diff --git a/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/compress.rs b/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/compress.rs
index 1372d56c9a..615e34ee44 100644
--- a/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/compress.rs
+++ b/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/compress.rs
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ use vortex::compress::{CompressConfig, Compressor, EncodingCompression};
 use vortex::stats::{ArrayStatistics, Stat};
 use vortex::validity::ArrayValidity;
 use vortex::{Array, ArrayDType, ArrayTrait, IntoArray, IntoArrayVariant};
-use vortex_dtype::{match_each_integer_ptype, NativePType, PType};
+use vortex_dtype::{match_each_integer_ptype, NativePType};
 use vortex_error::{vortex_err, VortexResult};
 use vortex_scalar::Scalar;
 
@@ -60,9 +60,16 @@ impl EncodingCompression for FoREncoding {
 
         let child = match_each_integer_ptype!(parray.ptype(), |$T| {
             if shift == <$T>::PTYPE.bit_width() as u8 {
-                ConstantArray::new(Scalar::zero::<$T>(parray.dtype().nullability()), parray.len()).into_array()
+                ConstantArray::new(
+                    Scalar::zero::<$T>(parray.dtype().nullability())
+                        .reinterpret_cast(parray.ptype().to_unsigned()),
+                    parray.len(),
+                )
+                .into_array()
             } else {
-                compress_primitive::<$T>(parray, shift, $T::try_from(&min)?).into_array()
+                compress_primitive::<$T>(&parray, shift, $T::try_from(&min)?)
+                    .reinterpret_cast(parray.ptype().to_unsigned())
+                    .into_array()
             }
         });
         let for_like = like.map(|like_arr| FoRArray::try_from(like_arr).unwrap());
@@ -76,7 +83,7 @@ impl EncodingCompression for FoREncoding {
 }
 
 fn compress_primitive<T: NativePType + WrappingSub + PrimInt>(
-    parray: PrimitiveArray,
+    parray: &PrimitiveArray,
     shift: u8,
     min: T,
 ) -> PrimitiveArray {
@@ -102,8 +109,8 @@ fn compress_primitive<T: NativePType + WrappingSub + PrimInt>(
 
 pub fn decompress(array: FoRArray) -> VortexResult<PrimitiveArray> {
     let shift = array.shift();
-    let ptype: PType = array.dtype().try_into()?;
-    let encoded = array.encoded().into_primitive()?;
+    let ptype = array.ptype();
+    let encoded = array.encoded().into_primitive()?.reinterpret_cast(ptype);
     Ok(match_each_integer_ptype!(ptype, |$T| {
         let reference: $T = array.reference().try_into()?;
         PrimitiveArray::from_vec(
@@ -202,9 +209,9 @@ mod test {
         assert_eq!(i8::MIN, i8::try_from(compressed.reference()).unwrap());
 
         let encoded = compressed.encoded().into_primitive().unwrap();
-        let bitcast: &[u8] = unsafe { std::mem::transmute(encoded.maybe_null_slice::<i8>()) };
+        let encoded_bytes: &[u8] = encoded.maybe_null_slice::<u8>();
         let unsigned: Vec<u8> = (0..u8::MAX).collect_vec();
-        assert_eq!(bitcast, unsigned.as_slice());
+        assert_eq!(encoded_bytes, unsigned.as_slice());
 
         let decompressed = compressed.array().clone().into_primitive().unwrap();
         assert_eq!(
diff --git a/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/compute.rs b/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/compute.rs
index 8c12a2b63a..d9d5d280a8 100644
--- a/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/compute.rs
+++ b/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/compute.rs
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ impl TakeFn for FoRArray {
 
 impl ScalarAtFn for FoRArray {
     fn scalar_at(&self, index: usize) -> VortexResult<Scalar> {
-        let encoded_scalar = scalar_at(&self.encoded(), index)?;
+        let encoded_scalar = scalar_at(&self.encoded(), index)?.reinterpret_cast(self.ptype());
         let encoded = PrimitiveScalar::try_from(&encoded_scalar)?;
         let reference = PrimitiveScalar::try_from(self.reference())?;
 
diff --git a/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/mod.rs b/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/mod.rs
index c1732ff2b4..a1e4d67550 100644
--- a/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/mod.rs
+++ b/encodings/fastlanes/src/for/mod.rs
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ use vortex::stats::ArrayStatisticsCompute;
 use vortex::validity::{ArrayValidity, LogicalValidity};
 use vortex::visitor::{AcceptArrayVisitor, ArrayVisitor};
 use vortex::{impl_encoding, ArrayDType, Canonical, IntoCanonical};
+use vortex_dtype::PType;
 use vortex_error::vortex_bail;
 use vortex_scalar::Scalar;
 
@@ -24,9 +25,13 @@ impl FoRArray {
         if reference.is_null() {
             vortex_bail!("Reference value cannot be null",);
         }
-        let reference = reference.cast(child.dtype())?;
+        let reference = reference.cast(
+            &reference
+                .dtype()
+                .with_nullability(child.dtype().nullability()),
+        )?;
         Self::try_from_parts(
-            child.dtype().clone(),
+            reference.dtype().clone(),
             FoRMetadata { reference, shift },
             [child].into(),
             StatsSet::new(),
@@ -35,9 +40,12 @@ impl FoRArray {
 
     #[inline]
     pub fn encoded(&self) -> Array {
-        self.array()
-            .child(0, self.dtype())
-            .expect("Missing FoR child")
+        let dtype = if self.ptype().is_signed_int() {
+            &DType::Primitive(self.ptype().to_unsigned(), self.dtype().nullability())
+        } else {
+            self.dtype()
+        };
+        self.array().child(0, dtype).expect("Missing FoR child")
     }
 
     #[inline]
@@ -49,6 +57,11 @@ impl FoRArray {
     pub fn shift(&self) -> u8 {
         self.metadata().shift
     }
+
+    #[inline]
+    pub fn ptype(&self) -> PType {
+        self.dtype().try_into().unwrap()
+    }
 }
 
 impl ArrayValidity for FoRArray {
diff --git a/vortex-scalar/src/primitive.rs b/vortex-scalar/src/primitive.rs
index f1e25f3958..9b9496e3ed 100644
--- a/vortex-scalar/src/primitive.rs
+++ b/vortex-scalar/src/primitive.rs
@@ -84,6 +84,28 @@ impl Scalar {
         }
     }
 
+    pub fn reinterpret_cast(&self, ptype: PType) -> Self {
+        let primitive = PrimitiveScalar::try_from(self).unwrap();
+        if primitive.ptype() == ptype {
+            return self.clone();
+        }
+
+        assert_eq!(
+            primitive.ptype().byte_width(),
+            ptype.byte_width(),
+            "can't reinterpret cast between integers of two different widths"
+        );
+
+        Scalar::new(
+            DType::Primitive(ptype, self.dtype.nullability()),
+            primitive
+                .pvalue
+                .map(|p| p.reinterpret_cast(ptype))
+                .map(ScalarValue::Primitive)
+                .unwrap_or_else(|| ScalarValue::Null),
+        )
+    }
+
     pub fn zero<T: NativePType + Into<PValue>>(nullability: Nullability) -> Self {
         Self {
             dtype: DType::Primitive(T::PTYPE, nullability),
diff --git a/vortex-scalar/src/pvalue.rs b/vortex-scalar/src/pvalue.rs
index 1cc3702a82..c077294f3b 100644
--- a/vortex-scalar/src/pvalue.rs
+++ b/vortex-scalar/src/pvalue.rs
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+use std::mem;
+
 use num_traits::NumCast;
 use vortex_dtype::half::f16;
 use vortex_dtype::PType;
@@ -35,6 +37,69 @@ impl PValue {
             Self::F64(_) => PType::F64,
         }
     }
+
+    #[allow(clippy::transmute_int_to_float, clippy::transmute_float_to_int)]
+    pub fn reinterpret_cast(&self, ptype: PType) -> Self {
+        if ptype == self.ptype() {
+            return *self;
+        }
+
+        assert_eq!(
+            ptype.byte_width(),
+            self.ptype().byte_width(),
+            "Cannot reinterpret cast between types of different widths"
+        );
+
+        match self {
+            PValue::U8(v) => unsafe { mem::transmute::<u8, i8>(*v) }.into(),
+            PValue::U16(v) => match ptype {
+                PType::I16 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<u16, i16>(*v) }.into(),
+                PType::F16 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<u16, f16>(*v) }.into(),
+                _ => unreachable!("Only same width type are allowed to be reinterpreted"),
+            },
+            PValue::U32(v) => match ptype {
+                PType::I32 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<u32, i32>(*v) }.into(),
+                PType::F32 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<u32, f32>(*v) }.into(),
+                _ => unreachable!("Only same width type are allowed to be reinterpreted"),
+            },
+            PValue::U64(v) => match ptype {
+                PType::I64 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<u64, i64>(*v) }.into(),
+                PType::F64 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<u64, f64>(*v) }.into(),
+                _ => unreachable!("Only same width type are allowed to be reinterpreted"),
+            },
+            PValue::I8(v) => unsafe { mem::transmute::<i8, u8>(*v) }.into(),
+            PValue::I16(v) => match ptype {
+                PType::U16 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<i16, u16>(*v) }.into(),
+                PType::F16 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<i16, f16>(*v) }.into(),
+                _ => unreachable!("Only same width type are allowed to be reinterpreted"),
+            },
+            PValue::I32(v) => match ptype {
+                PType::U32 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<i32, u32>(*v) }.into(),
+                PType::F32 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<i32, f32>(*v) }.into(),
+                _ => unreachable!("Only same width type are allowed to be reinterpreted"),
+            },
+            PValue::I64(v) => match ptype {
+                PType::U64 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<i64, u64>(*v) }.into(),
+                PType::F64 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<i64, f64>(*v) }.into(),
+                _ => unreachable!("Only same width type are allowed to be reinterpreted"),
+            },
+            PValue::F16(v) => match ptype {
+                PType::U16 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<f16, u16>(*v) }.into(),
+                PType::I16 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<f16, i16>(*v) }.into(),
+                _ => unreachable!("Only same width type are allowed to be reinterpreted"),
+            },
+            PValue::F32(v) => match ptype {
+                PType::U32 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<f32, u32>(*v) }.into(),
+                PType::I32 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<f32, i32>(*v) }.into(),
+                _ => unreachable!("Only same width type are allowed to be reinterpreted"),
+            },
+            PValue::F64(v) => match ptype {
+                PType::U64 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<f64, u64>(*v) }.into(),
+                PType::I64 => unsafe { mem::transmute::<f64, i64>(*v) }.into(),
+                _ => unreachable!("Only same width type are allowed to be reinterpreted"),
+            },
+        }
+    }
 }
 
 macro_rules! int_pvalue {