After reading the first few chapters of The Handplane Book I have a few ‘missing sentences’ I’d like filled in, if a few of you would be so kind.
1) When lapping the sole of my own plane I went to 400G and made a few strokes on a 600G paper to finish. Is this a higher polish than needed? I’d think that the higher the polish the less friction you’d work against.
2) Would it be satisfactory to use an iron with the corners gently rounded (as for smoothing) to joint? It would be nice to be able to shape the irons in my smaller (4&5) planes to a more versatile profile rather than have dedicated irons. In time I’ll have a specific jointing/shooting plane, but in the meantime I hope this would suffice.
That’s about it for questions. Outside of that I’m amazed at how my $50.00 Footprint plane went from paperweight to handplane with a little effort and the addition of a Veritas iron. I can honestly say that the book has saved me hundreds if not thousands in tool dollars. I can now get by with only one high end plane for shooting and jointing and the cheaper ones for general benchwork.
Thanks in advance. Chris
Replies
1. 400 is good enough. A mirror finish will impress your friends but won't give you a better surface on the wood. The important point is that the sole is flat. If friction is a problem you could relieve the sole similar to how japanese wood planes are sometimes set up but if the plane works for you you're done.
2. Obviously if the edge is narrower than the blade it doesn't make a difference if it is rounded or not. And I don't think it makes a difference even if the edge is wider, as long as the majority of the blade edge is straight.
I generally only go to 220 for lapp[ing a plane's sole. The grooves will hold more wax ( : . As to the irons, Why don't you radius the No. 4 slightly, and hold the No. 5 pretty straight, and use it for shooting, jointing, etc.
Alan
Alan
http://www.alanturnerfurnituremaker.com
in full agreement with Brad on this. As long as you see the areas in front and back of the mouth and the leading edge of the sole are smooth and flat, you are off to a good start. I don't see any problem rounding the corners of the irons either. Good luck and keep on planning!
Thanks. Now that I've done it once with good results I'm not afraid to do it again. The coarser paper/more wax idea sounds great, I waxed my sole and found an immediate difference. I also need to wax the cap iron. I'm hitting a few antique shops that supposedly have planes this weekend, so I hope to find something there.
Thanks again. Chris
15,
If your anywhere near Nashua, NH next month is the big auction of antique tools....lots of good stuff in the parking lot...April 23,24 I think
15,
400 is fine. Just have the blade set with cap iron, etc., the way you'll have it in use. Just retracted.
David Charlesworth's two books answer most of your questions, including the sometimes controversial one about radiused or even slightly curved irons. I mean curved, as opposed to eased just at the edges. Since adopting his sharpening and edge jointing techniques, my own work took a dramatic turn upward. Confidence/predicability along with it.
Amazon has them both, as does the Lie-Nielsen website.
Cheers,
Greg
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