apply finish to any surface right off the machine but, folks and what they make are different. If you are doing kitchens, baths or something that will receive a really thick film finish I hear all the time about folks who sand only to 150 or 220. Some figure homogenizing dye, a nice thick sprayed on topcoat and voi la! Other items require several layers of varnish or lacquer which are sanded finer and finer, flatter and flatter until you end up with that mirror finish some styles demand.

You will get better answers on the finishing part of your question if you tell us what you are going to be making ;-)

[Chris Merriam]

The first time you put a rough board into a planer and see it come out all smooth and shiny you will think you never have to touch it afterwards, but as already mentioned, yes you need to finish sand. You'll also need to be on the lookout for snipe, and probably after 15-20 passes through the planer one of your knives will get a nick and leave a tiny raised bump less than the width of a pencil line, you'll need to sand or scrape those out.

[Adrian Anguiano]

If you are buying lumber in the rough then a planer is mandatory first. The thicker the wood you use the more a planer will act like a jointer cause the wood won't flex in the machine. Also depending on your work you may not need a jointer. I have a friend who makes jewelry boxes and dominos. Most things less than 12" in length. And he hasn't had the need for a jointer but has to have a planer. But when I am doing furniture pieces, a jointer is mandatory for good joinery.

[Roy Harding]

If you are buying lumber in the rough then a planer is mandatory first. The thicker the wood you use the more a planer will act like a jointer cause the wood won't flex in the machine. Also depending on your work you may not need a jointer. I have a friend who makes jewelry boxes and dominos. Most things less than 12" in length. And he hasn't had the need for a jointer but has to have a planer. But when I am doing furniture pieces, a jointer is mandatory for good joinery.

Good points.

[Davis Young]

Keep in mind that in Europe, what they call planers we in America know as jointers. What we call planers in America are known in Europe as thicknessers. The finish surface from either of these machines will be true and consistent enough for joinery, but as others stated, for a "show" surface further hand planing or sanding is recommended.

[Roy Harding]

Keep in mind that in Europe, what they call planers we in America know as jointers. What we call planers in America are known in Europe as thicknessers. The finish surface from either of these machines will be true and consistent enough for joinery, but as others stated, for a "show" surface further hand planing or sanding is recommended.

Excellent point - yet ANOTHER reason for the plea in this thread (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?235248-Please-post-your-location-in-profile).

[Cosmos Krejci]

I was going to ask, if you could only have one, which would it be. Seems like the answer is planer. I have plenty of projects to do. A dresser being one of them. My main issue is if I get a board that has warp, how to fix it to make it useable for.. well anything (not sure what warped boards are good for). It sounds like I need both. When you guys say "finish sand", what grit are we talking, like 200 or so? Or are we talking 120 then up from there? Thanks for all the great advice!

[Adrian Anguiano]

Like I was saying Cosmos, best way to deal with wood not straight issues without a jointer is to buy thicker wood. Cut the wood in the rough to the width and length plus a little to the part you need. Then plane it on one side till its all planed, then flip it till its all planed. then flip back and forth each pass till you get to the desired thickness. This is the easiest way to cheat it. And when I say thick wood. This method works best with 5/4 wood. Will mostly work with 4/4, less than 4/4 its a toss up if this will work depending on how bad board is.

Everyone's planer is different on how smooth it comes out, and everyone's finish technique is different. So cant give you a static grit. Do whatever the wood calls for.

[Adrian Anguiano]

If you have a handplane, you can also help the planer out by doing some of the major area flattening so when you send it through the planer it doesn't rock.

For getting a straight edge use a rip sled or a circ saw and guide after its all planed

[Prashun Patel]

The two go hand in hand. I bought a thickness planer first. Even with the best of spiral heads on it, the surface isn't IMHO ready for finish. There is some gentle 150 or 220 grit sanding you'd need to do if you don't want a scalloped or scratched surface.

The jointers (or European 'planer') does two things: flattens a face, and makes an edge straight. There are other ways (with a table saw or router) to edges square. I find too that often it's not necessary to joint a flat face. Sometimes the planer will do a good enough job if you take light passes, flip each time, and can tolerate a tad bit of warp. If I had to have ONE, it'd be the thicknesser.

Don't get me wrong; having a good jointer does simplify your projects: you will quickly be able to get boards flat and square, which makes cutting joinery much easier. But it isn't IMHO as necessary as frequently as a thickness planer.

[Jim Dwight]

Keep in mind that you don't have to have perfectly flat boards to make a nice dresser. If you did, I wouldn't have made any. Usually you have to glue up several boards to arrive at the width you need. When you do, they tend to cancel out the warping in each other. The big difference is when you put the piece together. The joints will pull panels flat and straight. This is not to say you shouldn't try to start out with flat material. But it is often impractical to get all the warp out. Doing so results in boards that are too thin. You can make a relatively flat sled out of sheet goods and run your board on the sled through the planner to get one face pretty flat. Then you plane the other side parallel to the first. There is a fair bit of work to getting solid wood into useful pieces but it is part of the fun of working with solid wood. How flat a piece you need to get to where you want to be is something that is project dependant that comes with experience.