Warped boards – what options do I have?
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Hi,
I bought some laminated beech boards yesterday – 60cm wide and 18mm thick, they were precut to approximate lengths for me.
This afternoon I picked up the first board to see that it has warped so much overnight, that if I were to plane it flat, there would be no board left.
Now it is a question of what do I do. I need to retain the thickness as far as possible. The width is something I can still play with, so my idea is to saw lengthwise into quarters, flatten the individual boards, square up the edges and glue them back together again.
Does anyone have other suggestions on what I can / should do?
Changing locations for storage is not an option. I work in my cellar with about 50% humidity most of the year. And the finished product is a set of drawers for my workbench and will therefore remain there once finished.Thanks
Keith
30 June 2017 at 2:24 pm #313369That is absolutely typical behaviour for beech and the reason you want to leave it quite a bit thicker, then on other species, before planing to final thickness. Steamed Beech is better in that regard.
Since you say that its been laminated another cause could be improper lamination. Theres more then enough Information around on how to do it properly, so just in short never glue the edge that has grown towards the heart of the tree to an edge that hasnt
If that is the case your best bet is to saw down the gluelines flatten everything and reglue properly. Though it being beech theres always the Chance its gonna warp again.
Im not sure right now if its better to wait a couple hours before regluing of glue up imideately after flattening.30 June 2017 at 8:28 pm #31337350% humidity is not that much. A bit much for a workshop but already low for a bedroom. Therefore I find it quite odd, that a laminated board warps so much. I’d expect any laminated board to stay flat for quite a while. Perhaps you can complain and get a new board for free?
Your idea to cut the board in half and plane each part is another good solution, I think.
Dieter
Thanks for the feedback.
When I bought the boards they were flat so I do not see returning them as an option, especially as the were cut to size for me (I cannot transport a 4m board). Interestingly not all of the cut pieces have warped and they all came from the same board.
Oh well, I suppose it will give me the chance to practice my planing skills.Regards
Keith
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