How to use an electric planer on a tabletop – 3 Easy Steps and Tips
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An electric planer is a small but very functional machine to clean or shave woods. Using an electric planer on a tabletop to cut wood won’t be tough work for a beginner woodworker or common people; if one does the right processor follows the right steps, it gets easy to use while cutting or shaping woods.
As I did it for years for that, I know which way and how you should do this. In this article, I will provide you with 3 easy steps with some tips and techniques that will help you do this perfectly and increase your cutting quality.
So, let’s get to know how to use an electric planer on a tabletop and other important details.
Contents
Electric Planer
An electric planer is an updated version jack planer. It is a small hand use machine. Usually, it is used for shaping small woods. It is portable and usable in any place.
There are three types of electric planers available; corded, hand planer, and battery planer. Both work fine and are easy to operate.
Features of Electric Planer
An electric planer may look like a simple tool, But it has some great features to look at while cutting. These features make it easier to use this tool. On the bottom, the electric planer had an aluminum plate that smoother the movement of the blade and ensures the same level of wood cutting.
In an electric planer on the top, there is a knob that rotates clockwise and anticlockwise to adjust the depth of the cut. For easy on and off, there is a switch on the handle. Also, it had a small switch on the handle for a safety mechanism.
Even though having all these features, you should use headphones for sound protection and goggles for dust protection.
#3 Easy steps to use an Electronic Planer on a tabletop
Corded planer, hand planer, and battery planer are the three types of electric planers. The steps are the same for both planers to use on a tabletop. Let’s get to know all those 3 steps.
Wood select and set on the table
First, select a wood you want to shave or polish. The wood should be dry neither the planer won’t work on it. Also, check there is no metal material attached to the wood; it can break the blade and cause an accident.
Secondly, select a board or wood which is the same or smaller size than your table. As the planer is small and for the bigger size board, it gets tough to shape or polish as needed.
Thirdly, make sure the board or the wood is stable on the table. For unnecessary movement, set the wood very tightly; you can use clips to tighten.
Also, before using an electric planer, you can mark how deep you want to cut or shape with a pencil.
Electric Planer set-up
Before using any electric tools, check it first. If the planer is corded, check if the wire is there any holes. Then check whether the blade of the planer is well sharped or not because a dull blade won’t cut fine and damage the design.
You can also check the motor of the planer. Then set the knob how much deep you want to cut. If everything is okay, you are ready to move on to the next step.
Note: you can attach a dust bag or vacuum cup with the planer so the sawdust or chips will come off while cutting and won’t dirty your workstation.
Use Electric Planer
Here set your planer on the wood surface and pull the trigger. Use your left hand on the handle and your right hand on the knob. Start slowly and apply constant pressure on the board.
While moving forward, the electric planer applies pressure mainly on the front side so that the motive force doesn’t flip. Also, at the end of the stoke, apply pressure mainly on the backside so that it doesn’t flip from the back.
All that time of shaping the wood, apply constant pressure, move the planer, and do this until getting the desired thickness or the result you want.
Note: If you want to see the surface while cutting, release the trigger, hold the position and wait until the blade’s spinning stops.
Safety Measures
Safety is very important to think to look on while using an electric planer. Though the electric planer size is small, the motor is too quick, and the blades are sharp enough.
So, while cutting, keep your eye open on it all the time. Because if you lose concentration, injuries can happen at any moment. Without using a dust bag or vacuum cup, you will get too much sawdust flowing in the air that could go to your eyes and nose when you wear a mask and glass.
Also, this electric planer makes noise and some sort of vibration; that’s why use headphones to keep your ear protected.
Do all these things step by step and get better results while cutting or shaping a block of wood or board.
What things you should avoid!
Maintaining equal and same posture is very important. If you dose not maintain the same posture, wood sharp can be damaged. So do not lose posture control.
Then avoid using dull or broken blades. It reduces the cutting quality of the wood and occurs dangerous incidents.
Also, follow or maintain all the safety features or terms and do not use wet woods.
Frequently Ask Questions
Can a router be used as a planer?
Yes, you can easily use a router as a planer to plane wood. To use a router as a planer, first, you need to make a router sled. You can make a long or short sled as your need.
The router sled will help you pass the router back and forth on the surface with great control. Then place the sled on the wood surface, put the router on it, and start planning wood.
Can you flatten a board with an electric hand planer?
Yes, you can flatten a board with an electric hand planer. An electric hand planer is used for polishing and flattening woods. Electric planar has powerful motors and also sharp blades.
You can flatten boards using an electric planar very easily for those reasons.
How do you flatten the board with a power planer?
First, select and set the board that you want to flatten. Then mark how deep you want to cut.
Check your power planer blade. Then put the power planer on the road surface. A power planer also has a knob; using it selected, you cut deepness. You can also check your blades.
When all sets, then you are ready to flatten aboard. Trigger the power planer, and move it on the board. In this way, you can easily flatten your board.
Final Note
The process or the steps I described are not the only way to use an electric planer on a tabletop; you may get other processes from other places. When I faced this problem, I tried multiple ways and figured out these easy steps to use the electric planer on the tabletop, and it’s helped me well.
With the steps, I provided you with some quality tips and techniques that will help you to improve your wood cutting. I hope you got the process and tips and were helped by it. Thank you.
