I'm working with some knotty pine wood and I'm having a tough time getting a smooth finish using my smoothing plane. No matter how close I set my chip breaker to the blade, I still end up with tear-out around the knots. My plane's mouth is about 1/32" or less, but I feel like I need to tighten it more. Is there anyone with experience using smoothing planes on this kind of wood, or do you typically resort to card scrapers or sandpaper? Any advice would be appreciated!
5 Answers
Using a single iron Japanese plane has worked wonders for me. If the blade is really sharp, it cuts through knots much better even with a wider mouth. I just take really thin shavings—about 20-30 microns—and it finishes beautifully, almost like glass!
Planing knots can be really tricky! From my experience, it's often better to switch to a scraper or sandpaper when dealing with them. The softer pine knots tend to mess up your blade, and I've found it almost impossible to get a clean cut. But if you're set on using a plane, ensure that your blade is super sharp and consider using a skewed angle of attack.
Exactly! A sharp blade is key, and using a skew angle can definitely help shear the knot better.
Card scrapers are fantastic for handling difficult knots. If you’re not up for the hassle of constantly sharpening a hand plane to super high grits, definitely give a card scraper a try. You’ll be amazed at how smooth it can get!
I prefer to use a mouse sander on tough knots. It's less effort for me than dealing with a card scraper, and I can just plane around the problem areas.
Knots definitely pose a challenge because they reverse the grain direction. It's all about the angle you approach them with. If the shavings are curling up instead of coming out smoothly, check the chip breaker setting. If it's too far back, adjust it closer! Also, make sure your blade is as sharp as possible. If all else fails, don't hesitate to use a card scraper or sandpaper—there's no shame in that!
Great point! I notice that I end up damaging my blade more often on the knots. Sometimes using a finer grit can help smooth things out.
I appreciate the tip about shavings! I'll definitely check my chip breaker setting next time.
That sounds great! I've been looking into trying out a Japanese plane; your experience gives me a good reason to invest in one.