Thicknessers
Thicknessers for precisely processing wooden surfaces
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What is a thicknesser?
A thicknesser – also referred to as a thickness planer – is a machine which has found its application in woodworking. A planer thicknesser is primarily used to trim wooden boards to a uniform thickness and to ensure perfect flatness on both surfaces. Thicknessers are just one of the several types of wood planing machines, alongside the surface planers, multi-side planers, combined planers, etc.
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A brief history of thicknessers
When it comes to the origin of thicknessers, the first machines that resembled a thicknesser were introduced in 1791. Their operation was simple, with the wooden workpiece fixed onto a machine table and a planer swinging back and forth, thus removing material from the workpiece, which is the basic principle upon which the operation of a modern thicknesser machine is also based. The first wood thicknesser operated by electric motors appeared in 1890. A wide distribution of these machines started somewhere around 1920. Since then on, there has been a continual development of the operational style of thicknessers, which has led to the modern, compact machines we know today.
The basic structure of a thicknesser
A basic thicknesser consists of three major elements: a cutter head that contains knives, a set of rollers which feed the workpiece to the machine, and an adjustable table, all of which are used to control the final thickness of the wood. The centre piece of the thicknesser machine is the cutter head. There are three types of cutter heads available. The traditional cutter heads have two to four cutting knives. For smaller constructions, a rotating cutter head is used, which allows the knife to access both sides. A spiral cutter head can be used to achieve the best quality results for working on the surface of a workpiece. While older thicknessers are operated using a steering wheel, most modern machines have a servo motor. Finally, an extraction system is useful for removing chippings from the work area.
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How does a planer thicknesser operate?
Before switching the thicknesser machine on, the table should be set to the preferred position. A wooden workpiece is then fed into the machine over the machine table until it establishes contact with the in-feed roller, which leads the workpiece past the cutter head. On the way through the machine, the cutter knives remove the extra parts of the material while the out-feed roller leads the workpiece out of the thicknesser. The fact that the planer thicknesser is situated on table rollers ensures low-friction operation, whereas the feed rollers guarantee that the workpiece is evenly fed into the machine towards the cutter heads. During the final processing stages, high accuracy chip removal is performed in order to ensure that the wooden workpiece has the desired thickness.
How to spot a quality used thicknesser?
A second-hand thicknesser has certain attributes that can help one determine whether it is in good condition or not. Below you will find a list of things to check when buying a used planer thicknesser:
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- Whether the trapezoid threaded spindles allow for precise and smooth movement of the in-feed axis
- Whether the rubber table rollers, as well as feed and the out-feed rollers, allow for vibration-free operation
- Whether the segmented pressure pads allow for simultaneous planing of solid wood workpieces of different thicknesses
- Whether the thickness adjustment of the thicknesser meets the high quality requirements, with the accuracy of 1/10 mm
- Whether the automatic machine brake works properly
In order to achieve longer life-span of the machine, the regular maintenance of a used planer thicknesser should be performed by qualified professionals only.
A wide range of thicknesser manufacturers
Some of the best-known industrial planer thicknesser manufacturers are EPPER, FIM, HÖCHSMANN, WEIBERT, and WEINIG. A quality used thicknesser by those brands can often be found in good condition on our website, as well as in our industrial auctions, at a competitive price.