Thread: My first thicknesser

Hmmmm...... plenty of views but no feedback yet...... *sigh*

Anyway, an update on the Carba-tec unit. Despite the fact it was supposedly going to be released a couple of weeks ago, there's still no sign of it. Not even any real details or specs. The guy I spoke to at the store couldn't even give any indication as how long it would be until they arrived......

The Dewalt is a good little unit. If you wanted to save a little money, you could look for a second-hand 733XE (2 knives rather than 3, but does the job nicely). No idea about the Carbatec one - it'll probably do the job just fine.

Originally Posted by NZStu

The Dewalt is a good little unit. If you wanted to save a little money, you could look for a second-hand 733XE (2 knives rather than 3, but does the job nicely). No idea about the Carbatec one - it'll probably do the job just fine.

Thanks NZStu,

The Dewalt was certainly the front runner until the Carba-tech unit appeared on the radar.......

Here's a link to what little info is available on the new Carba-tec thicknesser.
CARBA-TEC

G'day Pete,

Without knowing what machines you have or your skill & knowledge level, what I am about to say may be of absolutely no use to you at all.

First off, if it was me, that spiral head would have to get a serious lookin. At $699, they are almost throwing the rest of the machine in.

Secondly, a thicknesser is only used to make the top of the timber parallel to the bottom. In other words, it is not designed to get rough timber flat or square. to do this, you use a jointer (buzzer), by machining one face flat & making the second face flat & square to the first.

Then you run the other 2 faces through the thicknesser making them parallel to the opposing flat face.

I know that sounds a bit long winded, but if the bottom face looks like a banana, then thats how the top face will come out... parallel & bent.

Hope this helps.


Steve

BTW, as I understand it, Acacia fibers affect the lungs in much the same way as Asbestos, so when working with this timber, make sure you are wearing a dust mask.


Steve

Originally Posted by Ticky

BTW, as I understand it, Acacia fibers affect the lungs in much the same way as Asbestos, so when working with this timber, make sure you are wearing a dust mask.


Steve

Definitely the case, especially Blackwood (acacia melanoxolyn)...have an acquaintance who won't mill or work with the stuff any more, he used to mill for a living...if he is around the dust his nose just starts to bleed....
Protect yourself...in my opinion the end result is worth the hassle of ppe though...wonderful timber.

Sent from my HTC Desire HD A9191 using Tapatalk 2

Originally Posted by Big_Easy

Definitely the case, especially Blackwood (acacia melanoxolyn)...have an acquaintance who won't mill or work with the stuff any more, he used to mill for a living...if he is around the dust his nose just starts to bleed....
Protect yourself...in my opinion the end result is worth the hassle of ppe though...wonderful timber.

Thanks for the 'head's up' guys, I'm not sure what type of Acacia it is as it's a large growing variety from my parent's farm out near Lithgow, NSW. It's definately not Blackwood, it has a cream sapwood with a burgundy coloured heartwood. I've never worked with this timber before so it should be interesting to see how it behaives.

I was out at Carba-tec today, ironically buying a dust extractor while they're on special, and they said the revised arrival date for the new thicknesser was going to be sometime in August now.....