# Ideas on infeed jig setup for my Dewalt 734 planer



## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

So I recently acquired an almost brand new Dewalt 734 planer that I intend on using to mainly mill the 2" face frame pieces that I use for my cabinet making. I usually cut my face frame stiles and rails at 2 & 1/8" and plane them down to 2". At work we use a Grizzly 20" planer, and I am just new getting setup at my home shop to start moon light cabinet building.

My Dewalt 734 has a small infeed and out feed shelf built in to it, but, I want to be able to plane 4 face frame pieces at once, on their side edges. So I need to make some kind of a jig to hold four of them together at one time on the infeed side, so that they do not slide around and turn it twist. The infeed part is flush with the bottom on the inside of the part of the planer where the knives are at. Which is making it difficult for me to come up with any ideas on how to do this. 

Do any of you guys have a suggestion or solution?


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## Tom-G (Nov 11, 2012)

I have done this by using masking tape on the ends. Place the 4 face frame pieces on a table on their edge. They all need to be the same length. Hold them tight together and tape the ends from one side around the end to the other side. Then feed the whole assembly through the planer.


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## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

Never underestimate the usefulness of a hot glue gun in the shop. Dab of glue on each piece, run through like a solid board, pop everything apart after planing. Easy peasy

Carpet tape also works well in place of the hot glue, i just find that the glue is quicker


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

Tom-G said:


> I have done this by using masking tape on the ends. Place the 4 face frame pieces on a table on their edge. They all need to be the same length. Hold them tight together and tape the ends from one side around the end to the other side. Then feed the whole assembly through the planer.


Thanks for the replies fellows. I might try this method and see how well it works, however, I would prefer to have a more perminant solution. All that I can think of would be to clamp some boards to the top of the infeed table section and have them serve as a guide or track to go through straight and not twist and turn.


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

The problem that I see with the masking tape or hot glue ideas (mentioned by the posters above) is that even if I can get them to go in as one and not twist on their edges, I would still have to worry about the entire pack of boards getting sideways and not feeding through in a straight line. Do you guys think that is a valid concern? 

I think that I can just cut some 1 x 4's and sit them on top of the infeed table section and clamp them to the infeed tray on the front of my Dewalt 734 to act as a guide or track to keep the stock straight as it runs through the planer and also not allow it to twist. Does that sound like a good solution? Does anyone else have any suggestions and/or input?


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

I think that you forecasting a problem that may not exist.

Why would you expect this collection of boards that are taped or glued together to twist or turn any more than a single board. You do not make any special arrangements for a single board do you?

What I do not understand is why you go to all of this extra work and expense in the first place. Why do you not cut the boards to the final dimension when you are cutting?

George


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

GeorgeC said:


> I think that you forecasting a problem that may not exist.
> 
> Why would you expect this collection of boards that are taped or glued together to twist or turn any more than a single board. You do not make any special arrangements for a single board do you?
> 
> ...


Well there are several reason, the first is because I want all of the stiles and rails that I use for the face frames to be exactly identical to what they are supposed to be. When cutting hardwoods on the table saw, in my experience, they can very ever so slightly, especially if they are not perfectly straight, and I want the edges to be smooth with not saw marks or roughness. There are a number of reasons to plane your face frames, and if you do not, you will have a tough time sanding all of the edges completely smooth.


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## Sawdustguy (Dec 30, 2008)

If your table saw is set up correctly the pieces will be the same width. Why not just feed them individually through the planer? The only reason is that you want to do it quickly. 

I have fed stock on edge through the planer and it goes through fine. It does not matter if the stock, flat or on edge, goes through the planner on an angle. Some feed on an angle to prevent chip out.


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## bzguy (Jul 11, 2011)

Use a jig made from piece of 3/4" plywood, (say 11&1/2" wide) that sits flat on bed and screw & glue from bottom 2 pieces of ply (say 1&3/4") perpendicular 3" apart. Clamp a 3" piece inside while doing this to maintain accurate width, This will accommodate your 4 pieces of 3/4" on edge, and hold them perpendicular to knives. Make 11&1/2" piece longer than bed and glue perpendicular stop on bottom so it cannot slide in. I have done this, it works.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*a couple of thoughts here*

You could build a in/outfeed support from MDF, attach it to a level bench, adjust the ends for level and flatness with the planer bed and THEN cover the whole works with a sheet of polished stainless OR a HPL like Formica. 

Another idea, combined with the the above or not, is to make a jig as you mentioned from a flat piece of 1" MDF , and make some side guides that can capture and lock your stock between with wedges. A slick surface material on the bottom will also help.











http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f2/thickness-planer-help-16052/


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## mikeswoods (May 18, 2009)

I do that operation a lot--I just hold the stack together with my hand---as they pass to the other side of the machine--I grab them and keep the stack together form the out feed side.

Have you ever tried it? what harm can be done if the do move apart?


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## bzguy (Jul 11, 2011)

When they are ripped if often releases tension in the wood and they twist when going through the planer without the jig, and then come out with un-square edges.
You can hold them if you're diligent and attentive enough, but I like to make jigs that make my job easier in the long run and I suspect the OP does too.
I like the idea od slippery surfaces, melamine is also an option, I put sealer on all jigs then paste wax jigs and equipment tables/beds.


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

bzguy said:


> Use a jig made from piece of 3/4" plywood, (say 11&1/2" wide) that sits flat on bed and screw & glue from bottom 2 pieces of ply (say 1&3/4") perpendicular 3" apart. Clamp a 3" piece inside while doing this to maintain accurate width, This will accommodate your 4 pieces of 3/4" on edge, and hold them perpendicular to knives. Make 11&1/2" piece longer than bed and glue perpendicular stop on bottom so it cannot slide in. I have done this, it works.


The problem that I have is that the infeed platform on my DW734 is flush with the bottom going inside the planer. So I can sit anything on top of the infeed side that would go under the stock going through the planer. Does that make sense? The only two solutions that I can see are to

1.) extend the infeed platform out by screwing on some plywood to the front edge on the infeed platform with the top of the plywood being flush with the top of the infeed platform, then attaching some guides to the plywood portion that are approx 3" apart so that the stock can fit tightly in between and glide over the infeed platform, or, 

2.) clamp some 1x3's to the top of the infeed platform approx 3" apart for virtually the same result, that the stock would then be held tight as it traveled through. I am open to any other options, or suggestions. Thanks so much to all that are helping me on this!


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## NickB (Sep 24, 2013)

_Sometimes _I stuff a stack of identical pieces through my planer like you describe. _Sometimes _they separate. _Sometimes _they end up going through crooked. They _*always *_come out the other side just fine. Often I just send them through about 3-6" behind each other, which eliminates most of the snipe - like this:









If you're hell bent on keeping them together, why not just use tape as Tom G suggested?


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

NickDIY said:


> _Sometimes _I stuff a stack of identical pieces through my planer like you describe. _Sometimes _they separate. _Sometimes _they end up going through crooked. They _*always *_come out the other side just fine. Often I just send them through about 3-6" behind each other, which eliminates most of the snipe - like this:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


The boards that I use for building face frames aren't nearly as thick or wide as the ones in your picture. I use 3/4" poplar and maple 2" wide, and I can assure you that sometimes they get crooked and end up all messed up. I am not making this up.


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## NickB (Sep 24, 2013)

Why not masking tape?


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## Pirate (Jul 23, 2009)

How about a basic sled, with a fence on 1 edge to stack boards against, and have an opposing fence with wedges to apply pressure to the stack of boards.


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

Pirate said:


> How about a basic sled, with a fence on 1 edge to stack boards against, and have an opposing fence with wedges to apply pressure to the stack of boards.



That is exactly what I want to do, however, I am having trouble figuring out how to make it work because the infeed platform is flush with the inside bottom of the planer. So if I add a sled to the infeed platform it will be higher than the inside of the planer, thus the boards wouldn't contact the bottom rollers going into where the knives are at inside the cutting area as they would be raised up from the sled. Do you have any suggestions on how to implement something like this?


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## bzguy (Jul 11, 2011)

Danny870 said:


> The problem that I have is that the infeed platform on my DW734 is flush with the bottom going inside the planer. So I can sit anything on top of the infeed side that would go under the stock going through the planer. Does that make sense? The only two solutions that I can see are to
> 
> 1.) extend the infeed platform out by screwing on some plywood to the front edge on the infeed platform with the top of the plywood being flush with the top of the infeed platform, then attaching some guides to the plywood portion that are approx 3" apart so that the stock can fit tightly in between and glide over the infeed platform, or,
> 
> ...


Think I got you now, the infeed drive rollers are on the bottom?
Improvise the same jig I described so it can be flipped over and clamped to top?
Hard to picture, that may interfere with sawdust exhaust on your machine?


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## bzguy (Jul 11, 2011)

Danny870 said:


> The boards that I use for building face frames aren't nearly as thick or wide as the ones in your picture. I use 3/4" poplar and maple 2" wide, and I can assure you that sometimes they get crooked and end up all messed up. I am not making this up.


This happens to me too, i posted about it, boards twist after ripping to 2&1/8" from tension release and go through on an angle, come out with edges not square.
That's why jig is nice, holds them square.


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## NickB (Sep 24, 2013)

Danny870 said:


> ...thus the boards wouldn't contact the *bottom rollers* going into where the knives are at inside the cutting area as they would be raised up from the sled. Do you have any suggestions on how to implement something like this?


The DW734 doesn't have rollers on the bottom. Only the top. The entire bottom is just flat metal. Because of that, you'd need a fence at the front end since the stock itself will be "dragging" the sled across the planer's base. I think pirate has a good idea with the wedges.

It really wouldn't be hard to put something together out of scrap plywood. Maybe like such:









Though, I think honestly that using a sled like this is more likely to introduce error than to help. If your machine is having problems end planing, I'd be looking at the machine or your technique. It's a common practice to just stack them next to each other and shove them through without problem. Maybe your stock isn't perfectly square?


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

From Post no. 10 .....


woodnthings said:


> Another idea, combined with the the above or not, is to make a jig as you mentioned from a flat piece of 1" MDF , and make some *side guides that can capture and lock your stock between with wedges.* A slick surface material on the bottom will also help.



Dang, I hate it when someone comes along, mentions my concept and then others give that guy all the creds.... just sayin' :blink:


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

NickDIY said:


> The DW734 doesn't have rollers on the bottom. Only the top. The entire bottom is just flat metal. Because of that, you'd need a fence at the front end since the stock itself will be "dragging" the sled across the planer's base. I think pirate has a good idea with the wedges.
> 
> It really wouldn't be hard to put something together out of scrap plywood. Maybe like such:
> 
> ...


The wedge idea is what I am trying to figure out a way to implement. The problem is that if I make this wedge as in your picture, how do I account for the height added to the bottom of the planer that the stock rides along? If I use say, 1/2" plywood for the bottom of the wedge, then it would create a cliff where the plywood ends and the bottom of the planer platform begins. If I do something like someone posted on the last page, having a piece of MDF run through the bottom of the planer all the way through the entire unit also covering the infeed and out feed platforms then that would completely throw off my ability to read the tape measure to know how much I am taking off.


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## NickB (Sep 24, 2013)

woodnthings said:


> Dang, I hate it when someone comes along, mentions my concept and then others give that guy all the creds.... just sayin' :blink:


 Sorry. I didn't see that in your post. I guess that pirate "pirated" your idea :laughing:



Danny870 said:


> The wedge idea is what I am trying to figure out a way to implement. The problem is that if I make this wedge as in your picture, how do I account for the height added to the bottom of the planer that the stock rides along? If I use say, 1/2" plywood for the bottom of the wedge, then it would create a cliff where the plywood ends and the bottom of the planer platform begins. If I do something like someone posted on the last page, having a piece of MDF run through the bottom of the planer all the way through the entire unit also covering the infeed and out feed platforms then that would completely throw off my ability to read the tape measure to know how much I am taking off.


The whole sled does need to go through the machine. Depending on the length of the stock, you'll probably need infeed / outfeed support for the stock or the sled.

Maybe you're picturing an auxiliary "table" with built in fences to keep the stock in line? The problem with that would be the additional friction and the potential for pinching(between the 2 fences). The same would apply to your post about clamping 2 boards onto the table(pinching). 

If you use a stable, consistent substrate for the base of this sled, you simply add the thickness. If you use 1/2" MDF for the base, your setting will be 2 1/2" for your 2" stiles.

You should still diagnose why your machine is performing incorrectly. I'm willing to bet that your stock is not square. You do not need to be concerned with the stock going through in a straight line. If it's rocking inside the machine or twisting as it's planing, that needs to be addressed and this sled won't fix it. If it's consistently pulling to one side, then it may be the planer.

Good luck. I hope you get it sorted out.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*overthinking ... I think...*

Your sled of 1/2" material will only raise the bottom of the "table" by 1/2". Your material sits on the 1/2" thick board/sled and the wedges force the stock against the fence. You need 2 fences for the wedges and the work to press against. The work is registered against one fence, the wedges against the opposite one. 

Your height gauge will be off by 1/2", so subtract that from your dimension. This all seems fairly basic to me.


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

Ok, so I think that I am going to cut some 1/2" MDF and mount it straight through the infeed, out feed, and middle portions of my planer, then attach some wedges, (or you might call them guides) to the front portion of the MDF that is over the infeed platform. Basically just like the picture that someone posted on page one, only with the wedged/guides on the front. 

Can anyone suggest a good way to attach the MDF to the in/out feed platforms and bottom of the planer? Should I use self tapping screws? I don't want to puncture anything that is inside on the bottom of the planer.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*a sled is never attached ....*

You are either making a sled which will feed through the planer like a piece of stock OR you are making planer bed extensions .... which?

The fences on a sled are used in conjunction with wedges to keep the stock vertical and to make them all one unit as it feeds through. A smooth surface on the bottom will assist in feeding by the planer drive roller above. But the drive roller will only contact the stock that sticks above the fences just like it would without a sled, so feeding may be limited or have issues. 

A planer bed extension may or may not have guide rails or low height fences to allow thin material to be planed down. The bed extensions must be leveled out and supported on either end of the plane as show in the photo I posted way back. The planer itself should also be secured to a work surface or bench top. This requires more floor space than a sled.


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## Al B Thayer (Dec 10, 2011)

Well we have a way of turning a simple task into a time consuming expensive process now don't we?

Tune the saw.

Buy a good blade.

Sand and finish.

Al


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

woodnthings said:


> You are either making a sled which will feed through the planer like a piece of stock OR you are making planer bed extensions .... which?
> 
> The fences on a sled are used in conjunction with wedges to keep the stock vertical and to make them all one unit as it feeds through. A smooth surface on the bottom will assist in feeding by the planer drive roller above. But the drive roller will only contact the stock that sticks above the fences just like it would without a sled, so feeding may be limited or have issues.
> 
> A planer bed extension may or may not have guide rails or low height fences to allow thin material to be planed down. The bed extensions must be leveled out and supported on either end of the plane as show in the photo I posted way back. The planer itself should also be secured to a work surface or bench top. This requires more floor space than a sled.


I guess that you would say that I am building a fence/guide that will attach to an extension. I really see no other way of doing it. Yes, the planer will be mounted on a stand, securely, and the extensions will also be mounted securely.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*this will not help*



Danny870 said:


> I guess that you would say that I am building a fence/guide that will attach to an extension. I really see no other way of doing it. Yes, the planer will be mounted on a stand, securely, and the extensions will also be mounted securely.


If your goal is to stabilize the narrow pieces running through the planer with having them potentially tip over, then, your plan won't help much., if at all. 

You best approach is a sled with 2 fences and wedges used to stabilize the pieces in the center. Your fences OR your wedges must accommodate the different range of widths when they are stacked together. Different size wedges will work OR fences that can be located in several positions across the sled's width.

A "guide" or single fence will not do much in my opinion. Especially if it's only mounted on the outfeed support.... by then it's too late to prevent tipping..... the horse has left the barn.


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

woodnthings said:


> If your goal is to stabilize the narrow pieces running through the planer with having them potentially tip over, then, your plan won't help much., if at all.
> 
> You best approach is a sled with 2 fences and wedges used to stabilize the pieces in the center. Your fences OR your wedges must accommodate the different range of widths when they are stacked together. Different size wedges will work OR fences that can be located in several positions across the sled's width.
> 
> A "guide" or single fence will not do much in my opinion. Especially if it's only mounted on the outfeed support.... by then it's too late to prevent tipping..... the horse has left the barn.


Oh man, you completely misunderstood what I am trying to do! I will have two fences, maybe I should have clarified that. It will essentially be a pair of parrell guides or fences that will allow four pieces of 3/4" stock to run through without twisting.


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

Al B Thayer said:


> Well we have a way of turning a simple task into a time consuming expensive process now don't we?
> 
> Tune the saw.
> 
> ...


And we have a WINNER. You hit the nail squarely on the head.

George


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## b0y9ggz (Aug 20, 2013)

How about making a full bed from MDF that goes all the way through the planer, thus a new bed for both infeed and outfeed. Attach two 2x2 guide rails to the MDF all the way through, 3 inches apart. That gives you a solid channel slightly shorter than the two inches you want to plane down to. It will mess up the measuring guide on the tool but a couple test cuts will determine new settings.


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## verdesardog (Apr 2, 2011)

I have never had a problem even sending just one 3/4 board through a planer on edge. I worked in a cabinet shop making cabinets for multi million dollar houses in Sedona AZ.
We always cut our rails about 1/8" over so we could send them through the planer on both edges to remove saw marks. No need to connect the individual pieces together.
Of course we had professional equipment in the shop and saw blades that got regular sharpening.

In my home shop I do the same using my dewalt 735 with a helical cutter setup. 

Seems like the OP is making this more of a hassle than necessary.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*this horse is quite dead....*

If I had a bench top planer, here's what I would do... both. 










I would make a bed extension for the in and outfeed tables from a sheet of 1/2" MDF covered in HPL, aka Formica, leveled and secured to the bench, front and rear.

I would also make sled for the specific task of holding shorter, several more narrow pieces from tipping. I still think a wrap of masking tape would do the same thing. However, it would be about 3 ft long and the bottom would be covered in HPL to slide easily on the bed extensions. A light spray of silicone will help it slide. 

The drive or feed rollers will only have the material width to press upon, so they will need to be clean and free from gum. That should solve all your immediate issue and any future ones. The longer the beds on a planer the less likely you will have snipe at the end of the pass, if you do your feed roller pressure is excessive. Just to be safe, run an additional piece of stock as a follow through to prevent any possible problems.


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

woodnthings said:


> If I had a bench top planer, here's what I would do... both.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


This is exactly what I am going to do. Initially, I did not know that the drive rollers were on top, I thought that they were on bottom, like the big 20" planer that we use at my work. this simplifies the task at hand. 

I just want to say thank you to all of you guys that helped with advice on this thread. Sometimes I have a hard time understanding various peoples explanations, so I apologize for the lengthy discussion over such a simple topic. It's just that sometimes I have to hear more than one or two people explain something before it really clicks in my head. LoL


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## Al B Thayer (Dec 10, 2011)

Danny870 said:


> This is exactly what I am going to do. Initially, I did not know that the drive rollers were on top, I thought that they were on bottom, like the big 20" planer that we use at my work. this simplifies the task at hand.
> 
> 
> 
> I just want to say thank you to all of you guys that helped with advice on this thread. Sometimes I have a hard time understanding various peoples explanations, so I apologize for the lengthy discussion over such a simple topic. It's just that sometimes I have to hear more than one or two people explain something before it really clicks in my head. LoL



Your kidding right?

Al


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

Al B Thayer said:


> Your kidding right?
> 
> Al


Kidding about what? No need to flame me or be rude. I am somewhat new to this kind of stuff. I work in a cabinet shop building cabinets, but setting up machinery and making it all work for my purposes is very new to me. It's easy to teach someone how to build cabinets, you could even teach a monkey to do it. I have very little experience with this.


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## kelsochris (Aug 15, 2013)

Don't trust your depth of cut gauge, get a pair of thickness calipers. Adjust your cutter head to where you barely make contact with the stock then take it down a 1/4 turn each pass. The truck with a sled would be getting something that offer low surface resistance but that will still hold your material at 90 degrees with no play.


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## Danny870 (Oct 7, 2015)

kelsochris said:


> Don't trust your depth of cut gauge, get a pair of thickness calipers. Adjust your cutter head to where you barely make contact with the stock then take it down a 1/4 turn each pass. The truck with a sled would be getting something that offer low surface resistance but that will still hold your material at 90 degrees with no play.


Good advice, thank you!  that is something that i plan to do wrt the thickness guage. For the sled, I am considering either MDF or Melimene.


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## Al B Thayer (Dec 10, 2011)

Danny870 said:


> Kidding about what? No need to flame me or be rude. I am somewhat new to this kind of stuff. I work in a cabinet shop building cabinets, but setting up machinery and making it all work for my purposes is very new to me. It's easy to teach someone how to build cabinets, you could even teach a monkey to do it. I have very little experience with this.



Your over thinking the process and good advise has been given. Devices used for planing stock on edge fall under the Rube Goldberg line of thinking.

Al


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