Pecan boards with ripples

[Lewis Combs]

I am new. I have a bunch of dry pecan boards which I had milled from a tree downed by storm 3 years ago. I stacked them on strips under a shed roof, and ignored them until now. There is some rippling so I can't just run them thru a planer once and then use.

Is there a practical way to "flatten" them? like maybe restack without strips between layers? ... or moisten and restack? I don't want to ruin a bunch of good wood by doing something I later learn was a dumb approach.

Thanks for ideas.

[Dan Forman]

I don't know if there is any way to "reform" them, but, depending on what you want to build and the spacing of the ripples, you may be able to just face joint and plane in the usual manner if you cut the pieces to rough length first, rather than milling the whole board at once. The longer the piece, the more thickness you lose when milling to flat. This would obviously work better if you are building small pices, rather than a large cabinet or bed.

Running boards only through a planer won't remove any warp or twist, it will just give you boards that are the same thickness. If you don't have a jointer, you can make a sled that will allow you to joint in your planer. Fine Woodworking had an article about building such a sled a while ago, can't remember which issue though.

Dan

[Dan Oliphant]

Lewis, welcome to the creek, hope you stick around and enjoy. As Dan mentioned, leave your material in the rough for now, plan your use for the material, then cross cut the boards 1/4 to 1/2 inch longer than the piece requires. Face joint, (if pieces are longer than 12-18 inches) then run through the planer. Less material will be lost and processing/handling will be much easier.

[Jim Becker]

Dan is correct, they need to be face-jointed flat before thicknessing.

[Dan Forman]

Lewis---Sorry it didn't register that this was your first post or I would have given a welcome too. If you do an introduction post, chances are you will get lots of them.

Dan

[Tom Sontag]

...Is there a practical way to "flatten" them? like maybe restack without strips between layers? ... or moisten and restack? ....

The answers above are accurate. Just to directly answer the above question: no. Once wood has dried to a certain warp/shape, restacking or moistening will not give you a pliable material that reshapes itself. So you've got to use it as it is. Hickory and pecan likes to warp in drying, doesn't it?

[Charlie Plesums]

... I can't just run them thru a planer once and then use...
Welcome to the creek.

Your expectations may be too optimistic. With most rough cut lumber, it takes multiple passes over the jointer to get the first side flat and straight, and then multiple passes through the planer to get the second side parallel to the first and smooth. If you tried to cut deep enough to be done in a single pass, you would likely overload your machines and have excess tear-out in your wood. Your results will be much nicer if you "sneak up" on the final surface. This is in addition to the excellent recommendations you have already been given.

If you need a board thinner than you get in the process above, use the planer to take similar amounts off both sides. It removes any imperfections in your jointing (from uneven pressure and feed rates), and balances the stresses if the drying isn't perfect.