Reply To: How to know if wooden beams are completely straight?
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To make sure your beams are straight without a surface planer, you can use a technique called sighting. Hold a straight edge, like your Veritas tool, against the beam’s edge and look along it to see if there are any bends or curves. If it looks straight, it probably is. You can also check for flatness by placing the straight edge on different parts of the beam and seeing if there are any gaps between the edge and the beam. If there are, that part isn’t flat. To get an even better check, you can use a long, straight piece of wood or metal as a reference. Lay it along the length of the beam and see if there are any gaps between them. If there are, you’ll need to shave or sand down those parts until they’re flat. Take your time and check regularly to make sure everything stays straight.