Help me troubleshoot these mill marks

[Ken Grant]

I have a raised panel cutter head (3 wing-insert carbide) that has given me problems, and I am trying to figure out if it is a shaper or cutter issue. It leaves these crosshatch marks kind of like what you see from a table saw on the flat parts of the cut, both on the tongue and at the top of the cut where the pencil shading is.
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I always thought it was the shaper, but I put my freud RP 1000 head in (2 knife insert carbide) and the problem went away. Here is a picture of the cut off of the freud.
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I have contacted the manufacture about this issue and they sent me a new head to try-same issue. the marks are not as bad as they look in the pictures, but they are visible in raking light, and the Freud head does not have this problem. Have any of you seen this before?

Please note I am not trying to knock the manufacturer, I have several other cutters from them that I couldn't be happier with-just trying to figure out what is going on with this head. Thanks for your help!

[Ken Grant]

Oops I meant to put this in the woodworking and power tools section. Anyone know how to move a thread?

[Mel Fulks]

The marks do look a little odd. I don't like carbide for wood panels,consider it just for mdf. Prefer steel (m2 or t1 ,not the
cheapest stuff. ) Or Tantung head. Either will leave a better finish than carbide.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Ken.....click on the little triangle near the lower left of your post. When the "report" window opens up, ask a Moderator to move it to the appropriate forum. They will be happy to help you, I am sure.

[Ken Grant]

The marks do look a little odd. I don't like carbide for wood panels,consider it just for mdf. Prefer steel (m2 or t1 ,not the
cheapest stuff. ) Or Tantung head. Either will leave a better finish than carbide.
Mel, thanks for weighing in, I know you have a lot of experience in this area. Any ideas on what is causing this? I agree with you on how nice good steel cuts, but it just doesn't last long enough for me. I also get the occasional rustic job which really beats up the HSS. I do have a Tantung head that cuts really nice, and think that is a good option. I ran 70 or 80 maple panels last week with the Freud head and the cut was excellent-I don't know that HSS would have cut down much on my profile sanding time.

[Ken Grant]

Ken.....click on the little triangle near the lower left of your post. When the "report" window opens up, ask a Moderator to move it to the appropriate forum. They will be happy to help you, I am sure.

Thank you!

[Mel Fulks]

Well, you said the other one does better, so all I can think of is you might ask what grade carbide was used in each, and consider that when you by another. I'm guessing you have already tried different feed rate. Good Luck!

[Ken Grant]

Well, you said the other one does better, so all I can think of is you might ask what grade carbide was used in each, and consider that when you by another. I'm guessing you have already tried different feed rate. Good Luck!

Thanks I will check on the carbide grade. Yeah I have tried different feed rates. I just have 13 and 26 fpm without changing gears on the feeder, and 13 leaves a better finish. Shaper is spinning at 6k. I know that is a little slow on the feed but I was getting a little tearout here and there @ 26 fpm in tricky grained maple so I slowed it down.

[Mel Fulks]

Don't know what rpm speeds the shaper has but I always try to use 10,000 rpm for carbide ,and some cutters are rated higher by manufacturer.

[larry senen]

i've retired my shaper for all but raised panels in favor of a grizzly planer/moulder. set up with knives made by a competent tool maker, i've only had to sand some large crown that had a large center ogee expanse with little other detail. ran many,many thousands of feet of poplar,oak and maple and sanded almost none of it.

[Mark Wooden]

It looks like the knives aren't indexed the same in the head, you've got ripple on the ogee as well as the crosshatch. Freeborn is a good company; send the whole head with the knives in it back to them and they'll either re-grind them or give you another set