Thickness planner vs MDF?

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dusty
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Post by dusty »

garys wrote:Agree. The wood in the particle board isn't the problem. The glue that holds it together will likely eat up your blades.
I'd use wood instead of MDF. Wood is a better product.

I believe this is a matter of opinion and that which is BETTER depends on what you are building and how you intend to finish it.

Also, remember that there are different grades of MDF. Cheaper grades of MDF are less dense.
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ChrisNeilan
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Post by ChrisNeilan »

I'm going to give it a try over the weekend. When I do I'll post the results. If successful I plan of slabbing shellac (or wipe on Polly) over it to seal it back up.

Chris
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JPG
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Post by JPG »

dusty wrote:I believe this is a matter of opinion and that which is BETTER depends on what you are building and how you intend to finish it.

Also, remember that there are different grades of MDF. Cheaper grades of MDF are less dense.

Yes in addition to 'MDF' there is 'HDF' and 'LDF'.;)

Depending upon the size, I would be inclined to use the conical disk sander if small enough.
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ChrisNeilan
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Post by ChrisNeilan »

What's done is done! I took my scrap MDF (unfinished brown shelf) and ran it thru the planner. Took it from 3/4 to just shy of 1/2 inch (.48). Had my shop vac attached to the planner with a dry wall rated bag. Swallowed virtually all the dust. Nice smooth finish ready for sealing. Blades seem fine, but we'll see later how they handle some hardwood. Time to learn how to sharpen them anyway! :(
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charlese
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Post by charlese »

Good to know, Chris! Thank you.:)

Thickness planing is one thing I never would have tried on MDF.:eek: Glad it worked for you.:D

Doubt if I'll ever have such a need, but never can tell.;)
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dusty
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Post by dusty »

ChrisNeilan wrote:What's done is done! I took my scrap MDF (unfinished brown shelf) and ran it thru the planner. Took it from 3/4 to just shy of 1/2 inch (.48). Had my shop vac attached to the planner with a dry wall rated bag. Swallowed virtually all the dust. Nice smooth finish ready for sealing. Blades seem fine, but we'll see later how they handle some hardwood. Time to learn how to sharpen them anyway! :(
You have done it so any further advise is useless but I have found that MDF mills very nicely. It is important to know, though, that deep cuts are not advised. I do very, very shallow cuts when working MDF]screws don't work[/B]. I no longer use screws in MDF as the primary carcass hardware. I do use pocket screws during assembly but I do not rely on those screws for structural integrity after assembly. A lot of dadoes and rabbits in all of my MDF projects.
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ChrisNeilan
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Post by ChrisNeilan »

dusty wrote:You have done it so any further advise is useless but I have found that MDF mills very nicely. It is important to know, though, that deep cuts are not advised. I do very, very shallow cuts when working MDF]screws don't work[/B]. I no longer use screws in MDF as the primary carcass hardware. I do use pocket screws during assembly but I do not rely on those screws for structural integrity after assembly. A lot of dadoes and rabbits in all of my MDF projects.

Screws and dados... Absolutely. This project is a simple cut off sled to go with my miter sled so that the cut off pieces will not "fall off" and drop to the tabel. Greatly reduces the fuzzies and gives you a cleaner cut.

I did remove a lot of stock, but I took my time with shallow cuts. The planner (Dewalt) has good dust collection, and I had a high efficiency bag in my shop vac that took care of 90% of the dust. My dust collector and air filter took care of the rest!
I plan on making the panel reversible by cutting two dados in it. One for the Shopsmith bar and one for my craftsman bar... Both steel and screwed in from above as needed. I sealed the panel with poly... Very thirsty!
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Post by videobear »

Pickin' nits... it's a PLANER. A planner is someone who makes a plan.
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skou
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Post by skou »

videobear wrote:Pickin' nits... it's a PLANER. A planner is someone who makes a plan.
Or, something that looks like a small binder.

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Post by ChrisNeilan »

videobear wrote:Pickin' nits... it's a PLANER. A planner is someone who makes a plan.
What ya want? I'm a banjar player!:rolleyes: Five years of college wasted!
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