John Schroeder
12-03-2009, 2:34 PM
A bit of background: I'm relatively new to the neanderthal side of things, but have started down the slippery slope of hand planes - fun but very addictive. I've now got a a pre-war stanley #4, a millers falls 65 block, a 9 1/2, a couple of wooden rabbets, along with the LV BU jointer and the LV large shoulder plane. Mostly I use them to clean up joints, along with final flattening and smoothing.
So I've now got a situation where I need to clean up a rabbet with the grain in birdseye maple for a critical glued joint. I would love to be able to take the same ultra-fine shavings with no tear out that I got on the front edge with the BU jointer. With their wide mouths, I don't think the wooden rabbets are up to the task, and the shoulder has an included angle of 40 degrees, which is going to cause tear out.
I really love the BU jointer and plan to acquire the BU jack for shooting and the smoother when funds permit. I don't really use the low angle blade it came with, as I often work with difficult grains. I ended up buying the 38 degree iron and adding a small secondary bevel for an included angle of about 55 degrees. When I get the smoother I think I'll just get the 50 degree iron and return the 38 back to where it started. Boy does the BU jointer work well for me though.
Given my success swapping different BU irons in the jointer, rather than acquiring a better rabbet, I thought I'd try ordering a second iron from LV for the large shoulder plane and just hone it up to 55 or even 60 degrees. Then I could use the first low angle iron for shoulders/end grain, and the high angle for rabbets and difficult wood with the grain. It would beat spending the money on a second dedicated plane. FWIW I love the LV shoulder plane and I think it would work well for me in a high angle configuration.
Has anyone else tried this with a LA shoulder plane? Before I spend the money and time on a second iron it I thought I'd see if I'm missing some obvious reason why this is a really bad idea. The HNT gordon rabbets are set up at 60 degrees, so there's some precident for high angle rabbets, but as a newbie I'd appreciate any thoughts or advice here. Thanks!
PS Note to LV: it would be great if you could figure out how to machine the BU jointer sides to accomodate both the fence and flat, smooth, and square to allow using it on a shooting board. Just a thought.
So I've now got a situation where I need to clean up a rabbet with the grain in birdseye maple for a critical glued joint. I would love to be able to take the same ultra-fine shavings with no tear out that I got on the front edge with the BU jointer. With their wide mouths, I don't think the wooden rabbets are up to the task, and the shoulder has an included angle of 40 degrees, which is going to cause tear out.
I really love the BU jointer and plan to acquire the BU jack for shooting and the smoother when funds permit. I don't really use the low angle blade it came with, as I often work with difficult grains. I ended up buying the 38 degree iron and adding a small secondary bevel for an included angle of about 55 degrees. When I get the smoother I think I'll just get the 50 degree iron and return the 38 back to where it started. Boy does the BU jointer work well for me though.
Given my success swapping different BU irons in the jointer, rather than acquiring a better rabbet, I thought I'd try ordering a second iron from LV for the large shoulder plane and just hone it up to 55 or even 60 degrees. Then I could use the first low angle iron for shoulders/end grain, and the high angle for rabbets and difficult wood with the grain. It would beat spending the money on a second dedicated plane. FWIW I love the LV shoulder plane and I think it would work well for me in a high angle configuration.
Has anyone else tried this with a LA shoulder plane? Before I spend the money and time on a second iron it I thought I'd see if I'm missing some obvious reason why this is a really bad idea. The HNT gordon rabbets are set up at 60 degrees, so there's some precident for high angle rabbets, but as a newbie I'd appreciate any thoughts or advice here. Thanks!
PS Note to LV: it would be great if you could figure out how to machine the BU jointer sides to accomodate both the fence and flat, smooth, and square to allow using it on a shooting board. Just a thought.