Thread: Handplaning paulownia...help needed please.

Because paulownia is quite pulpy, it won't respond well to scraping. How sharp is the iron on your smoother, can it shave hair? Does it have an adjustable mouth? Perhaps open the mouth up a bit if it does. I think it's possible the blade is a bit dull so you wound the blade out a bit to get a shaving and it's too thick for the mouth... perhaps.

Hi Anthony

I experienced the same thing a few years ago when I built some boxes. As I recall, a plane with a high cutting angle works best.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Originally Posted by Luddite

Team,

I enjoy making hollow timber surfboards out of western red cedar (WRC) and paulownia. The decks are cut to 5mm thick, 60mm wide planks on my bandsaw. In the past I have sanded the planks with a belt sander to take out the saw blade marks, which are minimal but need to go.

I am finding paulownia, and to some extent, WRC really difficult to plane. The paulownia is quite fluffy, and when I try to plane it with my low angle smoother the fibres just block up the mouth. I have tried scraping it with a conventional scraper and also with the HNT Gordon plane as a scraper. The HNT is probably the best, but it is only marginally better. I haven't tried the 4.5 Stanley yet.

I don't want to go back to the belt sander, they are bloody noisy and the dust is everywhere afterwards....not really the atmosphere I am looking for.

Any suggestions gratefully accepted.

Regards,

Anthony

Hi Anthony,

This the first time I have gone on the forum since knee surgery because of post op complications. I haven't the energy to reply properly. I use a thicknesser to finish off the surfaces after stripping. But I work very hard to keep the blades extremely sharp. If your interested in further help get back to me some time later next week and I'll expand my experience further.

John

Just pulled out an off cut of paulownia blockboard that was laying around and dressed a face with a handplane. Grain is running with and against but no tearout and a nice clean finish. That was with run of the mill stanley #5 and a sharp, but not freshly honed iron. If tool reviewers are correct, you should be able to do that and better with your LAS and it should also put a finish on and make you a cup of tea - wip it into shape!

Originally Posted by whitewood

Hi Anthony,

This the first time I have gone on the forum since knee surgery because of post op complications. I haven't the energy to reply properly. I use a thicknesser to finish off the surfaces after stripping. But I work very hard to keep the blades extremely sharp. If your interested in further help get back to me some time later next week and I'll expand my experience further.

John

John,

Sorry to hear you have been unwell mate, get better quickly, the surf board / kayak makers of Australia need you.

Thanks also for the other responses. The common theme was that I needed to sharpen my blade. When I read those comments I thought, no way, that blade is sharp......incorrect, it was in need to some TLC. I have sharpened it and the performance is much better, thanks for your comments.

I will post some pictures of the finished boards; WRC and Paulownia (purchased from John).

Anthony