AW106PT2 fettling

[rkchapman]

So my new AW106PT2 arrived today (two days ahead of schedule - woohoo!) but I'm having some problems with it - the outfeed table (even at its lowest) is higher than the blades will cut so any piece of wood I try too feed just sticks on the outfeed table lip.

I think this must mean that either the outfeed table is too high (is there some other adjustment besids the obvious one?) or the blades are too low. Is there any way to tell?

With the infeed at it's highes "0" setting it's more or less level with the outfeed and I can run wood over, but the blades don't touch it.

 

[OPJ]

Richard, excellent choice in planer thicknesser! I have the same machine, albeit with the old aluminium fence, and I'm very happy with it.

First thing I would do is to use the supplied knive-setting jig and check that all the blades are set correctly. It's unlikely that they will have been set too low in the factory but, you never know!

It sounds as though your infeed and outfeed tables are parallel with each other, which is a good start. Hopefully, all you need to do is lower them, as they are...

On each table, there's a big black knob on the hinge-side for adjusting the rise and fall. On the infeed side, this is free to be adjusted for depth of cut. With the outfeed knob however, you'll need to undo the two large nuts inside the knob before you can adjust. An adjustable spanner should fit fine, at a slight angle.

You will also need to re-secure these nuts on the outfeed side - otherwise, as the beds are raised and lowered to access the thicknesser, they'll rotate the knob and you'll lose the setting. There's a small grub screw on the outside - you may find it easier to tighten this once you've lowered the outfeed to hold it in place as you secure the nuts.

Have a go at that and see what happens. I've got a couple of other ideas I could suggest later. Alternatively, if you're still having trouble later, give Axminster a call - they were very happy to collect my machine, realign everything and return it to me at no extra cost! :wink:

Best of luck!

 

[rkchapman]

On each table, there's a big black knob on the hinge-side for adjusting the rise and fall. On the infeed side, this is free to be adjusted for depth of cut. With the outfeed knob however, you'll need to undo the two large nuts inside the knob before you can adjust. An adjustable spanner should fit fine, at a slight angle.

I think that lowering the outfeed has done the trick - though I haven't quite worked out how to lock the level properly.

Planing side of things now seems to be working pretty well (though never having had a planer before I've got nothing to compare it with!)

However the thicknessing side of things is not so great - the infeed roller seems to be presssing so hard on the wood that it's denting it (though the wood I was testing with was pretty soft (maybe hardwoods will be better?)

And the chip collection seems to be very poor - anything that can be done to improve it?

One last thing, there were two plastic bits in the box (triangularish) that I can't work out where they go.

 

[OPJ]

Glad to hear you got it sorted. You should only need to tighten those two nuts up inside the knob to lock the setting. If the tables are no longer parallel then, you will have to try adjusting the levelling screws on the other side - you'll need a 10mm spanner for the nuts and the heads of the bolts are almost elliptical in shape.

On most machines, you'll end up with tiny marks left on the surface. This is either created by pressure from the feed rollers, as you suggest or, the cutting action of the rotating cutter block, which leaves the surface with tiny little 'scollops'.

A planer thicknesser is for accurate preparation and dimensioning only. I wouldn't expect to take a finish straight of the machine and go with that, even if my machine had rubber-coated feed rollers.

Not sure what those plastic parts could be (do you have a photo?) but I'm not too impressed with the extraction either, particularly when using the thicknesser. Axminster state that the dust hood is of a design that meets industrial standards... I don't doubt that; I just think it means you would probably need a large, high-powered extractor to get the very best from it... :? Taking lighter cuts prodcues smaller, shorter shavings, which are less likely to get caught in the rollers and pressed in to your work leaving dents.

Have fun with your new toy!

 

[rkchapman]

On most machines, you'll end up with tiny marks left on the surface. This is either created by pressure from the feed rollers, as you suggest or, the cutting action of the rotating cutter block, which leaves the surface with tiny little 'scollops'.

I wasn't expecting a perfect finish but these dents were not tiny!

However, reducing the tension on the feed roller springs seems to have made a huge difference (though I reckon I need to switch out the nuts on the tension springs for nyloks or they are going to vibrate off without the massive spring preload to keep them in place).

As for the chip collection... I reckon it's a ploy by Axminster to get you to buy bigger extractors. It's irritating that you have to lower the table every time you switch back to planer mode to avoid fouling the extraction hood (and WHY do you have to remove the fence to switch modes).

I'll try to get

 

[rkchapman]

I think I worked out that the plastic parts are for the ends of the fence (to make it easy to set at 45 degrees?)

 

[OPJ]

That sounds familiar... Now that I think about it, my aluminium fence has "black plastic triangles" at both ends. I guess the cast iron fence isn't "fully assembled" when it leaves the factory.

Dents, you say? That sounds like the chips are getting caught in the feed mechanism and pressing them in to the surface of the timber... It's always worse with softwood. We've already mentioned dust extraction but, taking shallower cuts (particularly on wide boards) should help to reduce this.

Also, if you try to remove less than 0.5mm in a single pass then you'll end up with a different set of marks from the serrated feed roller. :? :wink: I haven't fiddled with the tension on the rollers myself so, cannot comment there.

With regards to having to raise and lower the thicknessing bed, it's a common flaw with many planer thicknessers. If you wanted a machine where you can leave the fence in place then, you'd have to spend double your money on something from the Jet range, when buying new. :?

I'll admit that I often wish I had the space for separate machines and that having to convert between modes and rotate the machine 180° for extraction (in my situation, at least) can be a pain. Trouble is that, for the same money, you couldn't buy a standalone surface planer with the same capacities (new) and you'd also need to buy and store a small thicknesser (some of which only have two-knife cutter blocks with disposable blades).

Stick with it. It's a great machine and you'll learn to love it in the end!

 

[rkchapman]

Also, if you try to remove less than 0.5mm in a single pass then you'll end up with a different set of marks from the serrated feed roller. :? :wink: I haven't fiddled with the tension on the rollers myself so, cannot comment there.

I think those are the dents I was talking about, though I was not just getting them on shallow cuts. Still, reducing the pressure seems to have pretty much cured it.

Stick with it. It's a great machine and you'll learn to love it in the end!

I'm already learning to love the planer part of it... not so sure about the thicknesser bit though!

Thanks