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imported>Jmf (Created page with "<big>Metabo HC260 Planer-Thicknesser Induction</big> {{inductioninfo}} == Introduction == This induction is designed to take a new user through the safe ope...") |
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This induction is designed to take a new user through the safe operation of the planer / thicknesser. |
This induction is designed to take a new user through the safe operation of the planer / thicknesser. |
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The planer thicknesser is a Metabo HC260. |
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This is a combination machine, which can be configured to work as a surface planer ( |
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for the flattening of faces and edges of wood), and as a thickness planer, to dimension |
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wood that has already been surfaced (“jointed”) on one face and/or edge. |
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Both modes of operation involve passing the wood over a circular cutter block which holds two 260mm long HSS knives. |
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== Materials == |
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The planer thicknesser is designed to work almost exclusively with wood, and additionally, it’s effective operation |
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depends on the direction of the wood grain as it is passed over the cutter block. It is not designed to work across |
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the grain of the wood, or on the end grain of the wood, in either of the surface planer or thickness planer modes. |
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For this reason, it is not possible to plane the face of plywood, as the alternating grain direction in subsequent |
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layers results in chips that are too large to evacuate, which clog the machine. It is possible to plane the edge of |
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plywood, but this is quite hard on the knives, and in most applications the table saw would make more sense. |
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There are some firm modelling foams which can be processed by the planer thicknesser. This should be done with extra |
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care, as they produce long chips which are difficult to evacuate and are known to blog the machine. |
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== Surface Planing == |
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Surface planning requires the outfeed table to be attached to the top of the machine, with the dust extraction port |
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installed beneath the cutter block, held in place by the thicknessing bed. |
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The procedure for surface planning involves passing stock over the infeed table, into the cutter block, and out over |
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the outfeed table. The outfeed table is set fractionally lower than the peak of the cutting circle, and the infeed |
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table is set somewhat lower than the outfeed table. Therefore, as stock passes over the infeed table and through to |
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the outfeed table, the cutter head removes scallops of material, with repeated passes serving to smooth and flatten |
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a surface of the stock. |
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Additionally, a fence may be attached to the infeed table, to provide a reference surface for jointing two adjacent |
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surfaces of the stock to some user defined reference angle (normally 90 degrees). Here, a typical process would be |
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to flatten a face, and then, using this flattened face against the fence, flatten an edge at 90 degrees to the face. |
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From here the thicknesser and table saw can be used to give stock that has 4 sides which are either square or parallel |
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to each other. |
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There are some limiting dimensions to consider: You should not joint pieces less than 250mm and 5mm thick. And the |
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maximum width is 260mm. |
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=== Setup === |
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With the machine unplugged… |
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Attach the outfeed table. |
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Install the dust collector below the cutter block on the thicknesser bed. |
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Check dust collection port is connected to the extractor and that the hose isn’t blocked (a common issue) |
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Check the height of the infeed table relative to the outfeed table. Ideally it will have been left about 0.5mm below |
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the outfeed table, but it may have been adjusted to take a heavier cut. Better results will be obtained by taking |
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multiple passes with a shallower cut. Also, heavier cuts are harder on the knives and will dull them faster. If |
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necessary, raise the infeed table with the red knob at the end of the infeed table. Check it is still lower than the |
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outfeed table, and that the cutter block can still freely rotate. |
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Set the guard. As much as possible of the cutter block must be covered by the guard during operation. If possible, |
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raise the guard above the work, and extend over the whole cutter block. If the work is too tall for the guard, |
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expose only just enough of the cutter block to process the stock, and lower the guard so it sits close to the cutter |
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block. |
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If using the fence, check that it is securely locked, and that it is at the right angle to the infeed/outfeed tables. |
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Start the planer, and then the dust extractor. Sometimes, if plugged into the same double socket, the start-up current |
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of the planer will trip the circuit breaker if the extractor is already on. So it’s less of a headache to start the |
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planer first. |
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Consider the grain direction of your stock. Best results will be obtained when the knives are cutting with the grain |
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(“downhill”), whereas in the opposite direction you are likely to get “tearout”. |
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[[File:Cutting uphill.jpg|frameless]] |
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Pass the stock over the infeed table, with only enough pressure the keep the stock securely on the table, and moving |
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forward at a steady rate. Too much pressure may well deform the stock as it goes over the cutter block, and will not |
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result in a flat surface. Too little pressure will result in a chattery poor quality surface. A consistent feed rate |
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over the cutter block is very important – a varying feed rate will result in a varying quality surface. When enough |
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material has reached the outside the guard on the outfeed table, transfer the downward pressure used to hold the stock |
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to the outfeed side, so that this serves as your reference surface. Then, from the infeed side, there should be primarily |
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a forward force pushing work over the cutter block. For the end piece of stock, pull this from the outfeed side. '''Never |
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should your fingers ever go under the guard.''' |
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It is common for there to be a slightly deeper scallop at the start and end of a piece of stock, called jointer snipe. |
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It is hard to completely avoid this. The easiest way is to leave a few extra cm on each end that can be trimmed off later |
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if needs be. |
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Take repeated passes until the surface is flat. |