derekcohen
New Shoots
This plane has given me the fits. I made a new blade for it, using M2, to replace the Stanley #93 cut down that was doing duty. It turned out well (top blade) ...
... but initially the damn plane would no longer cut! What is going on?
I re-sharpened it. It could shave hair, slice through end grain pine. Still nada. Then I realised that the sole was no longer coplanar. The toe was no longer in line with the rear. The toe was adjustable to open and close the mouth. So I lapped it flush, and now the plane was once again working.
Then it stopped again, and I realised that the adjustable toe was adjusting on its own volition. Not such a good idea. I decided to epoxy it in place. That did the trick ... until about an hour later, when the epoxy failed to hold. Okay, that's it ... I was about to toss the damn thing, when I decided to try one more idea - screw it down. Done. And holding ... now to lap the sole flush again.
That's the bandsaw. This works really well to lap the sole at perfect right angles to the sides. But ... do you see the mistake here? I shake my head ... I should have stayed in bed.
When lapping soles of shoulder planes, it is advisable to insert the blade and wedge and tension them. These exert pressure on the sole, causing it to camber. As a result, if you start with a flat sole, when the wedge is tensioned, the sole will create a nice camber .... and the plane will stop cutting! I shake my head in wonder as I make all these rookie mistakes today. All's well that ends well, but I must have lapped that sole three or four times in all.
This is a photo of the plane now with an attached toe and sans the knob at the top to adjust it. The hole for the knob has been replace by a steel bolt, which is handy to adjust the plane with a hammer. Take note of the new knob for the depth stop - courtesy of my good friend Ian (who also made replacements for the spokeshave).
Now there are a few other new items. The first is a beefed up fence.
This has much wider sections. The first version was flexing, and this affected the quality of the rebate shoulder ... just one other item that went wrong.
One other item I will point out, for those interested in using some of these elements, is the rear of the depth stop. It is covered in 180 grit cloth backed sandpaper to prevent movement once locked down. This works well.
Now I wanted to add a nicker to the plane to enable it to cut across the grain and rebate ends of a board. This was a challenge as it was not clear to me which design nicker would work best - Stanley type, knife, how to attach, where to attach .... keep in mind that this plane also functions as a shoulder plane by removing all the jewellery, and the nicker had to come off as well.
Then there was the matter of setting the nicker flush with the body or proud. It should be slightly proud and in line with the blade when cutting a rebate using the fence. A rebate could be cut without a nicker if relying on frequent applications of a cutting gauge. All this was giving me a headache.
At exactly 3.34 a.m. I awoke with a start, yelled "eureka", as the answer came to me - who scoffs now about the power of the subconscious! Well, my wife was as excited as I was, just not for the same reason. But I digress.
Isn't this a fine looking nicker?
The nicker is clamped in position by the depth stop, and held from moving laterally by a groove ...
It is made from 0.9mm M2 steel. Easy to remove and set aside when not needed.
So how does it function? Here the plane has been pulled back along the edge of the board, and you can see the knifed line it has created ...
I made a few of these cross grain rebates - damn it works well!
Removing the nicker, the side grain rebate was planed ...
I think that is a success.
Packed away ...
Regards from Perth
Derek
... but initially the damn plane would no longer cut! What is going on?
I re-sharpened it. It could shave hair, slice through end grain pine. Still nada. Then I realised that the sole was no longer coplanar. The toe was no longer in line with the rear. The toe was adjustable to open and close the mouth. So I lapped it flush, and now the plane was once again working.
Then it stopped again, and I realised that the adjustable toe was adjusting on its own volition. Not such a good idea. I decided to epoxy it in place. That did the trick ... until about an hour later, when the epoxy failed to hold. Okay, that's it ... I was about to toss the damn thing, when I decided to try one more idea - screw it down. Done. And holding ... now to lap the sole flush again.
That's the bandsaw. This works really well to lap the sole at perfect right angles to the sides. But ... do you see the mistake here? I shake my head ... I should have stayed in bed.
When lapping soles of shoulder planes, it is advisable to insert the blade and wedge and tension them. These exert pressure on the sole, causing it to camber. As a result, if you start with a flat sole, when the wedge is tensioned, the sole will create a nice camber .... and the plane will stop cutting! I shake my head in wonder as I make all these rookie mistakes today. All's well that ends well, but I must have lapped that sole three or four times in all.
This is a photo of the plane now with an attached toe and sans the knob at the top to adjust it. The hole for the knob has been replace by a steel bolt, which is handy to adjust the plane with a hammer. Take note of the new knob for the depth stop - courtesy of my good friend Ian (who also made replacements for the spokeshave).
Now there are a few other new items. The first is a beefed up fence.
This has much wider sections. The first version was flexing, and this affected the quality of the rebate shoulder ... just one other item that went wrong.
One other item I will point out, for those interested in using some of these elements, is the rear of the depth stop. It is covered in 180 grit cloth backed sandpaper to prevent movement once locked down. This works well.
Now I wanted to add a nicker to the plane to enable it to cut across the grain and rebate ends of a board. This was a challenge as it was not clear to me which design nicker would work best - Stanley type, knife, how to attach, where to attach .... keep in mind that this plane also functions as a shoulder plane by removing all the jewellery, and the nicker had to come off as well.
Then there was the matter of setting the nicker flush with the body or proud. It should be slightly proud and in line with the blade when cutting a rebate using the fence. A rebate could be cut without a nicker if relying on frequent applications of a cutting gauge. All this was giving me a headache.
At exactly 3.34 a.m. I awoke with a start, yelled "eureka", as the answer came to me - who scoffs now about the power of the subconscious! Well, my wife was as excited as I was, just not for the same reason. But I digress.
Isn't this a fine looking nicker?
The nicker is clamped in position by the depth stop, and held from moving laterally by a groove ...
It is made from 0.9mm M2 steel. Easy to remove and set aside when not needed.
So how does it function? Here the plane has been pulled back along the edge of the board, and you can see the knifed line it has created ...
I made a few of these cross grain rebates - damn it works well!
Removing the nicker, the side grain rebate was planed ...
I think that is a success.
Packed away ...
Regards from Perth
Derek