# How do I eliminate snipe from my Delta 22-580 planer



## Praki (Jun 17, 2007)

Greetings,

A lot of people seem to get snipe from their planers and I really don't want to ask this question. However, all my attempts to eliminate snipe from my planer have come to naught. I am pretty desperate now and hope there is an LJ who has solved this issue with his/her planer.

My planer (Delta 22-580) is pretty new and very lightly used. It does a super job of planing but also leaves a two-inch long snipe at in-feed and out-feed. I haven't measured it with calipers but it is readily visible to the eye. I really don't want to cut off 4 inches from my boards and don't want to lengthen the board by attaching scrap wood the sides. I have read some claims that the 22-580 works perfectly with no detectable snipe. I would love to get my planer to work like that!

Here are all the things I have tried (my test piece is a 2×4 white pine pice, 18 inches long).

1. Adjusted the in-feed and out-feed tables to be level. Didn't help.
2. Raised the in-feed and out-feed table edges to be 1/8 inch above the planer bed. Helped a little bit.
3. Raised the stock on entry a little bit and supported the stick at exit. This helped but wasn't always reliable.
4. Fixed a 4 feet long bed to the planer. Stock is now completely supported on level surface at all times. With this, the snipe at exit is gone but the snipe at entry still persists.
5. Measured the height of the blades and the rollers. The rollers are supposed to be 1/50th of an inch lower than the blade. The out-feed roller seems to be adjusted but the in-feed isn't! I would estimate it to be 1/16 of an inch lower than the blade.

Here is where I am puzzled. The Delta manual talks about out-feed roller adjustments only! There seems to be nothing that can be adjusted at the in-feed side. How weird is that! In my Utopian vision of planers, I stick in lumber at in-feed and get a beautifully planed lumber at out-feed.

How do I get there? Is there any 22-580 owner who has some clever adjustment tricks? Any hints, tips and thoughts greatly appreciated!


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## lilredweldingrod (Nov 23, 2009)

Praki,
I have the same problem with my Grizzly. When I talked to them, basiclly, it seems to be the nature of the beast. 
Just today, I was reading thru some older wood mags and another woodworker suggested using carpet tape and attaching 4 strips of wood to each corner on the sides that extend about 4 inched past each end of the board. I haven't tried this yet, but I will in the morning.
I think the snipe is caused by the drive rollers dropping off the trailing end and the lead side roller waiting for the board to be pushed thru. 
Rand


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## bruc101 (Sep 13, 2008)

I've never had a planer that wouldn't snipe. One thing I do sometimes is feed the board in at an angle and then pull it straight. Just before the board comes out of the planer I lift it up just a small amount and that stops a lot of the snipe if not all of it…sometimes.


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## skidiot (Jun 2, 2008)

From what i understand the main problem is the cutter head will move up when the wood rides up on the 2nd set of rollers. Some of the newer planers have a "head lock" to help prevent this. I fashioned my own head lock on my Delta planer and it helps a bit but is kind awkward to use. The only technique I found that works is to run a peice of scrap through first then your workpiece next making sure they are touching nose to tail then another scrap after the workpiece again touching. That way it acts like a longer peice with the snipe being on the scraps you dont want. Also if you are planing a group of peices run them through nose to tail, then only the front of the 1st and the tail of the last peice will have snipe.


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## LesB (Dec 21, 2008)

Rand answered the question pretty well.
you just have to keep the rollers from tipping the board as it enters and exits the planer.
Making shallower cuts on your last passes may help and carefully supporting the board as it enters and exits will reduce the problem.


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## BlankMan (Mar 21, 2009)

I had the same problem with my Delta 22-540 planer on both ends of the board, about ~2" or so worth. What I did was after planing was take the last cut on the jointer but that only worked for boards under 8". Or run it through my drum sander to remove it for wider boards. Or cut the snipe off which I hated to do because of the waste.

This was one of the reasons I replaced that jointer and got the DeWalt DW735, no snipe with it and a really smooth finish as compared to the Delta.

My outfeed table for the planer is my bench so I have about 7-1/2 ft of outfeed table, but I had this for the Delta too, actually 8+ ft for that one because the DeWalt is bigger.


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## Praki (Jun 17, 2007)

Thanks for all your suggestions!

I should have mentioned that I do use the cutterhead lock. I also resort to attaching scrap wood at the ends to trick the snipe devil! Since there are many who claim that their 22-580 is snipe-free and many the contrary, I was hoping it was some clever adjustment or alignment that was needed on my planer. Well, seems like it's back to the workarounds


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## bigike (May 25, 2009)

all u have to do is lift the infeed and out feed tables a little, put a straight edge across the tables and with the screws adjust so theres at least 1/8" under the part close to the machine itself then try if still sniping put it up more. the problem is the wood weighs down the table so there for the first and last part of the wood hits the blades before the rest of it try and keep us posted? had the same problem with my ridged went to finewoodworking.com and got the answer my delta didn't have that problem for some reason then i sold it like an ediot cuz i wanted a new looking planner so i had to adj.the tables myself.


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## mattg (May 6, 2008)

I have that very same planer, and I've discovered if you flatten one side of the board on the jointer first, then run the other side through the planer, there is no snipe. That is my solution that works for me. The only problem with that is that I only have an 8" jointer, so anything wider is going to have snipe.


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

Too many postings on this subject and never the root cause or solution. Here it is:
Even if your lead screws are snug, everything tight and you feed nice and flat, you get as much as .0025" snipe or more. Why? Because the head rocks. Sloppy tolerance and a poor design.

Easy fix. Take the top and sides off. Order some 25/32 double split collars and slide one on each post. When you get to that last precise run, snug them down against the head casting and your snipe will be about .0008". Not bad for a $60 used planer. Cut the sides down and attach them to the head. I am sure a bit of fancy machine work on some aluminum bar stock could make a more convenient fix, but this is cheap and easy. ( being really cheap, I bought 3/4 inch collars from a surplus supply and honed them larger to fit. )


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## mporter (May 5, 2011)

tvrgeek- less than 1/32 inch snipe! OMG how could we ever live with that?

Here is an idea. Just lift up on the board when it feeds into the planner and when it leaves the planner bed. Snipe eliminated- It's a miracle!


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

Tried that. It helped a little, but no where near good enough. Head still rocks. Less than a thou snipe, yea, I can live with that. You can still feel it with your finger, but the first light cleanup with 320 grit and it is gone. I have not tried cleanup with only a scraper as my rather specialized projects lend themselves to sanding.

I also use a 1/2 inch aluminum plate 3 feet long as the feed/outfeed table. It does not flex. Not a budget mod unless you happen to have some scrap old tape drive "white plates" sitting around.

Someday I will be able to afford a big iron job, but for now, at least I don't have to chop off 3 inches off every board end. On to my router table lift problems. The Rigid router moves when you clamp it after adjustment. A $400 lift is not in the future. Time to think it out


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## Dal300 (Aug 4, 2011)

Funny that no one posted that the 22-580 has a lock function. Once you lock the springs the snipe is gone.

22-580 has a lot of other problems, but snipe is the least of them.


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## Praki (Jun 17, 2007)

tvrgeek - I don't quite understand your mod. Can you post a couple of pictures or video, if possible?

Dallas - I have tried the lock function on mine and still see significant snipe. I wouldn't be surprised if lock function has some variability from one planer to another. My technique to avoid snipe has been to attach runner strips that extend beyond the board by 4-5 inches and avoid using the planer altogether!


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## pmayer (Jan 3, 2010)

I agree with what Matt said. In general this will greatly reduce snipe on a planer. for boards that are larger than your jointer's capacity, grab a pair of shooting boards and a hand plane and get it flat on one side. Doesn't have to be pretty because you will run both sides through the jointer. It's tough to get boards pretty with a hand plane, but really simple to get them flat.

Having said all that, I am quite surprised that people are having snipe problems with that planer. I had that model for before I upgraded to a stationary planer, and I didn't have a snipe problem at all. The only thing that would get sniped by that machine was a badly twisted board. Everything else was remarkably flat. I love having the increased power and capacity of a stationary planer but even though I have tuned most of the snipe out of my new planer through roller pressure adjustments I miss the snipe free perfection of my old planer.


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## pintodeluxe (Sep 12, 2010)

I agree that proper jointing first can help.

Try raising the far edges of the infeed / outfeed tables a bit more.
Also use roller supports for boards longer than 4'.


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## JAAune (Jan 22, 2012)

Adjusting the infeed/outfeed rollers and keeping the ends of the stock supported as it goes through the machine will eliminate snipe (assuming the cutterhead remains motionless). The catch is that getting this perfect adjustment and getting it to remain is next to impossible. On some machines the rollers will lose their positions after some use.

The industrial machine we have is equipped with an external adjustment lever for the infeed roller. This makes it possible to keep everything perfectly adjusted at all times so snipe isn't an issue with this machine. The portable unit which we use for 95% of our work does have a small amount of snipe and it doesn't have a cutterhead lock. We usually just leave 2" of extra wood on either end so it can get cut away later.


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## TaybulSawz (Oct 17, 2013)

I use Sacrificial pine. I start a piece first and let the Snipe occur on it feed my good wood in and then mid way thru the good feed start another piece of sacrificial pine to catch the end snipe. No more snipe on my good wood. I always have 12" pieces of scrap pine laying around. they only need to be 3/4" wide.


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## Philzoel (Dec 26, 2011)

I replaced my rigid planner with a Jet drum sander. NO SNIP EVER!

What made me decide was simple measurement. Put a dial indicator between head and table. Then arranged a lever so I could pleasure head upward. 0.003 in of movement. Snipe is built in movement. Will never use planner again unless stock can be wasted.


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## Philzoel (Dec 26, 2011)

I replaced my rigid planner with a Jet drum sander. NO SNIP EVER!

What made me decide was a simple measurement. Put a dial indicator between head and table. Then arranged a lever so I could press head upward. Got 0.003 in of movement. Snipe is built in movement. Will never use planner again unless stock can be wasted.


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

Mine is actually an older 540. I see in the pictures some handle on the side of the 580. What does it lock to? If only the lead screw, it can't stop the cutter head rocking. That is what the collars do. I played with the cheap DeWalt that has a snap-bail to lock the head and it helps, but not much.

As far as "other" problems, these are cheap home handyman bench top tools, not some $7000 industrial Rockwell. All I offer is how I eliminated ( .0008") snipe on mine.

JA, the point is the cutter head is NOT motionless. It rocks as the material meets the infeed roller. That is the problem. With my collars, it works quite well.


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## PaulDoug (Sep 26, 2013)

I don't get it. I get very little snipe and only occasionally on my Delta same model. Maybe it is make very shallow passes. I don't know.


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

Good point Paul. I did my testing taking "half a turn" cuts. By the time you do a full turn, it does seem to get worse. With the prototype collars in place though, the .0008 snipe was a full turn cut. I also wonder what everyone's tolerance for snipe is. Mine is within a quick hand sanding so a face frame would be flush. For me, that is about a thou. Others may be moving to a power sander or doing house trim and ten-thou would seem fine. If you painted a sample of where I started at nearly 3 thou, you could see it from across the room.

I wonder if the manufacturing tolerances in the cutter head varied over time? Just aluminum. If it had bronze or iron sleeves, it might work better, but that is far from budget then.

Is it not self-evident that a board with an untrue bottom will deflect and transmit some of that untrue-ness to the surfaced side? These are only thickness planers.

Around here, the quality of the wood one can buy means you pretty much have to run everything through the planer. Dents, scratches, warp-age, and that is just the film wrapped premium stuff.


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## PaulDoug (Sep 26, 2013)

Well I've always just do about 1/4 turn each pass, I'm in no hurry, I can go slow it is only a hobby for me.


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## Praki (Jun 17, 2007)

I recall trying to plane some walnut on my planer and getting severe snipe. I didn't measure it but it was pretty bad and not something I could just sand out. I have tried every remedy that people suggested (raise tables, lift up the board, locking). I even tried quarter turns with not much success. While trying to setup, I used pine from the bigbox, so warped/cupped boards didn't contribute to snipe.

I have come to the conclusion that there is some problem with my planer that I haven't been able to locate. Snipe free planing would be really nice


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## Dal300 (Aug 4, 2011)

OK, no dog in this hunt, as I killed my 22-580 a few months back.
Raise intake and output tables, (IF they are factory normal), 1/8"

If you are trying to take off more than 1/16" on soft pine on a single pass, you are causing your own problem.
If you are trying to take off more than 1/64" with hard wood on a single pass you are asking for trouble. 
At that rate the driven pulley will break or the belt will burn, eventually.

My 22-580 is sitting in the corner until someone wants it or I decide to fix it or I need space and toss it in the dumpster.

If it was still working, I would use it as often as I could, LOL>


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

First, be sure the threaded rods are snug in their bearings. Mine were not. The crank should be stiff and a little rough to turn. My bed is very flat, not raised. My prototype locks were just MDF drilled and split with a C-clamp over them. THis proved it was the head rocking. Almost free to test. Here is an easier test, when you run the board through, lean on the cutter housing and you will feel it kick up as the board reaches the feed roller.

Quarter turn. I'll play with that. I am completely a self-taught woodworker ( read as hack), but I do still have all my fingers and do reasonably nice loudspeaker cabinets.


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## JReed3 (Nov 28, 2011)

My board is normally about 2" longer than it needs to be. As it runs through the planer if any snipe occurs its near the end. After it has been milled to the thickness I need, I trim the end(s) as needed.


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

Of course timing 3 inches off cuts off the snipe. Duh!. We are talking when you don't want to waste 6 inches of expensive wood or are running an existing sized board.

Anyway, mods complete and working fantastically. I set the depth with a ruler I added a little extension to so I can just measure from the table to the head front lip. I cut down the sides and screwed then to the head so the belt and gears are still protected. To be really cheap, I bought surplus 3/4 inch collars and honed them that extra 32nd. It only took about half an hour for all four with some emery around a deep socket. 
I only snug them down for the last two half-crank passes. $28 total cost.


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

close up


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## DangerDoug (Nov 22, 2013)

There's a full proof way to fix - simply glue waste piece to side of board to be run.
Longer of course. No-no practical on large project. 
Yes lift going in and out.


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

I like machines to work the way they are expected to. I am also a bit impatient. I probably spent less time on this than I would with all the work arounds over time. No need to lift with my big flat plate. ( that would NOT be cheap if I did not happen to have the plate.) 

Oh yea, my dust vacuum port is still drying. I modified a piece of 4 inch PVC and foamed it to the exit shield. I just need another of those dryer twist connect joints and some more hose to connect it to my dust system.


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## tvrgeek (Nov 19, 2013)

Also, realize that I am a bit of an inventor, tinkerer, and my main hobby is designing loudspeakers, so I can't leave things alone. I am used to doing metal fab as I used to restore old British sports cars. Woodworking has been part of all these hobbies.


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