# Pizza Paddle



## woodworker47 (Dec 19, 2008)

My Daughter asked me to glue a crack in her old pizza paddle. Since she is one hour away, I decided to make her a new one. I glued up walnut and the maple accent. I then built a sled to plane the wedge shape on the paddle. I started with rough sawed wood. Planed to 3/4" thick and glued pieces together. I then planed to 9/16" and then attached to sled with one screw in the handle. Put it through planer until leading edge was 1/8". The reset was done with sanding to get the leading edge to approximately 1/6". Place a piece of leather through the handle hole for hanging. Now just need to get out of quarantine so I can give it to her.

Frank


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## honesttjohn (Feb 17, 2015)

Good thinking!!! I like it!!


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## difalkner (Jan 3, 2012)

Nicely done, Frank! She ought to really like that. Nice tapering fixture, too.

David


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## Nickp (Dec 4, 2012)

Very nice...and very creative getting the tapered edge...! Won't forget this one...!


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## roxanne562001 (Feb 5, 2012)

Very nice


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

Good job. You just won a free subscription to router forums for the best jig of the week. I like that jig,will file it away in my notes.
Herb


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

Nicely done Frank. She'll love it.


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## ebill (Jan 17, 2009)

Herb Stoops said:


> Good job. You just won a free subscription to router forums for the best jig of the week. I like that jig,will file it away in my notes.
> Herb


- I agree. Very creative thinking to solve that 'tapering' task. 

- ebill > I'm filing that idea away too!


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## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

Excellent and creative solution! Do the woodworking magazines pay for ideas like that ?
Worth submitting?


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## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

Well thought out and executed.


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## Bstrom (Jan 2, 2020)

It’s a wonder you didn’t see that front edge get mangled at such a thin setting - I assume you crept up to your final thickness ever so slowly? I use a sled on my planer to make 1/4” panels - will be giving this a try. Very pretty pieced of work you made there....


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## ranman (Oct 27, 2017)

Very classy Frank. Before you deliver it tell her you want pizza for dinner then surprise her with it.


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## woodworker47 (Dec 19, 2008)

I hate to admit it but the idea, including the jig, came from a woodworking magazine.

Frank


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## marecat3 (Nov 30, 2010)

very nice


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## MEBCWD (Jan 14, 2012)

That looks great Frank. When will the pizza be ready?


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## Bushwhacker (Jun 16, 2009)

Very nice.


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## ranman (Oct 27, 2017)

Stoneface said:


> I hate to admit it but the idea, including the jig, came from a woodworking magazine.
> 
> Frank


...but the magazine didn't make it.


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## Multiwood (Feb 24, 2013)

Looks good Frank


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## ScottyDBQ (Jul 5, 2008)

Don't you love it when you get just the results to plan for? Not only very functional, but great-looking too.


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## neville9999 (Jul 22, 2010)

Nice work. N


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## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

Excellent outcome Frank


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## sreilly (May 22, 2018)

I was lost without the picture of the jig but no surprise there. I'd certainly submit that to the woodworking magazines. Thanks for posting it.


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

Bstrom said:


> It’s a wonder you didn’t see that front edge get mangled at such a thin setting - I assume you crept up to your final thickness ever so slowly? I use a sled on my planer to make 1/4” panels - will be giving this a try. Very pretty pieced of work you made there....


I could be wrong, but I assume that it is fed so the thin edge comes through the planer last? I think I would use my drum sander,which I use with a sled often, but never tried a taper, I am glad you posted that.
Herb


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## woodworker47 (Dec 19, 2008)

Herb,

You are correct. Thin edge was first. After planing, I used sled on drum sander to get smooth. This could have been done completely on drum sander, but planer completed job faster. To get thin edge down from 1/8” to about 1/16”, I used a palm sander

Frank


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## Pirate (Jul 25, 2008)

Nice job. Ive made a number of them. Every relative has one.
Once you have the taper sled made, it doesn't take that long to make a great present.
Good project to use scraps on.
You can tell a mans planer size, by the size of his peal !


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## [email protected] (Aug 20, 2019)

Great idea! I would like to try the jig myself. Good looking paddle.


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## spes (Nov 13, 2009)

Herb asked if the thin end entered the planer LAST. Your reply was "yes, the thin end enters FIRST".
I'm confused. Which end should enter the planer first?

Great Project.
Thanks


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## woodworker47 (Dec 19, 2008)

Mike, 

Sorry for the confusion. I misread Herb’s question. My reply was correct. I put the thin end in first. I also used very light passes. The handle end has a screw through the hole to keep the paddle from moving on the sled. I also went back to the article to be sure this was the recommended procedure.

Frank


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## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

@Stoneface

Excellent work and explanation. Please provide the dimensions for the jig and finished dimensions on the peel.

Thanks.
Jon


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## woodworker47 (Dec 19, 2008)

Jon,

The completed paddle measured 11 3/8" x 24". I got the plans from American Woodworker magazine June/July 2009. The base of the jig is 3/4"x11-3/4"x30". The 3 tapered rails are 0" to 3/4"x23" long. The front support is 3/4"x3/4"x4-3/4". The front stop is 3/4"x7/8"x11-3/4". The handle frame is composed of three pieces. Frame end 3/4"x3/4"x3", 2 Frame sides 3/4"x3/4"x2". You lay the paddle blank on the sled with the end to taper against the front stop. Place a screw into the hole of the handle which goes into the handle frame of the jig. To plane down, take many small cuts until the tapered end is about 1/8". Remove the paddle from the frame and sand down the leading edge until about 1/16" thick and round over. 

I have a copy of the pages from the issue, but unless I am wrong, copyright prevents me from making copies and posting. 

Hope this helps.

Frank


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## woodworker47 (Dec 19, 2008)

Update: I gave the paddle to my Daughter a couple of weeks ago. She has used it and really liked it. Attached below is a picture of the paddle and pizza.

Frank


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## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

@Stoneface

Frank
Appreciate the quick reply on the dimensions. With those and your excellent explanations I think I can proceed. Thinking about mahogany center section with maple on the edges or a combination of maple and walnut there.

Did you oil the paddle? Some notes recommend not using oil so the pizza slides easier. 

Thanks again
Jon


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## woodworker47 (Dec 19, 2008)

Jon,

I used oil based Arm R All urethane from Rockler Read many articles and determined that most finishes are food safe after they cure for 30 days.

Frank


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## JFPNCM (Dec 13, 2009)

Frank

Appreciate the reply. I always oil my bowls and cutting boards with butcher block oil but some of the points re the pizza paddle were more aligned about it "sticking". 

Jon


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