LV wooden shave kit, a question.

[paul cottingham]

If anyone here has ever built the LV wooden spokeshave kit, I have a quick question. How big a gap can you get away with for the mouth? Mine wound up being south of 1/16 and north of 1/32. It takes a pretty fine shaving, but doesn't really cut end grain all that well (no surprise.) it is already one of my favorite tools, but I think I may need to redo the wear strip at the front of the mouth to make the mouth smaller. Great little project to stay occupied while I await more surgery on my noggin.
Thanks!

[Dave Anderson NH]

I've made a few Paul. With the adjusters and blade as tight as possible the opening should be under 1/32". You make the mouth wider by using the adjusters so as tight an opening as possible should be the place to start.

[paul cottingham]

Yeah, I kind of figured that. I used cocobolo for the wear strip with hide glue. Looks like that was good planning! Taking it apart and widening the rabbet should be fairly straightforward. Does yours cut end grain well?

[Dave Anderson NH]

Mine cuts end grain just fine as long as I recently sharpened the blade.

[paul cottingham]

Love hide glue. Blowdrier, a little prying, and the strip pried right off. Reshaping with a rasp, a new strip, and now I have a nice, tight mouth. good stuff.

[Jim Matthews]

Pictures, or it never happened.

[Tony Shea]

Im not sure why a wide mouth would cause it to cut end grain poorly. Cutting end grain easily should be a product of how sharp your blade is. To me it sounds as though you are getting the blade as sharp as it should be. Although my kit did end up with a very tight mouth when the blade is set for a fine cut.

298810

[paul cottingham]

Then pictures you shall have. It still looks like crap, as I am only in the shop for about 30 mins at a time, (a very intense 30 minutes!) before I have to go sit down and relax. Shaping the wear strip (its still too thick, i used cocobolo) and the handles is next. Bear in mind, I'm a mediocre woodworker, its not much to look at!

[paul cottingham]

Im not sure why a wide mouth would cause it to cut end grain poorly. Cutting end grain easily should be a product of how sharp your blade is. To me it sounds as though you are getting the blade as sharp as it should be. Although my kit did end up with a very tight mouth when the blade is set for a fine cut.

298810

Tighter mouth holds the fibres down better for a shearing cut, I believe. Same principle as a bevel up hand plane, or a regular hand plane with the chip breaker set back. That being said, I do need to hone the cutter.
Before I redid the mouth, it worked very nicely with the grain, now hopefully will work better for end grain, and "semi end grain."

[paul cottingham]

Pictures. Still need to shape the handles with a rasp, and pare down the wear strip a lot. Be merciful, this is my first spokeshave, and I can only work on it in 30 minute intervals.

[Dave Anderson NH]

Just take it really slow Paul. The mouth opening is the most critical part you have left to do. Everything else is just cosmetic. Do not try to rush and if you have any doubt about whether or not you will get the full 30 minutes uninterrupted, wait until you will have the time. Sneak up and test, sneak up and test, sneak up and test is the protocol for getting the mouth opening right.

[paul cottingham]

Thanks, Dave. I managed to get in time yesterday, and shaved down the wear strip to the right height. The mouth did not need adjustment in the end. It takes very nice shavings indeed, I need to give the blade a good sharpening, and try it on end grain.
of course, the hard part now begins. Shaping it without wrecking it. Right now it looks like it was hacked out of a 2x4 by my impatient 8 year old.

[Mike Holbrook]

Another interesting fact I have discovered in regard to "flat" bottom spokeshaves. If you put a level on LA wood planes you may discover that the mouth, Paul's cocobolo, is frequently not flat. I have quite a few WoodJoy shaves and the brass plates on the WoodJoy tools are at around 4-7 degrees I believe. I should try to actually measure them one day, maybe when I put one of Glenn's kits together it will have instructions with the info. I am curious if the LV instructions that come with their kit mentions details on making the mouth?

I want a small/medium 2-2 1/2" spokeshave with "gull wing" handles and a small curve in the blade. Not a travisher, a spokeshave made a little like a travisher. Travishers are typically large and more exagerated both in the handles and blade curve. I want a smaller tool for finishing Windsor chair seats. I think I will have to make it.

[Dave Anderson NH]

I'm going from memory Mike, but I think the Lee Valley/Veritas kits specify a 2 degree angle. Yes, flat bottom shave are not truly flat.

[Greg Wease]

The article Ron Hock references for his blade specifies 1 to 2 degrees. I don't measure--just angle "a skosh."

[paul cottingham]

Sorry not to reply earlier, I literally had brain surgery on Monday, and am now home recovering. I angled the wear strip to about 2degrees and it seems to work pretty well. The mouth remains tight, and I still have the brass strip if I change my mind. Of course, I have no idea how well a wooden low angle shave should cut end grain or long grain for that matter, so I have no point of reference for how it should work.
I kinda botched the wear strip on the ends, so it ain't pretty, but it works. I may post photos to share my shame.

[paul cottingham]

Another interesting fact I have discovered in regard to "flat" bottom spokeshaves. If you put a level on LA wood planes you may discover that the mouth, Paul's cocobolo, is frequently not flat. I have quite a few WoodJoy shaves and the brass plates on the WoodJoy tools are at around 4-7 degrees I believe. I should try to actually measure them one day, maybe when I put one of Glenn's kits together it will have instructions with the info. I am curious if the LV instructions that come with their kit mentions details on making the mouth?

I want a small/medium 2-2 1/2" spokeshave with "gull wing" handles and a small curve in the blade. Not a travisher, a spokeshave made a little like a travisher. Travishers are typically large and more exagerated both in the handles and blade curve. I want a smaller tool for finishing Windsor chair seats. I think I will have to make it.

The instructions specify a 2degree angle. I came pretty darn close to it. Now I want to make a travisher.

[Mike Holbrook]

Thanks for the info. on the LV instructions guys. I took a Windsor Chair class from Peter Galbert. I was quite surprised at how small changes in angles on or around the blades of drawknives and spokeshaves changed how they could be used. Many spokeshaves and travishers do not offer any mechanism for adjusting how large the mouth is or what angle the blade will meet the wood at. The small LN spokeshave I bought a ways back had a mouth that was so small that when the blade was extended enough to take a cut there was not enough room for even a small shaving to pass through. I have had to physically enlarge the bronze mouth enough so shavings can pass. I am struggling with a travisher I bought recently too. The travisher has a fixed blade and mouth and currently will only take a very small shaving.

[Dave Anderson NH]

Remember one thing Mike, a travisher is a finishing tool and is used after a scorp so it only has to pass a thin shaving. In the way I was taught to make windsors it is the last step in finishing the seat.