How to hold thin wood

[Kevin Jenness]

A method used in cnc work which holds like carpet tape but releases like painters' tape: put blue tape on the bench and on the workpiece, ca glue on one and accelerator on the other, stick together. Don't use too much or it will penetrate the tape.

[Richard Hutchings]

I just read that on another forum. Seems like a good method but it doesn't allow for measuring every so often. I guess I could measure down to the bench before starting and keep track of how much stock is removed. I've talked myself into it.

Thank you

[Tom Trees]

Plane away from the clamp, you can't use a planing stop for stuff that thin.
You do need a truly flat surface to work on.
Use of the cap iron is the single most important thing to learn, as you can forget about grain then.
Its the best thing ever for a luthier to know.

Look up David W on youtube or that wood central article(David Weaver) for instructions on how to set it correctly.
Don't try to set the cap if you have a tight mouth, bring it all the way back flush with the casting.
Good luck
Tom

[Bruce Haugen]

What would be the fun in that

More fun that replacing an $85 piece of rosewood.

There’s a luthier sub forum here. Post your question there and see what you get.

[Kevin Jenness]

If you are planing down to a consistent thickness, use a marking gauge on the ends and edges. You will see the score line on the surface when you reach your thickness.

If you use the ca/blue tape sandwich, be sure to apply a consistent spread of glue for a flat surface. Another approach I haven't tried yet is a sandwich of blue tape with double stick tape in the middle. I haven't yet found a double sided tape that wasn't very difficult to remove after use.

[steven c newman]

Take an old saw blade, snap off a chunk wider the the panel....drill through the metal. Screw this to a substrate that you can then clamp to the bench....make sure the screws are off the the sides. Add a couple paper shims under the teeth of the saw plate,,,,just enough to raise them to about the middle of the panel's thickness. And plane away...

[Dom Campbell]

While only really a variation on a theme, what works for me are brads nailed into a small block of wood, and cut off short, and sharp. This block then gets tacked onto the end of my planing beam (opposite end to my normal planing stop) so that the block sits flush with the beam. The stock is pressed onto the brads to plane.

You do lose a bit of material due to the holes, but it is minimal. It holds thin work well, and keeps the stock in tension.