Hey everyone! I recently got a Cutech 10" benchtop jointer and so far, so good! But I'm hitting a snag and could use some advice. I'm working on some 48" ash boards for a table for my kids, and I'm noticing a slight bow in the boards after face jointing. Edge jointing seems to be fine and shorter boards (around 2ft) don't give me trouble. The bow measures about 0.02 to 0.025 inches at the center of the board. I've already calibrated my outfeed table to be just below the blade height, and when I push down lightly during the cut, everything seems to work fine. Should I tweak my outfeed table, change up my technique, or just accept that the boards are flat enough? Any other tips would be appreciated!
2 Answers
Hey there! I use an 8” benchtop jointer and run into similar issues. I’ve found that you can really fix the warp by using well-placed roller stands. If the bow is around 1/32" or so and it's uniform—meaning no twist—it's usually fine for glue-ups! I suggest clamping lightly at first, then working your way around to push the panels into alignment before final clamping. Also, switching the orientation of the bowed boards can be a game-changer; that way you avoid ending up with a uniform bow in your final panel. Hope this helps!
First things first: set that outfeed table a bit lower! If it does help eliminate the bow, then it likely means it was too high. The drag test is pretty sensitive too, and how much you need to adjust depends on your cutterhead diameter and other factors. It’s best to tune it based on your jointing results rather than just through calibration methods. Better to have a bit of snipe than to end up with uneven joints.