Shopsmith Forums

I have some freebe rough cut oak timbers and am wondering if the Shopsmith Planner can handle them. They are 10 foot long, 10 inches wide and 3.5 inches thick and they weigh about 100 pounds each which is why I ask the question. I would like to plane them down and make a work bench top out of them. Anyone with an idea on this please let me know.

The timbers are within the capacity of the Shopsmith planer so it should be able to handle the job. Make sure the feed rollers are clean, use mineral spirits on a rag and wipe them down and then dry them off. Ensure that the bed of the planer is well waxed with Johnsons Paste Wax, Minwax Finishing Wax, or something similar. Make sure you use plenty of infeed and outfeed support, and make sure you keep raising the support to the level of the planer bed as the timber is thinned. And, ensure that the cutter blades are really sharp. And, take really light cuts and pay attention to the sound of the feed motor as you don't want to stall it. The timbers may need a extra push or pull along the way, but keep your hands well clear of the machine.

Thank you Art for the info, I will keep your info in mind when I get time to plane the timbers. I am planning to purchase the SS planner on ebay or Craigslist at some point in the near future, I am really looking forward to using all of my SS tools. Have been buying one piece at a time and learning to use them as time permits. Just turned 69 and retired last year, my plan is to learn how to do woodwork, like cutting pieces to the proper size. I have a lot to learn, and I follow the post on the forum very closely. I am new to forums so I am shy about posting however I will get more relaxed as time goes by. Again thanks for the response.

Kip

Kip, get yourself a copy of "Power Tool Woodworking for Everyone," by R.J. DeCristoforo. It covers the use of Shopsmith equipment. Here are copies for a dollar or two plus shipping -- http://www.alibris.com/booksearch?qwork=5270180

And it goes without saying make sure there is no metal imbedded in the wood:)

The timbers were used for cradeling of large diameter cement pipe, they are single use (new cut timbers) but I do plan to run a metal detector over them before doing any cutting. They did have 4 x 4 blocks nailed to them to scotch the pipe. I do appreciate the headsup for checking for metal.