Abstract: A wood planar having a cutterhead with a top pressure bar in spaced horizontal relation to the cutterhead. A chipbreaker may be mounted in advance and adjacent to the cutterhead in spaced relation above a bed plate mounted for supporting a board to be planed. The improvement in the wood planar including a yielding pressure bar means for automatic cut control mounted to cooperate with the bed plate with a shaft for mounting the yielding pressure bar means and the yielding pressure bar means having at least one member pivotally mounted on the shaft. The yielding pressure bar means includes a rearwardly projecting surface for engaging a board being planed in a directed path of travel and having a forwardly projecting abutment with resilient means for urging the rearwardly projecting surface against a top pressure bar and the cutterhead while a board is being conveyed through the planar during planing.