Black Locust for hand planes?

[Roy Lindberry]

We cut a black locust tree down about 3-4 years ago, and I salvaged some small-ish logs that probably won't yield a lot of lumber for furniture, but I should be able to get some billets that would make a small family of wooden planes. I've read that black locust is very hard, very dense and very stable, so this makes me think it would make a good wood for planes. What do you guys think?

Also it is a ring porous wood, so does anybody know if it can be riven? Or would I need to saw it up?

Thanks.

[David Weaver]

I don't know how it would rive (if it would be straight or not), but we burned a lot of locust when I was a kid and I recall it splitting pretty nicely. Hickory was the only real bugaboo that was just awful no matter what. Locust was also the wood of choice on old livestock fenceposts (for barbed wire) that were still around before everything was electrified with steel stakes. Not that your plane will be subjected to rain, seasonal change, contact with dirt or animals rubbing it.

I'm sure it would make a fine plane. It is hades on a tool edge once it's dry, though, and maybe not the prettiest wood. If you're putting a tote on the plane, it'll be tougher to work. Give it a rip (or a rive or a whatever) and post pictures.

[Jim Matthews]

I don't know how you'll shape this, unless you've got an endmill.

Black Locust is the hardest commercially available species from North America.
It's heavy, and hard to saw without a power tool.

It has a porous grain, so I don't know how high a sheen you can raise in polishing.

[Jeff Heath]

The critical key to using locust is ensuring that it is dried properly. It will make an excellent wood for a plane, as long as it's dried all the way. It dries quite slowly.

I'm making planes out of a slab of honey locust right now (14/4) and it is very hard and dense. Honey locust isn't even close in hardness to regular Locust.

Hard wood to work, but will yield a fine plane when you're finished. Make sure your tools are ultra sharp.