# Truing a board - possible, or a dark art??



## ericc22 (May 10, 2012)

I read a post where someone referred to truing a board by hand as a dark art. Feels more like a unicorn to me - mythical....

I have a low-angle jack plane. I have no power tool I can use for truing. I have had a many day argument with a piece of cherry wood. I am trying to make - ironically - a straight edge following the guidance in the book 'The New Traditional Woodworker.' I've also read 'The Essential Woodworker' by Wearing. So, I think I understand the concept.

The problem is the difference between concept and reality!

I go back and forth from one side being a touch high, to the other. I use the block plane to work locally, get a full shaving, test, and I am off again. I try to put pressure on one side of the block. Check, find the problem. Repeat. 

Is this supposed to be easy? I can't be alone in my struggles to true one edge, can I? Or is this a dark art, an exclusive club for dark wizards and witches and I have yet to earn my way in? : )

I know the low-angle jack isn't as good as a jointer, but I assume it should be good enough for my purpose? My blade seems properly sharpened and square by the way or does it need to be perfect? 

I am using my fingers as a fence. Would this fence solve my problem? http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=41716&cat=1,41182

I spent many hours at a recent Lie-Nielsen tool event and learned a ton. Working with an expert made a dramatic difference vs. reading or watching videos for guidance. I live in Northern NJ - Essex County - and know I'd benefit from a class. Sadly I can't find one near me. If there are any NJ readers who know of one please let me know. In lieu of that I am very open to finding a tutor. I suspect an expert could solve my problem very quickly.

The good news is I am definitely improving my technique. And I just love working with the hand tools.

All guidance, advise, therapy, etc. is most appreciated!

Eric


----------



## Getting better (Dec 3, 2009)

I do it by drawing a line around both sides and both ends, then plane to the line. Takes some practice and a sharp plane. Definitely not black art


----------



## joe bailey (Dec 15, 2011)

Many advocate the use of a slight camber on plane irons used for jointing. The idea is to center the belly of the blade over the high edge.
Try googling the phrase "camber on jointer plane blade" or something similar is my explanation is inadequate.


----------



## ericc22 (May 10, 2012)

Fallbrook hoby said:


> I do it by drawing a line around both sides and both ends, then plane to the line. Takes some practice and a sharp plane. Definitely not black art


I don't have a reference edge to draw the line - don't I need that?

Eric


----------



## ericc22 (May 10, 2012)

joe bailey said:


> Many advocate the use of a slight camber on plane irons used for jointing. The idea is to center the belly of the blade over the high edge.
> Try googling the phrase "camber on jointer plane blade" or something similar is my explanation is inadequate.


I should have mentioned I have that - was done at the Lie-Nielsen event.


----------



## Rob Brown (Jul 7, 2009)

*trueing up a board*

Funny , I just did this an hour ago. Squared up a rough cut piece of cherry into a 1x3x24. Just for practice. It came out pretty smooth and does not rock back and forth, but still not truely flat. I still need too work on blade sharpening and setup of the plane. I used a 9 inch smoother and 14 inch joiner. nothing low angle. I'm thinking a card scraper might finish up the surface. Fine Woodworking has a publication out right now about 101 tips. Good info on sharpening planer blades and chisels. HTH


----------



## tc65 (Jan 9, 2012)

For shorter board I use a shooting board to true edges- won't work too well for anything long though. 

In a recent post, Dave Paine mentioned that he had a Veritas fence but that the magnets weren't strong enough. http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f11/workbench-45368/

I've seen some homemade jointing fences that were clamped to the sides of planes if you have enough room for clamps or (gasp) screw it to the side of the plane:thumbdown:.

Here's a thought - if you have a longer board and a good flat surface on your workbench - clamp your board to the bench and use the bench surface as a reference edge for the plane. You would need to put a spacer under your board so the plane blade would contact the entire edge. The plane side needs to be square to the sole for this to work. This is assuming you have one face of the board flat already.

I've not tried this, but at this late hour it at least sounds good in my mind. Give it a try and let us know how it works.:smile:


----------



## DaveTTC (May 25, 2012)

If by truing a board u mean face and edge then when I did my apprenticeship we did the face first by sighting it, then a straight edge and use of fillet sticks to sight for twist. 

Placing one stick at your best end another stick could be placed across the board at intervals. At each point sighting the sticks for any twist. Using a pencil mark areas needing to be removed. Work your way down the board and check it again. Keep working it till you are satisfied. 

For the square edge I always did it free hand using my fingers as a fence. I would simply sight the edge and check it with a square and straight edge. 

The fence on your link looks like a good idea, I've never used one or seen a tradesman use one but if it works - go for it.

Dave The Turning Cowboy


----------



## byrd (Nov 17, 2010)

I've always heard them called winding sticks to level a board. One of the sticks should have a different color on the top edge to make it easier to view.


----------



## Dave Paine (May 30, 2012)

ericc22 said:


> I read a post where someone referred to truing a board by hand as a dark art. Feels more like a unicorn to me - mythical....
> 
> The problem is the difference between concept and reality!
> 
> ...


There are many examples where an operation or activity or technique appears to be a black art to the people who are not yet accomplished in the art.

For some it is riding a bicycle. For others it is swimming.

It does take time to be able to learn the art of truing a board. Good advise in the other replies.

You are not alone about squaring the edge. I know what to do, I am just not practiced enough to have mastered getting the edge square.

The low angle jack is a decent plane. It may be a little short, depending on the length of the board.

I have the Veritas fence. It can help. My problem is I seem to have a push stroke which also tries to push to the side. The fence keeps coming off. If I can figure out a way to clamp or attach this better, it would make the fence more useful.

For short and narrow boards, this plane may help during your learning curve.

http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=54862&cat=1,41182,48945

Practice, practice, practice. :icon_smile:


----------



## Gary0855 (Aug 3, 2010)

Eric, I used to live in NJ, and went to the wood show in Sommerset, just off of 285, exit 10 I believe, Garden State Exhibition Center. It's held in Feb. I know I saw vendors there that had classes on woodworking, maybe one will be near you, or have contacts with someone that does.


----------



## sawdustfactory (Jan 30, 2011)

Rob Cosman has a video called Rough to Ready that guides you through all the steps of prepping a board. Might be worth looking into for some guidance.


----------



## Keith Mathewson (Sep 23, 2010)

A number of years ago I had a furniture-making school and in that time taught a number of people how to plane. My experience is that it takes about 2 full days to begin to get a feel for the tools. Foot placement is the most important, I used to tell people to pretend they were stepping up to the plate in baseball. After that most people tended to plane more to the right and a heaver cut as they picked up speed and their body leaned over the wood. The first whole day was spent truing all the sides on a relatively small piece of wood. The second day they were given a table-leg blank roughsawn on a bandsaw. They would first true the leg and then 6 inches down taper the leg and finally turn the four sides into and octagon. This exercise would employ the use of planes from a jointer to a spoke shave and by the end of the second day most people could true a board, albeit slowly.


----------



## DaveTTC (May 25, 2012)

byrd said:


> I've always heard them called winding sticks to level a board. One of the sticks should have a different color on the top edge to make it easier to view.


Yeah I think your right, I think they were called winding sticks. If they are placed parallel you can site top to bottom between the sticks (similar to how you might site a door frame for wind) but across the top is better.

Dave The Turning Cowboy


----------



## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*While it's been a long, long time*

It's been many tears since high school wood shop where we hand planed a board into submission and many shavings, I would probably have a good time doing it today.

I have learned to "sight" a board for twist and how to lay it on a flat surface and see how it rocks which determines where to remove the stock. I use the jointer in this very manner with good results. It's nothing more than a hand plane on steriods.
Concave boards, cupped boards and twisted boards all require that you remove the material that is "high" to get to a level surface.
The question was asked in a prior post how to draw a line to plane to. I would get a pencil compass and set the board on a flat surface, wedging up the low corner so it won't rock and scribe a line on all 4 sides all the way around. The setting on the compass can be at the low point to remove the minimum material or it can be just an overall reference. By using the line as a reference and planing close to it, keeping a constant distance from it all the way around you will end up with a flat surface ....eventually.
Plane types and blade shapes are a whole 'nother discussion. As is the hardness and grain direction of the workpiece. :yes:


I should also mention that a proper vise will be a necessity in the process. Clamps and dogs can also be used but anything that extends into the work surface is gonna be a problem and restrict the planes free movement. The board can not move in any direction for this to be successful.


----------



## firemedic (Dec 26, 2010)

What's the REAL issue here... getting the two faces parallel or get them all 90 degrees to each other?


----------



## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

woodnthings said:


> It's been many tears since high school


Freudian slip? Something you want to share Bill? You ok?

We are always here to listen friend.


----------



## ACP (Jan 24, 2009)

Eric, to scribe the line you need to flatten a face first. The order I go (handtools that is) crosscut to rough length, rip cut to rough width, joint one face. How do I joint that face? If the board is in the rough I will scrub it first across the width of the board. This is why you leave some extra width on the rip cut, or partly why. On woods like I use primarily (red oak) you'll get some blow out on the side from the rough cross-width planing. No biggy, it's coming off anyways. I don't have a dedicated scrub plane so this falls to my #5 with a cambered iron. I then do diagonal across the face one direction then the opposite then plain across the length. Then I'll be checking for twist, high spots, low spots etc and mark them as I go I'll then work those areas as needed and finally joint it with my jointer plane (or longest you have). SHould be flat(ish) now. Then, ref. off that face and scribe a line to plane to which will also make the opposite face parallel if you are careful. If you have a lot of material to remove use a scrub or highly cambered iron in you plane of choice and go at it till you are close. Then carefully plane to the line. After this I'll joint one edge and then mark final width and plane to that width (unless I left too much wood in which case sawing is faster followed by plaining.) This square is checked by a square. Lastly I'll crosscut or shootboard the board to final length and square on the ends. TA-DA, a sweaty square(ish) board. This takes practice, and patience. Sometimes you just get a board that confuses the hell out of you and you waste a lot of time trying to square it and getting nowhere. Been there done that. Try to select stock as close to your final dimension as possible. Good luck. No magic unless sweat is a potion.


----------



## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*It's all so true...*



ACP said:


> Freudian slip? Something you want to share Bill? You ok?
> 
> We are always here to listen friend.


Lot's of tears, many years, a bunch of scars, several women, and a million miles later and here we are today talking about planing a board and getting it flat. We've come a long way Pal.:yes:


----------



## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

What's disappointing is to first start with a thickness that can endure the reduction to a board that becomes the final thickness. Then, to hope that the board is done doing it's thing. If it hasn't, you wind up with the correct thickness, and it then continues on to aggravate you.









 







.


----------

