Left hand shooting plane.

[Stewie Simpson]

I have some boxes up shortly for some newly acquired honing stones. A good time to clean up and resharpen this left hand shooting plane I made about 7 years ago. It didn't quite turn out the way I had initially intended with the wedge abutments, but it was my 1st attempt at a skew mouth. The skew angle from memory is 12*. The blade is bedded at 38*, a primary hollow grind of 25*, and a secondary bevel of 28*. The brass sole and skates were all brass pinned. I still need to make up a new shooting board. The old unit was past its best, and got turfed out during the last workshop clean up.

Stewie;

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0246_zpsifa5u3mw.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0246_zpsifa5u3mw.jpg.html)

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0247_zpseejuyqy2.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0247_zpseejuyqy2.jpg.html)

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0248_zpsewdjkyyb.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0248_zpsewdjkyyb.jpg.html)

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0249_zpswfno2t2h.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0249_zpswfno2t2h.jpg.html)

[george wilson]

Cool use of brass for runners. And the base,too. But more unique for runners.

Though I'm left handed,I have had to learn to do some things right handed,like play right handed guitar. I am SO GLAD I had the good sense to do that! Otherwise my choices of instruments would have been VERY limited,especially in the 50's,when I don't think they made any left handed guitars.

For some reason,I would feel compelled to use a RIGHT HAND shooting board and plane. Otherwise,I am a true left hander. Left eyed,etc.. I know people whose eye is oriented the wrong way for their handedness. They have a hard time shooting a rifle.

[Mike Cherry]

Cool use of brass for runners. And the base,too. But more unique for runners.

Though I'm left handed,I have had to learn to do some things right handed,like play right handed guitar. I am SO GLAD I had the good sense to do that! Otherwise my choices of instruments would have been VERY limited,especially in the 50's,when I don't think they made any left handed guitars.

For some reason,I would feel compelled to use a RIGHT HAND shooting board and plane. Otherwise,I am a true left hander. Left eyed,etc.. I know people whose eye is oriented the wrong way for their handedness. They have a hard time shooting a rifle.

George, one of the first things I learned when starting to do some carving was that becoming capable with your offhand is a huge benefit so that you need not reposition your work. Learning to do that has carried over to regular bench chisel work, planing, and to some degree sawing. I could only hope to be the craftsman that you and others on this board are but it is helpful stuff.

Stewie , that's a cool shooting plane and I hope ya get her running again!

[Jim Koepke]

Nice Plane Stewie.

I am somewhat ambidextrous, equally bad with both hands. :D

Actually recently when my right shoulder was bothering me I found out I saw straighter left handed. Go figure.

jtk

[Patrick Chase]

Wow, that is an amazing plane. As George says, the runners are both practical and an uncommonly neat design element. The geometry also sounds really nice - I wish L-N had gone low-angle like that on their 51 instead of copying Stanley.

[Jim Belair]

Beautiful. I especially like the detail on the knobs and wedge.

[Luke Dupont]

Absolutely beautiful plane. I also like the detail on the knobs and wedge.

[Luke Dupont]

Cool use of brass for runners. And the base,too. But more unique for runners.

Though I'm left handed,I have had to learn to do some things right handed,like play right handed guitar. I am SO GLAD I had the good sense to do that! Otherwise my choices of instruments would have been VERY limited,especially in the 50's,when I don't think they made any left handed guitars.

For some reason,I would feel compelled to use a RIGHT HAND shooting board and plane. Otherwise,I am a true left hander. Left eyed,etc.. I know people whose eye is oriented the wrong way for their handedness. They have a hard time shooting a rifle.

I think we are all whatever hand-dominance we choose (consciously, or unconsciously) to be.

The thing is, muscle memory doesn't transfer. Even as a righty, you can learn something with your left hand and be unable to perform the same task with your right hand until / unless you relearn it all. I think the idea that we are right or left brained, or right or left eye dominant is just a perception; we get good at using one hand, and neglect our other because we go to our perceived "good hand."

My point is; you did the smart thing. My advice to people is just to develop skill in whichever hand you want to be able to use, and don't let the initial frustration of being incompetent with a given hand discourage you; you were that way as a beginner in your "good" hand too, you just didn't have a frame of reference to compare to.

I've heard shooting instructors who advocate learning to shoot with both hands and both eyes in regards to defensive hand-gun use, or at least to learn to shoot with the same eye and hand, and to disregard conceptions of "eye-dominance." I trained this way myself, and while it was difficult at first, it became quite natural as anything does with practice.

[steven c newman]

Used to be in a Tuesday night Bowling League. One year, the right shoulder had locked up.....so, I had a Bowling average for the Left arm as well as the right. Left was about 30 pins lower than the right, but I threw one whale of a hook from the left. Sometimes, even laying it down right by the lefthand gutter, it just barely hit the pocket. Lots of "New York" strikes. footwork took a bit of practizing, as well. 5 step from either side, different start foot.

[Stewie Simpson]

The following is the right hand shooting board plane I made. Its fitted with an 1 1/4" wide single blade for use on thinner end grain stock. The folded 90* brass sole was done without the use of a bending machine, then brass pinned to the main body of the plane. The blade bed is 38*, 25* primary, and a 28* secondary bevel.

Stewie;

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0250_zpsdfgmccdx.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0250_zpsdfgmccdx.jpg.html)

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0251_zpsja5zbqkv.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0251_zpsja5zbqkv.jpg.html)

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0252_zpshhvakwoj.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0252_zpshhvakwoj.jpg.html)

[Derek Cohen]

That's a very nice plane, Stewie. Well done!

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Brian Holcombe]

Beautiful work!

[Stewie Simpson]

Thanks Brian; the mortising out was done using traditional single block construction. The wood is Merbau (kwila), a naturally heavy and oily timber, high in natural tannin's. An iron oxide stain was then used to interact with those tannin's to ebonize the appearance of the timber. The patterning was done using a mix of gun stock checkering tools and impression stamps common for leatherwork.

Stewie;

[Luke Dupont]

Thanks Brian; the mortising out was done using traditional single block construction. The wood is Merbau (kwila), a naturally heavy and oily timber, high in natural tannin's. An iron oxide stain was then used to interact with those tannin's to ebonize the appearance of the timber. The patterning was done using a mix of gun stock checkering tools and impression stamps common for leatherwork.

Stewie;

This is some of the most thorough and refined work that I've seen. Very inspiring.

I notice that the iron is tapered, getting fatter near the cutting edge. Does this offer any benefit in particular, or was it just a method of making efficient use of materials on vintage irons?

[Patrick Chase]

The thing is, muscle memory doesn't transfer. Even as a righty, you can learn something with your left hand and be unable to perform the same task with your right hand until / unless you relearn it all. I think the idea that we are right or left brained, or right or left eye dominant is just a perception; we get good at using one hand, and neglect our other because we go to our perceived "good hand."

Wow, that's some seriously old-school thinking.

Back in the day we (society) decided that lefties were willfully rebelling, and forced them to "repent and retrain" on more or less that basis, sometimes using fairly draconian methods. With the advent of FMRI it's become pretty well established that left-handedness is correlated to real differences in brain lateralization, so the theory that you can make yourself anything you want is questionable.

[Tom Stenzel]

Hi Stewie,

That is some beautiful work. Nice little touches down to the chamfer on the front of the brass runners. Does the "knurling" on the right handed plane help with grip or is it decorative? You mentioned the wood is oily.

I know when I've tried pinning metal I can always see the pins. Looking at yours I don't see ANY evidence of the pins. Please tell me that the pins are in blind holes and don't go through. I won't feel so inadequate.

-Tom

[Tom Stenzel]

Nice Plane Stewie.

I am somewhat ambidextrous, equally bad with both hands. :D

....
jtk

Hi Jim,

I've long said that I was antidexterous as I'm equally incapable of doing anything with either hand. If you want to use the term too feel free. I won't sue. Besides, I'm too cheap to hire a lawyer.

-Tom

[Patrick Chase]

Hi Stewie,

That is some beautiful work. Nice little touches down to the chamfer on the front of the brass runners. Does the "knurling" on the right handed plane help with grip or is it decorative? You mentioned the wood is oily.

I know when I've tried pinning metal I can always see the pins. Looking at yours I don't see ANY evidence of the pins. Please tell me that the pins are in blind holes and don't go through. I won't feel so inadequate.

-Tom

If you want to feel really inadequate about pin visibility then you should read Konrad Sauer's blog (http://sauerandsteiner.blogspot.ca/) for a while.

[Tom Stenzel]

If you want to feel really inadequate ...

Too late Patrick. George Wilson took care of that long ago!

-Tom

[Stewie Simpson]

Hi Tom; the turned surface helps maintain contact between the webbing of the controlling hands forefinger and thumb. The brass pins are secured within the timber. Appreciate being told they are difficult to identify.

regards Stewie;

[Luke Dupont]

Wow, that's some seriously old-school thinking.

Back in the day we (society) decided that lefties were willfully rebelling, and forced them to "repent and retrain" on more or less that basis, sometimes using fairly draconian methods. With the advent of FMRI it's become pretty well established that left-handedness is correlated to real differences in brain laterality, so the theory that you can make yourself anything you want is questionable.

Really? That's not quite the approach I was advocating.

I've done some preliminary research on this, but I have not found any studies attempting to rule out the possibility that it's a self-reinforcing phenomenon / self-fulfilling prophecy. I do know that the prevailing theories currently are that there is some genetic basis, but I've not seen developmental causes specifically controlled for. We know that the brain is incredibly plastic and changes depending on how we use it. After a lifetime of favoring one hand over the other, even if that hand were arbitrarily chosen, do you not suppose one's brain would develop differently than if the other hand had been, again, arbitrarily chosen? I'm not arguing that there aren't observable differences, but that the development of those differences may be dependent on our actions and preferential development.

But, I digress. That's merely my intuition, and I've not come across any studies or information examining that distinction in a way that sufficiently controls for developmental factors. It seems it would be a somewhat difficult thing to study, given the kind of length of time and development that would be required.

Anyway, I don't mean to take the thread off-topic. I am genuinely interested in this topic and curious if you know of any studies that you think address my concern, though. I do acknowledge that I'm not as knowledgeable as I could be on the topic, so I'm definitely open to new information.

In any case, I still stand by my opinion that most people can easily develop skills in either hand if they so choose, but tend to choose not to due to preconceptions of hand-dominance. This is anecdotal and separate from my postulations on the underlying causes of hand dominance, though. In some instances, this is not necessarily a bad thing; it requires almost double the time and effort to develop both hands equally, and so often is not an efficient use of one's time. But there are many instances where it is highly beneficial to have use of either hand, and people would do well to take a more flexible approach to their perceptions of what they can and can't develop.

[Frederick Skelly]

Wow, that's some seriously old-school thinking.

Back in the day we (society) decided that lefties were willfully rebelling, and forced them to "repent and retrain" on more or less that basis, sometimes using fairly draconian methods. With the advent of FMRI it's become pretty well established that left-handedness is correlated to real differences in brain laterality, so the theory that you can make yourself anything you want is questionable.

Well, it's questionable Pat, but I think Luke's telling us (as well as George) that he did it.

[brian zawatsky]

And now, a discussion on neuroplasticity in a Neander thread about a (very beautiful, BTW) left handed shooting plane. It's been a weird week.

[Patrick Chase]

Well, it's questionable Pat, but I think Luke's telling us (as well as George) that he did it.

Some people have less lateralization than others. The fact that they can do it doesn't mean that everybody can. That was my main point, and yes, I realize that this is a slightly circular argument inasmuch as lateralization might change due to plasticity.

For the most part lefties tend to me much more ambidextrous than righties (left handed children tend to present as ambidextrous at first, as both of mine did), and also tend to have less brain lateralization in FMRIs. George is a lefty, and he's from an era when we tried to retrain them all into righties, so he may have both a predisposition to ambidexterity and possibly a lot of practice very early on.

The reason I'm kind of strident about this is because we did a LOT of damage to several generations of lefties (even if the stuttering thing was likely bogus (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22332811)) based on a non-evidence-based belief that they chose to be the way they were.

Luke, you aren't originally a lefty are you?

[Luke Dupont]

Some people have less lateralization than others. The fact that they can do it doesn't mean that everybody can. That was my main point, and yes, I realize that this is a slightly circular argument inasmuch as lateralization might change due to plasticity.

For the most part lefties tend to me much more ambidextrous than righties (left handed children tend to present as ambidextrous at first, as both of mine did), and also tend to have less brain lateralization in FMRIs. George is a lefty, and he's from an era when we tried to retrain them all into righties, so he may have both a predisposition to ambidexterity and possibly a lot of practice very early on.

The reason I'm kind of strident about this is because we did a LOT of damage to several generations of lefties (even if the stuttering thing was likely bogus (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22332811)) based on a non-evidence-based belief that they chose to be the way they were.

Luke, you aren't originally a lefty are you?

Hmm... I honestly don't know. I'm kind of ambidextrous, but for most things that are designed for right-handers (ie, writing, computer mice, etc.), I use my right hand. As a result, I do tend to develop my right hand more, and so I'd say that I'm probably right handed.

According to my parents, I had no clear preference for right or left as a child, so there is a possibility that I may have been left-handed originally I suppose.

I did do an experiment for a number of years, in which without changing my other behaviors, I always used chop-sticks in my left-hand. I did this for so long that using them in my right hand was awkward, and it was easier to use my left. I've long since changed back to my right hand, and now the reverse is true.

I do agree with you that, in any case, that there's no justification for trying to make children conform to right or left-handed preferences, and that it can be potentially harmful to do so. I think that to be true regardless of whether hand dominance is a genetic or learned preference, or some combination of the two.

[Jim Koepke]

In any case, I still stand by my opinion that most people can easily develop skills in either hand if they so choose, but tend to choose not to due to preconceptions of hand-dominance.

I think people are wired different. Some can use both hands for various tasks. Others have difficulty. From what I have read the control of the right side versus the left side are controlled by different sides of the brain. There is one theory about engineers having the highest percentage of left handed members among their ranks of all the professions.

My left hand writing isn't as legible as my right hand writing. Of course our writing system is designed for right handed writers.

jtk

[Stewie Simpson]

And now, a discussion on neuroplasticity in a Neander thread about a (very beautiful, BTW) left handed shooting plane. It's been a weird week.

Brian; Its a crazy world of complexities.

Stewie;

[Stewie Simpson]

Finished building my new shooting board. Works a treat on both left and right hand shooting planes.

Stewie;

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0263_zpstdxge12f.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0263_zpstdxge12f.jpg.html)

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0262_zpspo66s2yv.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0262_zpspo66s2yv.jpg.html)

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0261_zpszxuu1iuh.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0261_zpszxuu1iuh.jpg.html)

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0264_zps0q9uxywl.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/Left%20hand%20shooting%20plane/_DSC0264_zps0q9uxywl.jpg.html)

[Derek Cohen]

Stewie, if you are using MDF for the platform, I would recommend that you edge the platform in hardwood. The hardwood will prevent the soft MDF absorbing moisture, and it will prevent it spelching.

Below is a doudle-sided shooting board, one of several I built 5 years ago for the public to use at a LN Tool Show at which I was demonstrating. Note that the platform is edged with Jarrah. The runways are not edged, but they were sealed, as was the entire MDF surface.

The design was borrowed from the LN website (appropriately). There is also a removable mitre fence.

http://www.inthewoodshop.com/ShopMadeTools/ShootingBoardsfortheLNHandtoolEvent_html_m55ae9c07 .jpg


The fence has non-slip added. This is a fine powder sprinkled over a layer of poly varnish). The non-slip is necessary for shooting mitres.

http://www.inthewoodshop.com/ShopMadeTools/ShootingBoardsfortheLNHandtoolEvent_html_m320b6712 .jpg

If you look carefully, you will note that there is a dust groove on each side of the platform. You should add this to yours. It avoids dust buiding up, which would affect the accuracy of the plane-runway interaction. I add these on all boards.


Regards from Perth

Derek

[Stewie Simpson]

Derek; 3 coats of Feast Watson Proofseal has been applied to the mdf edges and top surface as an effective sealing agent.

http://www.feastwatson.com.au/trade/products/interior/product-details/2561

Stewie;

[Derek Cohen]

Good. That needs to be mentioned in case anyone wishes to copy your design.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Stewie Simpson]

I should mention the Proofseal product was what I was going to recommend to Brian H. for his bathroom Shoji before communication got side tracked.

Stewie;