Quote:
Originally Posted by djugurba
Hey folks-A few of the planks are slightly bowed- slightly. Should I get a jointer for the edge then saw the other edge or just use a wedge to straighten when installing?
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I build decks as a side business and I've laid a few hardwood floors as well. You'd be surprised how crappy and wavy typical lumber looks off the rack (or out of the box for pre-finished hardwood). But with the right techniques, you can straighten a bowed board as you install it. Toenailing into joists at a very shallow angle is one of the ways to do it. Blocks screwed to the floor and wedges are another technique. Read as much as you can about floor installation and you will see a variety of methods to deal with this common problem.
And a typical home shop jointer is not really effective taking out a bow in 12' boards because the infeed and outfeed tables are only a couple of feet long. It is much better for shorter stock . It can be done, but it would require dead flat infeed and outfeed tables to support nearly the entire length of your stock.