# A Rockwell ..What??? Uniplane???



## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

I saw this in local classifieds: *A Rockwell Uni-plane*!
Said to be great for edging, and angle surfacing! Unbelievable!



This is not a jointer!! Note the miter gauge! Yikes, scary looking cutter head.
sorry, only one pic posted with the ad. Ever see one? I never heard of such an animal…


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## JoeLyddon (Apr 22, 2007)

Kinda looks like a meat slicer… Wood slicer? LOL

Never saw anything like that before… for wood!


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

true enough, Joe!
Perhaps.. hey, isn't there an LJ named 'Wood Butcher"? maybe he needs a deli meat/lumber slicer!! After a Google, I see apparently these aren't so unusual after all!


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## jusfine (May 22, 2010)

I saw one at a garage sale about 20 years ago, was very tempted but I passed. I think they wanted about $200.00 and it looked in the same kind of shape…

What are they asking for this one?


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## chrisstef (Mar 3, 2010)

Scary lookin is right. Imagine that thing catching an edge and tossing it.

"Number 42?" 
"Yup right here" 
"What can i help you with sir?" 
"1/3 of a pound of seasoned oak, sliced thin please"


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

*jusfine:* The price posted is $275. It's just a creepy tool at any price! *chrisstef:* mmm red oak 'n cheese, on rye please. well.. after all, every meat department has a bandsaw, right? Next, we'll see a Keen Kutter #7 used to shave deli ham?


> Hey, how'd we get on this food thing


 Ahhh… Joe started it!!


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## ITnerd (Apr 14, 2011)

Chris Wants Real Bad. Kinda like the poor mans Super Surfacer .

http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f12/rockwell-uni-plane-4024/

Can even get new blades made .

Make us proud PK - is it going to find a home?


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## LeeBarker (Aug 6, 2010)

It's a pretty amazing tool, actually. I have a friend who has two. Quite effective on figured woods that a typical jointer would decimate.

Kindly,

Lee


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

ITnerd: No, it won't be me!! Maybe some OWWM person…but I posted it because of the curiosity factor alone. It's a lot of money for a single-purpose machine in anybody's shop. How this product ever got launched in the first place is a mystery to me. Thought a few LJs would find it interesting to see! Doubt if anyone really has shop space to justify owning one!


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

Thanks, Lee! I'll have to go to You-Tube and see if there's a clip of one of these in action…
*Update:* Nope, no video clips, but I saw some nice jointer videos!


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## Lifesaver2000 (Nov 17, 2009)

I have a book called Complete Book of Woodworking, by Rosario Capotosto, copyright 1975. In the section on power tools, the Uniplane is listed. At that time it is called a "relative newcomer." It says it "offers a unique and superior method for jointing and surfacing material" and that it leaves a smoother surface than a jointer, and is safer because "there is absolutely no possibility of material kickback." It can also do bevels and compound miters. And finally, it also says that it is very safe to use on very small or thin materials.


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## Wdwerker (Apr 14, 2012)

I saw an Ad for it way back in the 80's. They claimed you could plane the end of a match stick safely and bevel end grain on any wood.
I wonder where the guard is, pretty scary without it.


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## mrura (Jul 8, 2019)

Our high school wood shop had one, worth it's weight in gold.


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## Planeman40 (Nov 3, 2010)

I'm old enough to remember when these came out. They never caught on for some reason and Delta dropped it. Those teeth are made to make a SLICING cut which gave an exceptionally smooth surface, especially on cross grain cuts. It always sounded like a good idea to me at the time, but I never owned or used one.


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## HerringImpaired (Mar 13, 2019)

I used one in our high school shop many years ago. Great for trimming edge grains. 
A few years later, my cousin had a serious injury on the same Uniplane. Never heard the circumstances, but he had pretty severe damage to his fingers/hand that required several surgeries. It doesn't look like it's capable of that kind of damage, but my cousin would attest that it is.


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

Gee, I'd forgotten that I started this thread, so long ago.

I'm refurbishing a so-called "Lion Trimmer" a really neat edger that will slice a 45-degree edge perfectly. Kinda takes away from the urgency of owning this Delta flesh-eating monstrosity.


















From the Pootatuck Foundry, in various towns of New England.


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## Delete (May 19, 2017)

Lifesaver2000 yes I have that book, Roger Cliffe featured a whole chapter on this machine in his book "Woodworker's Handbook" as well. Delta pushed it real hard, and Cliffe covers many operations it can do, but for some reason it did not take off. I wonder if that high speed exposed cutting disc had something to do with it.


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