backcutting bites!

[pjt]

I had my spindle moulder bite me today not too bad, a couple of little nicks up my finger and a chunk out of my nail, bandaid sort of thing....but... it's the sort of thing that all too quickly could have been a finger chewed off up to a knuckle or something

What I was doing....a rebate on a piece of ordinary pine for this mockup design of a cabinet I am currently doing, so testing for height of cutter....trial cut... moving timber right to left, check, adjust, usual stuff, now depth of cut, same again, good to go, but I decide I don't want any chipout so a shallow depth of cut and use a backcut or climbcut feed direction, from left to right, so mentally prepare, self I say, done this before, this is a tricky operation, need to be ready for it but even tho I was ready and know what can happen it still happened...bit of wood took off and before I knew it I was out of control and I had a damaged finger I don't even know how it got my right index finger

Moral of the story... be careful out there, use good technique, don't be complacent, use guards and all we need to do to be safe and undamaged

Pete

[Bob38S]

G'day Pete, glad to hear you survived the experience without too much damage.

If you could just clarify a couple of things for me I would appreciate it. I don't have a spindle moulder but I thought it operated like a router in a table where the direction of feed normally is R to L and climb cutting is L to R, I was also under the impression that the direction of cut could be reversed on the machine.

Regards,
Bob

[China]

Just goes to show if you don't know how to use a machine THEN DON'T USE IT or learn how from someone who does

[pjt]

G'day Pete, glad to hear you survived the experience without too much damage.

If you could just clarify a couple of things for me I would appreciate it. I don't have a spindle moulder but I thought it operated like a router in a table where the direction of feed normally is R to L and climb cutting is L to R, I was also under the impression that the direction of cut could be reversed on the machine.

Regards,
Bob

Yep a spindle moulder is just like a router in a router table
Normal direction of rotation is anti clockwise so feed is from my right to left side, I have it ass about in the above post, got my hands mixed upwhich I will correct
In some machines they do come with a forward/reverse switch, as mine now does, didn't originally, can be useful but u have to be able to reverse the cutter/s and normal feed will be from left to right

Pete

[pjt]

Just goes to show if you don't know how to use a machine THEN DON'T USE IT or learn how from someone who does

[BozInOz]

scary scary scary

my scariest machine is my 12" jointer... if I ever touch the blade... I'd lose half my hand. scary.

[Bob38S]

Yep a spindle moulder is just like a router in a router table
Normal direction of rotation is anti clockwise so feed is from my right to left side, I have it ass about in the above post, got my hands mixed upwhich I will correct
In some machines they do come with a forward/reverse switch, as mine now does, didn't originally, can be useful but u have to be able to reverse the cutter/s and normal feed will be from left to right

Pete

Thanks for clearing that up.

[Mr Brush]

I think the spindle moulder was only invented to try and boost sales of powerfeeds..

Some time ago I did a batch shaping job on some chair parts using a mates spindle moulder - don't own one myself - but luckily his has a retrofit powerfeed unit attached.

I was using the standard feed direction (right to left as you face the machine), but I'm not sure if a powerfeed belt would be enough to control the workpiece when feeding the other way, i.e. climb cutting??

Anyone tried this?

pjt - glad to hear that you only got a fright, plus a gentle tap from your friendly spindle moulder to remember it by !

[Col]

Just goes to show if you don't know how to use a machine THEN DON'T USE IT or learn how from someone who does

Well said. I agree with you 100%

The spindle moulder would have to be one of the most lethal machines in the hands of an inexperienced user or inattentive experienced user alike. In a split second your fingers can be into the cutterhead and gone. The duller the cutters the more they will grab especially when feeding in the wrong direction.

If in doubt, Don't............

Col

[munruben]

I think I'll give it a miss

[Mr Brush]

....and even if you DO know how to use one, its still a good idea to duck down below the level of the table before hitting the power button

[China]

This "climb cutting" is a worry ! as I said if don't know how to use it then don't

[Col]

This "climb cutting" is a worry ! as I said if don't know how to use it then don't

I've never heard of it either in 34 years in the trade. (or I need to get out more) Maybe another Americanism creeping in.

I have an old spindle moulder story of when I was an apprentice.
I was making a cricket honour board in the home workshop which called for the use of a template screwed to the back which was run against a bearing on the spindle. No fences in place only a ring guard over the blade. I had made quite a few before and had set the shaper up in this way many times. This particular shaper had drop in aluminium rings in the table that kept the gap between the cutters and table to a minimum. What I didn't see was that the aluminium ring had a large chip of timber under it on the hidden side under the ring fence. The side I could see looked ok and I started it up and let it run as usual. When I fed the piece into the cutter it also pushed the aluminium ring into the cutter causing it to explode. One bit hit me on the hand and another in the top lip and another went through a drill index shearing off a couple of drill bits behind me. When the bit of shrapnell hit me in the face I put my hand up (which was bleeding) to my mouth and went inside. My mother saw me and screamed as there was blood everywhere. When she cleaned me up all I had was a small cut to the finger which is where the blood poured from and a fat lip with no other damage. Lucky I didn'y lose teeth or my life if had of gone through my stomach. But it did put the wind right up me. The next morning when I got to work and was asked about the incident as they had heard about it, the supervisor put me staright back onto the shaper again to make some shield for the side of the ship. I objected but he told me that if I didn't get straight back onto it that I would be scared of it for good. I learned a valuable lesson and have never had a workshop machine accident again on any machine.....

Col

[pjt]

I think the spindle moulder was only invented to try and boost sales of powerfeeds..
I was using the standard feed direction (right to left as you face the machine), but I'm not sure if a powerfeed belt would be enough to control the workpiece when feeding the other way, i.e. climb cutting??

Yep I reckon that a powerfeed would be quite an acceptable device to set up to prevent a mishap feeding in the climbcutting direction.

Pete

[pjt]

I've never heard of it either in 34 years in the trade. (or I need to get out more) Maybe another Americanism creeping in.
Col

I dunno about an Americanism but I first came across it during my apprenticeship at TAFE too many yrs ago

In a couple of WoodReviews ago if I remember correctly, Richard Vaughn did an article on the router table and its use, he talked about climbcutting, the why and how and when it can be a useful technique, think he even had a pic of a jig he made up to give himself more control of the operation.

It does have a specific purpose...preventing tearout as the cutter exits the piece of wood throughout the length of cut, once u r a couple of mm deep u then go back to normal feed direction.

Pete