Making A Hammer Jointer Table Slicker

[Julie Moriarty]

I was just running a 5" wide piece of white oak taking 1mm per pass. This my the first serious use on the A3-31. As the rough sawn board started flattening it got pretty hard to push it through. I sprayed it with Felder Supergleit and rubbed it in. No difference in resistance. I'm thinking about wet sanding it smooth. Bad idea? Good idea? Leave it alone?

[Dan Friedrichs]

I've tried dry sanding it with ~320 grit - didn't seem to make any difference.

I've never used Supergleit, but notice an ENORMOUS difference between a freshly-waxed (using Johnson's paste wax) and not.

[Jamie Buxton]

I haven’t tried that Feldee stuff on my a3-31, but Johnson’s Paste wax works for me.

[Jim Becker]

Even with the Blanchard grind on my MM J/P tables, a wide board that starts to get truly flat takes a lot more effort to move through the jointer. "Smoother" would actually make it stick more, so that's not your solution. I'm not familiar with the preparation you sprayed on but you could use paste wax or any number of woodworking-oriented "slick" spray on coatings to help move things along.

[Greg Parrish]

I’m thinking the rougher, non ground, non polished surface on these is supposed to help resist the grab. Paste wax helped on mine too but seems like it has to be done very often.

Shame you can’t buy some of that late night Gotham steel pan coating in a spray can. Othing seems to stick to or scratch it according to the commercial. LOL:)

[Mick Simon]

I use paste wax on mine, too. My planer table was noticeably rougher than the jointer tables, so I hit it with some maroon Scotchbrite (dry), wiped it down and waxed it. No issues since, but I wax it often.

[John Kee]

I was just running a 5" wide piece of white oak taking 1mm per pass. This my the first serious use on the A3-31. As the rough sawn board started flattening it got pretty hard to push it through. I sprayed it with Felder Supergleit and rubbed it in. No difference in resistance. I'm thinking about wet sanding it smooth. Bad idea? Good idea? Leave it alone?

Julie I started with Supergleit when I got my A3-31 with Felder straight knives, in 2008, tried waxing too but was a big time waster when in production mode with no difference. I stick with the supergleit now, especially useful when running a couple hundred BDFT. Just a light spray and go. Typically I don't even shutdown the machine when applying. I installed a Hermance insert head in my AD951 last year and noticed a lot more push is needed with the insert head. Glad I installed a powerfeeder. This is a fairly well known fact with any insert head because of the different cutting angle needed. You will notice how much it works when you are planing wide boards and they stop feeding and need to be pushed through to finish the cut because the Supergleit wore off. I personally wouldn't sand the tables it will make the wood suck down even more a the push harder. The tables on the Felder units are alot smoother with no real benefit IMHO.

[Jacob Reverb]

Yep, the smoother it is, the more stiction you get. This is, in part, why a roast beef slicer with grooves across its blade cuts easier than a smooth knife, and why stepped hulls have less drag on their wetted surface.

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[Derek Cohen]

I was just running a 5" wide piece of white oak taking 1mm per pass. This my the first serious use on the A3-31. As the rough sawn board started flattening it got pretty hard to push it through. I sprayed it with Felder Supergleit and rubbed it in. No difference in resistance. I'm thinking about wet sanding it smooth. Bad idea? Good idea? Leave it alone?

Hi Julie

I wipe down the beds with Renaissance Wax. And that's it. Smooth and slick, and no stickiness.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Richard Coers]

I prefer paste wax, but have also used talc powder. Shop smells like a nursery if you use baby powder! LOL

[William Hodge]

I was just running a 5" wide piece of white oak taking 1mm per pass. This my the first serious use on the A3-31. As the rough sawn board started flattening it got pretty hard to push it through. I sprayed it with Felder Supergleit and rubbed it in. No difference in resistance. I'm thinking about wet sanding it smooth. Bad idea? Good idea? Leave it alone?

I use Gulf wax, and make wax stripes on the infeed and outfeed tables. It smooths out fast, and there is no toluene in the mix. Hit the fence, too, if you bear on it during a pass.

You haven't mentioned technique. Using push pads with good grip helps. These push pads are for doing something to wet concrete. The rubber grips wood very well. Also, start the board, joint 12", then push only on the outfeed table. Bearing on the infeed table or the tail end of the wood will make life harder.

https://whiteheadindustrial.com/qlt-9-x-4-fine-cell-red-rubber-float-no-rrf94f/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIutW8xYHm4AIVxp-zCh13rgNkEAQYBCABEgJrtfD_BwE
Marshalltown 38 Rubber Float 9 X 4in - Fine


https://images.homedepot-static.com/productImages/88e0a404-3722-4e6f-a749-791a350f3146/svn/marshalltown-concrete-floats-rrf94f-hd-64_1000.jpg


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[Julie Moriarty]

Julie I started with Supergleit when I got my A3-31 with Felder straight knives, in 2008, tried waxing too but was a big time waster when in production mode with no difference. I stick with the supergleit now, especially useful when running a couple hundred BDFT. Just a light spray and go. Typically I don't even shutdown the machine when applying. I installed a Hermance insert head in my AD951 last year and noticed a lot more push is needed with the insert head. Glad I installed a powerfeeder. This is a fairly well known fact with any insert head because of the different cutting angle needed. You will notice how much it works when you are planing wide boards and they stop feeding and need to be pushed through to finish the cut because the Supergleit wore off. I personally wouldn't sand the tables it will make the wood suck down even more a the push harder. The tables on the Felder units are alot smoother with no real benefit IMHO.

Thanks, John. I have been wiping the Supergleit off because I didn't want it to stain the wood. It seems from what you are saying you just spray it on and start working. No wiping off necessary. I'll give that a try and see how it goes.

[Julie Moriarty]

I just ran 9" wide 8/4 white oak through the jointer spraying Supergleit down first. Again taking 1mm passes. Still a lot of drag but I don't have enough experience with a quality jointer (my old one was a 6" Craftsman I gave away many years ago) or with straight edge vs. spiral cutters.

I can say the finish on the white oak is pretty impressive. And I'm loving the relative quiet. It's probably the quietest machine in the garage part of the shop. No more ear plugs with noise canceling headphones needed to tolerate the bone shaking scream of the DW735.

[Erik Loza]

I’ve never used supergleit but here is my standard prep for any cast iron jointer or planer table:

1.) Flood the tables with WD-40 or some other fluid suitable for cutting metal.
2.) Scotchbrite pad (grey is best, red #2 choice, green will get you by) under an R/O palm sander and buff the tables out that way. It’s always amazing how much “grain” you can knock off the tables by doing this.
3.) Once done, clean (it slings grey liquid all over the place) any PAINTED surfaces with simple green or one of the citrus cleaners. Clean the actual cast iron tables last (they will “haze over” with rust in a humid shop very quickly) with denatured alcohol, then immediately wax with Johnson’s or something equivalent. This time of year, you may need to keep the paste wax inside the house so it’s not like trying to spread cream cheese on your machine and also, possibly go over the freshly waxed surfaces with a heat gun to aid the wax liquifying and penetrating the cast iron table’s pores if your shop/machine are cold.

Lastly, a lot of this may be technique. One thing I’ve seen with folks who are using a bigger jointer for the first time is white-knuckling or forcing the board across the head. Too much downward pressure. With spiral heads, let the cutterhead do the work for you.

Hope this all helps,

Erik

[Patrick Walsh]

I use supergliet on all my machines to oth protect them from rust and aid in feeding material. I love the stuff. No more paste wax needed..

[scott vroom]

Johnson paste wax and let it haze over before wiping off. And I agree with Eric....you don't need excessive downward pressure, just enough to allow the cutters to do the work. And remember to wax the fence as well, it can be just as grippy when edge jointing wide stock.

[Rod Sheridan]

I use the semi solid Gleit.

If you’re using the spray bottle just spray it on lightly, don’t wipe it off.

The spiral head requires more push than the straight knife head, you’ll get accustomed to it.....Rod.

[Warren Lake]

Hi Rod

I got accosted once.

I've found temp and humidity of your shop are a starting point. When my shop is at its worst then stuff slides the worst. When its warmer and dryer things slide better. If i compare three machines and how stuff slides the smoothest of them all is no worse than others. Say a SCM120 that is very smooth, a T130 that still has machine marks in it and an older SCM that has the scalloped table which is supposed to reduce friction. From machine to machine the steel is not the same. The stuff on the super smooth machine slides just as easily if not better than the other two that should slide better. Its like its a different and higher quality steel.

Never used more than just whatever wax is around. Last time some liquid auto wax a synthetic. Put it on with a burgandy scotchbrite leave it till it flashes off and wipe with a microfibre or even paper towel. Have done a few hundred feet of 8' wide white pine and it still slides nicely. Ill have to try at some point using the auto buffer on it just to see if there are any positives from that, just going over the wax with that rather than by hand.

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Rod

I got accosted once.

.

Haha, good catch, thanks Warren, I've corrected my post. Darn auto spell check..........Rod.

[Art Mann]

I experienced the same problem with my Jet JJP-12HH, but the top grind had a different pattern than your machine. Of course, my fix may not be appropriate for your machine. I fixed the problem by wet sanding with 220 grit and WD-40, cleaning carefully and waxing with Johnson's paste wax. It took a fair amount of sanding to get it right. Originally, the top felt like sandpaper. I think it is a bad design, even knowing why they did it that way. I wax again every now and then to keep the bed slick and rust free.

[andy bessette]

The right product is "Topcote", first produced by Sandaro, then Bostik, and now called "GlideCote". I first clean the top thoroughly with acetone, then apply Topcote and let dry for 10-15 minutes before burnishing with a soft rag.

https://www.jdindustrialsupply.com/topcote.html

[John Kee]

The right product is "Topcote", first produced by Sandaro, then Bostik, and now called "GlideCote". I first clean the top thoroughly with acetone, then apply Topcote and let dry for 10-15 minutes before burnishing with a soft rag.

https://www.jdindustrialsupply.com/topcote.html

Andy, Topcote works too but like applying paste takes way to long when you are trying to make money with no added benefit. By the time you find your acetone and rag my wood is being processed. These traditional methods are OK in the hobby world where time is of no consequence but those in a production environment the Supergleit puts money in your pocket.

[andy bessette]

Andy, Topcote works too but like applying paste takes way to long when you are trying to make money with no added benefit. By the time you find your acetone and rag my wood is being processed. These traditional methods are OK in the hobby world where time is of no consequence but those in a production environment the Supergleit puts money in your pocket.

This is the first I've even heard of Supergleit, so have no experience with that product. And, while certainly far from being organized, I at least know where my acetone and rag (and Topcote) are stored. :) Though I do no production work, I have been a professional woodworker and boat builder for over 40 years. Yet I still find time to more or less maintain my machines, even though that task doesn't literally put money in my pocket.

The way I discovered Topcote was when my thickness plane began to have trouble feeding material through. All it needed was cleaning and coating the platen.