View Full Version : How old might this Mathieson try plane be?
Gene Davis
04-06-2016, 8:26 PM
I bought it on eBay and it arrived today.
3-5/16 wide x 3-1/4 tall x 22 long, double iron, body and cutting iron marked Mathieson. It is in great shape, and will be a good user. Someone named W. MacLachan put his name on it, as can be seen.
I am thinking of putting a strike button into the fore end. Would that ruin it?
Steve Voigt
04-06-2016, 9:28 PM
Gene,
It is probably second half of the 19th century, hard to pinpoint more than that. The moon and star logo was not used before about 1850, from what I have read.
Mathieson planes are often top-notch, and that one looks nice. Congrats!
It would be a shame to disfigure such a nice old plane by adding a new strike button, in my opinion. I keep a dead blow mallet on the bench for removing the irons from my woodies I of course use a smaller plane hammer for adjustments). Nobody else has modified that plane in the last 150 years or so, so why start now?
Have fun with it; it's a beauty.
Kees Heiden
04-07-2016, 3:47 AM
Very nice plane! And I agree with Steve, don't change it! You can use a wooden mallet on the back to release the wedge or to raise the blade a little. It seems inconvenient to use two hammers to set the plane, but in real life it's not that bad.
Reinis Kanders
04-07-2016, 10:09 AM
Grace has nice brass mallets where one head is tipped with delrin. Also to loosen the wedge one can just tap the plane's end on the workbench.
http://www.amazon.com/Grace-USA-Gunsmithing-Gunsmith-Accessories/dp/B00V9U6VVC
Jeff Heath
04-07-2016, 3:10 PM
That's a beautiful plane. I wish I could find one like it from Mathieson. Instead of making a change to that one, you should consider making a copy of it yourself, and making any modifications you'd like to have to the copy. Keeping that one just the way she is would be high on my priority list.
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