Planing/thicknessing

[Tigercubrider]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B076F4LMTL/ref=psdc_1939372031_t1_B015HA2WZ8

I have perhaps 100 parquet blocks to clean up. Some have loads of bitumen on them
These are leftovers from a load that I bought to do some flooring repairs and I took the best, removing the bitumen by hand.

I thought that I could build a couple of tables using the parquet? However I will need to clean up more blocks than previously and it's really boring.

So I wondered if running some blocks through one of these (above) would work? At £100 it's only £1 a block if it actually works. I was going to try to make one as there are a few diy jobs on YouTube but it would take a couple of hours and might not exactly be safe

Thoughts?

 

[SammyInnit]

Some have loads of bitumen on them

Running them through the planer thicknesser will gum up the blades, block up the chip breaker and probably leave you with dull knives.

The only good example I've seen of a home made planer was by Mattias Wandel and its no quick job and if it's inaccurate it's almost pointless.

If you are going to buy a planer thicknesser I'd look for a better model that you can sell on if you don't need it again or something that will be more capable of larger work and easier to maintain.

Setting knives and the beds is a pain. It's a long process (depending on how important accuracy is to you) and out of the box it might not be true. Out of all my machines the PT has had more time spent setting it up than actually working I think - it's a Metabo (elektra beckum) and I paid £350 for it - new they're about £500 but I'd get that £350 back no problem. It was well out of tune which is why I recon the guy sold it, wouldn't have been doing what he wanted it to and probably didn't have the knowledge/time to set it up.

If it were me, I'd look for a small bandsaw, suitable to just take off the bitumen or a slither of the wood face, make up the surface you want with them be it a table top, then hit it with a random orbital sander.

 

[Tigercubrider]

Ok
Actually I have a bandsaw that a mate gave me and it's sitting in the shed
https://www.ebay.co.uk/i/2930368054...2%26rvr_ts%3D3a90eded16a0a99c6666d6daffecaff3

I offered it to a school but they wouldn't accept it without an instruction book
I have access to a much larger bandsaw at work but was worried about messing up the blade.
My view of the thicknesses was to regard it as sacrificial - so long as it worked

I will remove the tongues as most are damaged (having chosen the best for flooring) and will use a biscuit jointer to hold them together

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Actually I have a bandsaw that a mate gave me and it's sitting in the shed
I offered it to a school but they wouldn't accept it without an instruction book

They were possibly being polite - bandsaws for use in schools, colleges and training establishments need to have electrical safety interlocks fitted on all covers. There are also strict age restrictions on the use of power tools these days

I have access to a much larger bandsaw at work but was worried about messing up the blade.

You would. Old parquet has a terrible combination of rock-hard bitumen on the bottom and ground-in grit (from having been on the floor), so they eat blades

My view of the thicknesses was to regard it as sacrificial - so long as it worked

It wouldn't, because the tool steel or HSS blades generally used in planers and thicknessers are no match for well set bitumen. What's more it simply wouldn't be safe to pass such short pieces across a planer or through a thicknesser (most of which are only safe if you are handling materials of 12in/300mm or more in length - shorter pieces can often get converted into shrapnel or ballistic weapons!)

The trade way to deal with this is often to hire-in a circular saw, fit a new TCT blade (which BTW will end up wrecked) and saw the bitumen off the bottom (using two push sticks to guide the blocks), having previously chipped the worst of it off with a hammer and an old chisel (a dirty, thankless task I might add)

Levelling is then done after you've glued them down in position using a floor sander (or a 4in belt sander for small areas). IMHO biscuit jointing them together might well prove to be a waste of time and effort as parquet glue will hold them in place so well that they simply won't need any extra assistance, especially on a table top