spiral vs.straight cutterhead

[1938farmall]

i'm experiencing alot of pine pitch build-up in front of my straight planer blades & wonder if the problem would be less with the spiral cutter.  any ideas?  thanks, al

[logboy]

I switched from a straight to a spiral 3 years ago and havent noticed any buildup since. Just my experience. I dont plane any freshly sawed stuff though. Everything has been drying a few months.

[Den Socling]

logboy, Do you plane pine? A few months of air drying wouldn't dry the pitch. Maybe spiral does the trick. I see from your kiln construction thread that you cut pine.

[pdoubleu]

Definitely go with spiral. I replaced the stock blades with 4 sided carbide. You'll always have to deal with pitch when planning pine, but with these your production time is astoundingly longer. Plus you wont need a replacement  if you hit something you don't mean too, like a gnarly knot. Just turn one!

[logboy]

Den,  what I mean is that the wood I plane isnt oozing pitch like a freshly cut log.  I let my pine logs sit for a while until the ends stop oozing.  Then I saw them. Otherwise each board has little beads of pitch all over.

I love my spiral cutterhead. Much quieter (earplugs are now unnecessary), knife changes are a breeze (no more sharpening, just rotate), and it is easier on the motor because it is cutting continuously instead of 4 times per revolution (you can hog off more wood in a pass).