Photo Index - Sidney Tool Co. - 24" planer

Machinery Photo Index

Manufactured/Badged by:
Sidney Tool Co.
Sidney, OH

Machine Specifications
Machine Class:	Wood Working Machinery
Machine Type:	Planer, Wood
Machine Size:	24"x6" Planer
Submitted By:	Dick Streff

Machine Specifications
Description/Model:	24" planer
Date of Manufacturer:	1920's?
Serial Number:
Last Updated	5/10/2005 12:00:00 AM

Comments:

This is another machine I picked up from the same seller as the Moak jointer. It was taken as part of a package deal with another non-OWWM machine. He indicated he bought it from a lumberyard some time ago. It has been sitting idle for 10 years or so. It was also collected during the "Great Googly Moogly version 2.0" expedition.

This is an interesting old planer. It has a segmented infeed roller and chipbreaker.It also has powered bed rollers. It is direct drive through the 5hp motor and all ball bearing on the three-knife cutterhead. Such modernity is quite an incongruity on a machine with the old-timey open gearing and flat belt reduction to the two-speed feed mechanism. There is no provision for guarding and its hard to tell if it ever has any dust collection at any point. Must have made one hell of a mess feeding in a 24" chunk of stock at 1/8" depth of cut. The plume of shavings probably flew for yards.

This is the first Sidney machine I've ever seen in the wild and I'm impressed. It's quite stoutly built, probably as much so as any contemporary planer of that class. Hard to say why the maker never became more "Famous" in the woodworking machinery business (har!).

This particular machine fires right up, but has some issues in the feed mechanism. It works all right but has a noisy grind that can be attributed to some looseness, wear, bent shaft, etc. in the first stage of reduction. Nothing terminal but certainly needs some fixing before being put into service. Hard to say how many miles of stock passed across that table over the years. A little TLC and it could be a beautiful machine again.

Photo 1:

Comments: Front view showing the double step pulley to change feed speeds
Source: My Nikon

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Photo 2:

Comments: Tag on motor is the only readily apparent source of ID.
Source: My Nikon

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Photo 3:

Comments: View of the other side. The feed drive noises eminate from the vicinity of the large lower flat belt pulley.
Source: My Nikon.

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