Jointer Clogged with Chips and more Friday night

Space Teams Woodshop
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TLDR: Friday afternoon, someone left the jointer separator can full, continued jointing with the full can, thus packing the jointer itself full of chips, then did something dangerous on the jointer that sheared off an entire corner of a push block. Whoever did this should talk to a steward about proper jointer use before they hurt themselves.

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Friday evening a little after 6 pm, I discovered the chip separator can for the jointer was over 3/4 full. First, I was annoyed that I had to empty it myself, along with the planer can which was half full. All of the chips from both cans were from the same type of wood, indicating this was left behind by a single user.

Second, I was concerned with how full it was. The efficacy of the separators drop off considerably once the can gets half full. As I feared, a slew of chips blew back out at me when I turned the jointer on. Letting the can get so full had dropped the dust collection efficiency so low that the hose leading from the jointer had clogged up with chips. I disconnected the hose and dumped it out, then pulled chips out of the lower part of the jointer itself, yielding this pile.

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I figured that I had pulled out most of the chips from inside, and that the remainder would get pulled out by the dust collector. I was wrong. I had to get an air gun and blow it into the jointer from below to dislodge this additional tightly packed mass. In total, these piles filled a garbage can 2/3 full with wood chips.

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Well, mostly wood chips… My journey had thus far gone from annoyance to incredulity, and now proceeded to horror when I realized there were a lot of small black rubber and yellow plastic pieces in the top layer of that mass; I quickly found the push block they had come from.

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So whoever did this, thank god you used the push block, or I might have been sweeping up tiny pieces of your fingers instead! I hope you weren’t otherwise hurt. But HOW did you do this on the jointer?! I just can’t imagine what you were doing that ended up with an entire corner of a push block down in the cutting blades. For your own safety, please talk to a steward about proper jointer use.

For everyone else: 1) Use push blocks on the jointer! 2) Check and empty the chip separator can regularly when jointing a lot of wood. It’s not just a matter of courtesy, but also efficiency and safety. 3) At least one other person used the jointer briefly after this. If the jointer is spewing chips back at you before you even put a piece through, please check the separator can, and if the chip spewing persists, find a steward to correct the problem.

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I had the displeasure of unclogging the jointer more than a few times so i know is not pleasant Ethan. Looking at those big chips, i can tell you with certainty that is Red Alder and a wide long board. Looking at the push block two ways it could have happened. The block may have been used incorrectly at the edge with an angle to gain leverage, as you suspect. Another scenario could be that the block was dropped into the cutting blades by accident during operation (the guard should prevent the block from going into the cutting head if the jointer is not actually being used. Either way the cutting head should be inspected for damage to the carbide blades. I disagree with you about having the person talk to a steward. Is the other way around, the cameras should be checked and a steward should be contacting that person before an injury becomes reality. The point can be driven by having that person empty the cans (about 10-15 mins.), the dust collector (10 - 15 mins.), and blow the filter canister (15 - 45 mins.) see how they like taking all this time for not monitoring the RED light nor the trashcans. More than likely the famous “it was not covered in the class” excuse is going to come up.

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The cameras are being checked. I just thought I would offer them the chance to come forward first

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We have reviewed the video and determined who and what happened. On going through that exercise, it is a good reminder that we all need to be aware of how the equipment is behaving.

This individual made quite an effort to clean up afterward with a broom, vacuum cart, etc… Unfortunately, the separator bin was not emptied. The bin was full long before their session on the jointer was finished. Midway through the session, the deck of the jointer was getting totally covered in shavings.

When the jointer, or the planer, is spitting lots of shavings at you, cluttering the cast iron surfaces - it is time to STOP, empty the separator can, and check the machine. In this particular case, this was an experience-level error, not negligence.

If you see that happening with someone else, please kindly let them know that they need to stop and empty the bin. Explain that it is not good for the equipment and can lead to equiment failure.

If things like this happen to you, you can always report via the Red QR code (it’s not only for critical issues), or email workshop@asmbly.org. People have different comfort levels about mentioning it on Discouse, and not all of the members follow Discourse.

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