Hand Plane Survey For Beginners

[Bob Smalser]

Thank you Bob. I've already printed this out in 30 pt. bold type and hung it in my shop.
Maybe we could get Joe to put Bob's info (with pictures of those types of planes of course ) on his site. Call it "Hand Planing for Dummies" or something. How 'bout it Joe?OK…my pleasure…didn’t think it was a big deal…but I’ll clean it up and repost it.

In order of typical, general use on roughsawn boards…

…and the more-effective Stanley Cast-Iron Model #'s used for each task(there were also beech-bodied transitional planes that mirrored many of these, and they are also excellent user planes today):

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/40.jpg

#40 Scrub - Short, crude plane with thick, convex blade that removes face material quickly to reduce thickness or remove warp.

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/5blott.jpg

#5 and # 5 1/2 Jack - Middlin-size plane to follow the scrub plane for a flatter, but not finished surface to a specific dimension. Usually set coarse...takes off the ridges left by the scrub plane. The "half" sizes are wider.

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/2594266/68448839.jpg

#3, #4 Smoothers - Short, finishing planes for the final thickness, set either coarse or fine. In spite of today's hype about "ease of adjustment", no plane is easy to adjust upwards and tradesman had two on hand if they needed two blade settings.

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/satan_6.jpg

#6 Try or Fore Plane - To remove any real high spots from board edges before jointing. Not many tradesmen bothered with one of these as the #5 worked just as well for the task.

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/7.jpg

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/2594266/62446790.jpg

#7, #8 Jointer - Long planes to make a perfectly true edge for edgejoining panels. Trademen usually owned one or the other...not both. The #7 was lighter.

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/20.jpg

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/113front.jpg

#20 and #113 Compass Planes - These plane curved edges. Modern, neophyte chairmakers complain they don't do facegrain very well....well, they weren't designed for facegrain....you'll have to make a woodie compass with a thick, convex blade ala the #40 to do that well.

Continued…

[Bob Smalser]

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/78lever.jpg

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/10.jpg

#78 and #10 Rabbet - In joining, used to cut rabbet joints....the #10 big rabbets in ships and carriages.

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/71.jpg

#71 Dado - Ditto for dados...but only in combination with a now-rare adjustable-depth dado saw. They work well to clean out a tablesawn dado...but so does an upside down bench chisel. There were also dado and plow planes that could do it without the saw....but these weren't as fast or popular as the saw followed by the #71.

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/909293.jpg

# 90-Series Shoulder - Trims cross and endgrain tenon shoulders and cheeks.

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/18.jpg

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/6012.jpg

#18 and #60-Series Blocks - Pares end grain and lives in your apron pocket for any general trimming/easing. Even machine-only woodworkers need one of these.

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/2594266/68449396.jpg

#4 1/2 Smoother - Set very fine, planes the final surface on the finished workpiece. A short, wide, heavy plane. Done right followed by minor work with the card scraper, no sanding is required.

Continued…

[Bob Smalser]

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/12.jpg

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/80.jpg

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/112.jpg

#12, #80 and #112 Scrapers - Put the final surface on faces and edges ready for finish. These are heavier than cheaper card scrapers and were popular because they could "plane" highly-figured wood without the chipping common with smoothers alone.

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/45man.jpg

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/50.jpg

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/55.jpg

#45, #50 and #55 Combo Planes- Also cut rabbets but are primarily to mold, bead and flute edge decoration after the surface was finished or in applied molding. These by design have poor throat support and only work on clear, perfectly-straightgrained wood.

There's a lot more plane models out there but are usually variations of the above.






“When we build, let us think that we build forever. Let it not be for present delight nor for present use alone. Let it be such work as our descendants will thank us for; and let us think...that a time is to come when those (heirlooms) will be held sacred because our hands have touched them, and that men will say, as they look upon the labor and wrought substance of them, ‘See! This our father did for us.’ “ --John Ruskin.

[Keystone]

Bob

IMO you really should start your own web site. These primers you have been posting would go nice together on a link-able site. Different pages for each of the (how many now) articles.

Nice post by the way..........

[arcticfox46]

Bob,

I have to agree with Keystone.

If you have a web site to post all you wonderful stuff, we can alwawy go back to it.

Some of the stuff you have posted in the past is just that, in the past.

Your stuff should not be forgotten in the past. It should be preserved for future reference.

You do GREAT stuff.

[Bob Smalser]

Thanks, but I don't have to...others do that for me:

http://www.cianperez.com/Wood/WoodDocs/Wood_How_To/INDEX_How_To.htm

http://www.woodcentral.com/cgi-bin/articles.pl

http://woodworkstuff.net/

These are merely for a book I'm putting together for my sons and their children. Y'all are kind enuf to proof them for me so I can make revisions based on the questions.

[pgeer]

This is a bunch of info Bob, thanks for posting.