Paulcall combination machines

[woodbutcher]

On the hunt for anyone who may have, or know anything about a Paulcall combination machine. Planer/Jointer with 10 inch table saw. Picked this up ay a garage sale over the weekend and it looked too good to pass by. I have used tritons over the years and the planer and the tilt mechanism of the Paulcalls table will no doubt help my various furniure making attempts.

I am mainly interested in if spares are available or if anyone has any hints or tips on using it. In particular if there are any pit falls or particular operating dangers other than the obvious. This unit also came with a separate attachment that I think may be a horizontal doweling machine, but may well be some kind of morticer as the bit in this attachment looks unlike any dowel bit I have seen.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Regards

Nick Woodbutcher.

[Darryn]

Originally posted by woodbutcher
On the hunt for anyone who may have, or know anything about a Paulcall combination machine. Planer/Jointer with 10 inch table saw. Picked this up ay a garage sale over the weekend and it looked too good to pass by. I have used tritons over the years and the planer and the tilt mechanism of the Paulcalls table will no doubt help my various furniure making attempts.


Does it have a double ended motor in the middle with a 6" planer on one side and the table saw on the other? if so I have my Dads old machine at home which is the same.


I am mainly interested in if spares are available I am in WA and spares are no longer available but there is not too much to wrong with them. You can adjust the slides on the planer tables to take up any slop (look for the small set screws with lock nuts where the planer tables slide up and down). Any competent machine shop could fix the saw arbour if there are any problems.

The planer blades are just standard blade stock any good saw doctor can help you out there, its handy to have spare set anyway and the ones probably on it are only high carbon steel

If you are not used to setting up planer blades then I would probably invest in a blade setting jig with magnets which references off the rear table as the cutter head has no adjusting jacks to help you out.

I don't tend to tilt the table on the saw very much as I find it pretty awkward to use (I would much prefer a tilting arbour saw) but if you are only angle ripping small stock the its ok. But I wouldnt try it with any large size panels. But if are used to doing it with a triton it might be ok.



or if anyone has any hints or tips on using it. In particular if there are any pit falls or particular operating dangers other than the obvious. This unit also came with a separate attachment that I think may be a horizontal doweling machine, but may well be some kind of morticer as the bit in this attachment looks unlike any dowel bit I have seen.


Did you get the guard for the planer? I always tend to set the fence across so the least amount of the cutter head is showing with the majority behind the fence. It tends to wear the blade a bit more in one spot but it leaves less cutter head exposed.

I hope this has helped

Darryn

[woodbutcher]

Many thanks Darryn, your advice will all help.

Yes my machine does have the 6" planer at one end and the saw at the other. It sounds the same as your dads' machine and it does have the safety guard on the planer, although this has been repaired at some stage.

I can imagine that ripping on an angled table would be quite interesting to say the least , I will avoid this if at all possible but I doubt I would often have a need for this.

Regards the planer, I am glad to hear that the blades are just standard and I will take your advice re the setting jig, as I have no experience in setting these up. I used similar machines at TAFE years ago but never had to set the blades. Likewise I will track down a local saw doctor and also try to get a set of TCT blades. To suit the planer and also sus out what blades will suit the saw.

Thanks Again for the tips.

Regards Nick

[Darryn]

Originally posted by woodbutcher
Many thanks Darryn, your advice will all help.
I can imagine that ripping on an angled table would be quite interesting to say the least , I will avoid this if at all possible but I doubt I would often have a need for this.

Regards the planer, I am glad to hear that the blades are just standard and I will take your advice re the setting jig, as I have no experience in setting these up.

I used similar machines at TAFE years ago but never had to set the blades. Likewise I will track down a local saw doctor and also try to get a set of TCT blades. To suit the planer and also sus out what blades will suit the saw.


I tend to set the saw up square and leave it there.

As for setting planer blades
Make sure the machine is unplugged before doing anything!

You can adjust the front and rear table on this machine (which allows you to make stopped cutswhere you bring the wood down on to the cutter)
I set the blades so the back of the bevelled edge protrudes about 1-1.5 mm out from the cutter head. Set it parallel with the rear table. It doesn't matter if it is evenly high or low as long as it is parallel.
To set the rear table height get a straight offcut about 1/2" wide and 10"long and sit it on the rear table so it protrudes out over the cutter head. Rotate the cutter head by hand in the cutting direction and slowly adjust the rear table down. You have it set about right when the cutters just grab the piece of wood and drag it forwards slightly. You then set the front table to to get your depth of cut.

As for saw blades.
I have used 91/4" circular saw blades when I was a poor student! you just lose some depth of cut. I can't remember what the bore size of the blade is. Most 10" blades should be suitable.

You may get frightened at the price of TCT blades for the planer. I just get HSS ones and have two sets, remember the old trick of offsetting one blade if you happen to nick them. Dont try to plane MDF or chipboard as it destroys the blades pretty quickly. I tried to square up a blank of MDF had laminated to make fiberglass mold once, you could almost see the blades go blunt as you passed the MDF over them!!

HTH

Darryn

[woodbutcher]

Thanks again Darryn, all a big help. I am in the process of de rusting the machine and setting it up. The planer seems to work well, and the settup you describe will help as it had me a little puzzled. I'm sure a sharpening of the blades and also a spare set will prove to be a good investment. (Do you touch up the planer blades yourself on a stone ?).

The saw has four 10" blades with it and the one in the machine seems O.K. although none are TCT blades. There are also two 9 1/4" TCT blades that have been used at some stage with a bushing to suit the 5/8" bore. The table is set dead square at this stage and I think I'll leave it that way.

There is also some sort of extension /attachment that I can't work out, about 6"wide and 2ft long with a T shaped head. It is heavy cast iron and I can only assume it is some sort of table extension or perhaps mount for an attachment ? I have not yet found any corresponding mounting holes that are obvious.

Thanks again for the help

Nick

[Darryn]

I have never bothered touching them up myself but I guess it wouldn't hurt.

5/8" thats the one, I forgot as I haven't changed blades in a while.

If you have access to a digital camera attach a picture and I will get my Dad to have a look at it he might be able to tell me what it is. I do remember him saying you could get a thicknessing attachment which went above the planer tables. The 6" wide by 2' long could seem about right for this bit. Don't ask me how it works or fits tho!!!

Darryn

[woodbutcher]

Thanks Darryn. I have attached 3 shots (I think). First is the bracket and the other 2 show the attachment I mentioned previously that I belive is a horizontal doweling set up. The bit in this is attachment is very open along both sides which leads me to think this thing may also be used as a morticing tool. The table it is mounted in has movement in and out from the bit and also seems to have lateral movement as well. Not too sure on this yet as it is seized solid and is in need of some gentle persuasion to get moving again.

The mounting holes on the wide end of the bracket have centres the same as the mounting points of both the saw and planer to the table. Likewise the slotted holes are the same centres as the base of the doweling attachment so this may be some sort of mounting to attach this attachment to the table. If so it's got me stuffed how this fits as the level of the doweling machine would then be too low for use. As its stands now the previous owner had it mounted on a large piece of timer with its own seperate drive motor.

Anyway thanks again for the help and all the best.

Regards Nick

[Darryn]

Somthing happened with the attachment as they are not there!

You can send it by email if you would like
http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com.au/member.php?s=&action=mailform&userid=362

darryn

[woodbutcher]

Try again Darryn.

Regards Nick

[Darryn]

Ok definitely a slot morticer.

I will ask my Dad and see if he knows how it was supposed to fit, it might even be worth doing what the other guy did and set it up as a standalone machine

Darryn

[woodbutcher]

Excellent !! I was hoping that this was some sort of morticer. I have doweing jigs I rarley use and also now have a biscuit joiner, so the morticer will come in very handy. Sorry about the photos, it seems like the forums method of file attachment only lets you send one picture at a time. I have now attached the origional photo I intended to send re the bracket we discussed and I wont bother sending the 3rd photo as this was just a shot of the morticer from a different angle.

Thanks once again.

Nick

[Greg Fitz]

This is the first time I've used the forum so I hope this works ..... here goes.

Nick ....... the 1st image you posted is exactly the same as the one I inherited from my grandfather. He used to refer to it as the 'doweling jig' but he used it mainly for mortising cabinet doors etc. BUT mine is in the same nick as yours ie. seized together. The problem, I think, is that the cast aluminium unit slides on the mild steel round guides and these 2 indifferent metals has caused them to oxidize and are now seemingly 'welded' together.

If anyone has some advice in regard to freeing this unit I would be most grateful. Someone once suggested that I may need to heat the allum. parts to expand them, and then try and get WD40 or something in there. Seeing I've had no experience with heating allum. I decided to give it a miss due to my fear of having the allum. 'disappear'!!

Also I've had my jointer blades (3) resharpened by wet grinding with a sharpening guy in Lane Cove NSW. He's done a great job on them for approx. $20.

The 2nd image you posted IS the mounting bracket for the doweling jig. From memory one end is offset and fits under the saw bench section and sits out to one side .... but I will check it out again as I've never used it due to it's 'solid state'!

regards greg

PS I also have a brochure from the original company showing the unit and it's accessories etc

[woodbutcher]

Thanks Greg

All very helpfull. I have managed to free up the doweling jig and slot morticing attchment. I used liberal amounts of WD 40 and gentle soft hammering the next day. It all runs smoothly now. The only casualty was one of the wing nuts which is easily replaced. It seems to do the job quite well, as long as you dont go too fast. As yet I have not sussed out the mounting bracket but will look as suggested.

Interseting that I bought my Paulcall machine, second hand from a guy named Greg, also in lane cove. Can I get the details of the place you used to get the blades sharpened ?

Regards

Nick:) :)

[Greg Fitz]

hey Nick ....... I've always suspected there may be a lot of greg's out there with old Paulcall machines ....... quite an amazing coincidence!
I live in the Blue Mountains.

The sharpening guy (whose name I've forgotten) in Lane Cove is:-
"Dependon Sharpening"
cnr of Central Ave. and Little Lane
Lane Cove
Ph: 02 9427 3651

I hope he's still there!

My dowelling jig must be a little more rusted/welded together than yours, but then I haven't tried to free it for a couple of years, so maybe it's time again.

regards

Greg

[woodbutcher]

Thanks Greg

I'll give him a try, good luck with the un siezing of the doweling jig. A small amount of heat on the aluminium slides and a sharp tap may be all that is needed. Alternativley there is a WD40 type product called Yield that works wonders on seized gear.

Regards Nick