Best tool for leveling uneven glue joints?

[Jay Pique]

Assume the panel has been milled to final thickness, but in the middle there's a little dip at one of the glue joints, leaving a 1/16" ridge about a foot long. Wood is white oak. Ignoring sandpaper, what tool would you use to even out the joint? I'm thinking of a cabinet scraper or maybe just a smoothing plane. At work I just grab a Dynabrade with some 100grit and feather it in, but I was wondering what the Neanderthals would do... JP

******************** Neander-curious

[<marierdj]

I have learned that the cabinet scraper does not work good for me for this type of job. I use what I have control over it. In this case, subject to the type of glue and its hardness, I use a 1" wide wood chisel at an angle of about 45 degree in forward motion. On some work I use a 2" wide wood chisel. The other tool is a paint scraper with a pulling motion with the grain. I make sure that my tool are well sharpen so I can cut through the glue ridge. Using sand paper to remove glue will quickly filled the paper.

[Leuf]

Just ignoring the rest, I hope you're exaggerating about 1/16". That's no 'little dip', that's cut it apart and try again territory.

-Leuf

[Andy]

I would use an older chisel or a card scraper to chip off any glue, then work on the ridge with a low angle block plane, and finish it off with a scraper or (gasp) sandpaper. Andy (Who considers himself a novice neander, as he owns 7 planes, not including scrapers or spokeshaves, and only 2 routers, including the laminate trimmer).

[Swingman]

No neander, but on panel glue-ups for years I've used a four bladed, Hyde

10530, 1 1/2" 'paint scraper' as the go-to tool for glue removal/joint leveling ... and a very handy tool to have around. Each blade has four edges, which last a long time, and even take to sharpening when you don't have a replacement handy.

[B A R R Y]

I've had awesome results with a similar tool, with carbide edges:

[Toller]

Unless this is on the underside where no one will see it, you are out of luck. A 1/16" isn't going to hide. Mill it to a new final thickness or recycle it.

[alexy]

Seems that you have two choices

1) it is really "milled to final thickness", and flatness is not important as long as it is smooth. In that case, I'd use a block plane with a very slightly cambered blade to get close, then use a card scraper; I've not had good luck with cabinet scrapers, but maybe that's just me. 2) you want a flat surface, and are willing to accept slightly less thickness than you originally described as "final thickness". In that case, I'd flatten with a jack plane taking relatively course shavings, followed by a jointer plane set very fine.

If you need both flat and same thickness, ripping the joint and regluing seems to be the only option.

[Leon]

Assuming that both panels are the same thickness, BOTH sides will have a

1/16" off set.

[HerHusband]

Too late now, but I like to glue up panels first, then run them through my planer to the thickness I need. Perfect panels every time. Unfortunately, that only works if my panel is less than 12" wide. :) Otherwise, I prepare the panel in two halves and glue the halves together after planing. Follow that up with sanding.

Anthony

[Toller]

I agree with you in principle, but I occassionally get one where one side is fine but the other is off. Probably the way it went though the planner.

[Jay Pique]

Thanks for the replies, all. This was a somewhat hypothetical situation, although I do occasionally run into it! It's not uncommon at work to glue up panels prior to face-jointing the boards, for expediency, and then surface them after, as someone mentioned. If the boards aren't hammered into close enough alignment in the rack, we occasionally get an uneven glue joint even after taking them to final thickness. If it's a full 16th, and it's not going to be sandblasted, wire brushed or chalked up to "rustic" (we use reclaimed timber almost exclusively) then we toss it. But usually they're much lighter than a

16th and we can just feather it in if needed. I have used a block plane to do it in the past.

JP

[George]

If you're not going shiny on the finish, don't work a block plane, work a good flexible cabinet scraper _by hand_ and feather, as you said. You're really only interested in the visual, and even a small smooth deviation will fool the eye.

[Jay Pique]

A card scraper? A good thumb workout on a full 16th of white oak! Plus sharpening time.....where's that Dynabrade again? JP