When I was final planing, I read the incorrect numbers for my butt section and overplaned the strips. Since the strips were too small to be used as the butt section, I used the tip section as the butt and the butt as the tip. Has anyone had any problems doing this?  (Chris Hei)

OH NO!  Chris,  I just had to do something similar, though it was because I was merrily planing a strip for the butt section and managed to create a monstrous node lift.   I just took one of the tip sections and used it for the butt.  You just need to make sure that you have plenty of power fibers for the butt section.   (Todd Talsma)

Common mistake and the usual fix!  (Paul Blakley)

About the only thing that would happen is that your tips might have slightly different actions, and that would only happen if you did the traditional approach of the low half of the culm for the original butt, and the top half for the tips, AND there was a major difference in the power fiber density. Your solution was one used by every rodmaker at one time or another. And it will be a fine rod.  (Jeff Schaeffer)

Time to fess up.

I still haven't finished my first rod; trying to make all the components myself and cash flow isn't exactly working as well as I'd like it to. But I did start on my second blank.  My first blank is right on the money and I couldn't be more pleased. I've "miced" it numerous times and man o' man, I'm just so proud of it. At any rate, I planed down the strips for the second rod and I've got to admit, I was feeling pretty sure of myself. Well, lo and behold, while gluing up the strips I got a call from the ex and I hurried through it; again feeling pretty sure of myself because the first blank came out so beautifully and I guess at that point I was feeling a bit invincible. Well I ended up with an absolutely worthless butt section. I mean I wouldn't even let somebody look at it, much less hold it in their hands.

I decided I'd start from the beginning and use up the cane I had flamed, which as you might remember, I'm not too fond of flamed rods, but I figured, what the hell.  I double checked the form settings, I've done the correct straightening of the strips and I've been taking my time and paying close attention to what I'm doing. Yes, I too can be a PUTZ, man everything is coming out beautifully and I couldn't be happier. For the new guy, don't make my mistake and feel too confident after a great blank, treat each process like it were the first blank and you won't go through the disappointments I've been through.

Pay attention.  (Ren Monllor)

The butts are always more difficult because, being thicker, they don't lie down in the groove so tightly under plane pressure, so the straightening needs to be much better than the tips. Whilst they may look a bit gappy they won't delaminate, and if you are using resorcinol they will probably look much worse than they actually are.  If you haven't glued the old butt up try using polyurethane, it covers a multitude of sins as it gap fills.  (Robin Haywood)

I am experiencing my first real problem with lifting bamboo when planing.  The funny thing, it's not just at the nodes.  The other strips from the same culm have been fine. I resharpened the blade but it's still occurring after the usual remedies.  What works for you when you have a bad strip?  (Louis DeVos)

Have you closed the throat on your plane? It should be very close to the blade and it will stop a lot of it. You can also plan it in a reverse direction.  (Gordon Koppin)

It's open less than and 8th of an inch. I will close it more and see if that helps.  (Louis DeVos)

Not sure what you mean here, do you mean lofting out of the form or getting a rough cut. You might be taking too deep a cut with the plane.  (Tony Spezio)

I think you're on the right track, with the sharpening but I might suggest that you check the sharpening angle as well. My experience has been, less than sharp irons, wrong angle and too heavy a cut usually result in lifting, not necessarily in that order. Worked with a material one time that required sharpening the iron about every ten passes or the material would tear out, got pretty good at sharpening and darn near wore out an iron, but bamboo is not quite that bad.  (Greg Shockley)

I presume it is the same plane you were previously using with no problems? If so I think you may be right that you have found some difficult bamboo. I have had the same experience. What I do is to plane well above final dims and then scrape down the lifting sections with a Lie-Nielsen scraper and then with a blade almost right down to the forms. I then plane down the remainder and final scrape and sand the last microns of the whole strip.

Are you using a low angle block plane? I find these lift the bamboo.  (Stephen Dugmore)

The opening should be just large enough for the shaving to pass through. 2 or 3 thousandths.

My other thought is that the node or strip isn't flat enough and is rocking in the form. This COULD cause the plane iron to dig deeper in some places than others. It could cause the lift you speak of.  (Mike Shay)

My solution is to use three different planes. I first get down to about .010" over final dimensions with a Stanley block plane with the Hock blade honed at a 30 degree angle. Then I switch to a L/N block plane with the .003" groove, with the plane sharpened at a 45 degree angle. The 45 degree blade has more of a "scraping" action Vs. the "shaving" action of the 30 degree blade, thus less node lifts.  The final .003" is removed with a L/N scraper.

When I run into a tricky spot like a node which just can't be planed correctly, I'll use a sanding block.  (Tom Bowden)

I use a Stanley block plane with an adjustable throat and grooved bed.  I keep the throat closed as much as possible by test planing a discard piece of cane to get my shaving to .001 to .003.  I get no noticeable lifting.  I have also found that planing a strip that has not been baked is much easier to plane, has less chip out at the nodes and dulls the blade much slower.  I bake when I get about .005 from my finished dimension.  (David Gerich)