wooden plane grain orientation

[Harlan Barnhart]

Ebay item #170397892972

Is this proper grain orientation for a plane? This is not the first Japanese style plane I have seen like this. Shouldn't the growth rings be horizontal (i.e. parralell with the sole)? Do the rules differ between western and eastern planes?

peace,
Harlan

[Wilbur Pan]

Japanese plane bodies can be made with the growth rings parallel to the sole, as well as having the growth rings running diagonally as in that eBay listing. The Japanese names for the two orientations are "three sides having straight grain" and "quarter cut", respectively.

To my eye, the problem with the Japanese plane in that eBay listing is not the diagonal orientation of the grain itself. It's that the body is made so that the center of the tree is towards the sole. If you are going to make a Japanese plane, the center of the tree should be at the top, whichever grain orientation you use.

[Jon Crowley]

To my eye, the problem with the Japanese plane in that eBay listing is not the diagonal orientation of the grain itself. It's that the body is made so that the center of the tree is towards the sole. If you are going to make a Japanese plane, the center of the tree should be at the top, whichever grain orientation you use.

I have heard that advice before, but why is that? So when it moves, the width of the sole will tend to go convex instead of concave and not rock side to side?

[Wilbur Pan]

According to Japanese shamanistic belief, the orientation of the grain in a wooden board was important in the construction of a piece. Whether making a shoji screen, or timber frame structure, it was believe that you would get the best results by trying to orient the grain of the wood in a manner as close to what the tree was like before it was cut down to make lumber. For a Japanese plane, this would translate into having the heart side of the wooden plane body facing up.

Whether you believe that or not, it is true that if the wooden body moved, it would tend to form a concave surface along the bottom, which would be easier to correct than a convex surface.

[Bob Smalser]

http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/3075040/189555324.jpg

Source: USDA FPL