Finally did it. First wooden handplane

[Zahid Naqvi]

Finally finished my first Krenov style smoother. Not having a bandsaw made some of the curves a chore, but a combination of:rasps, hand saws, scrapers, spoke shaves and lots of elbow grease resulted in this. Made with Ash, it'd probably look better with a bit of mineral spirits applied, but heck it's a user not a looker :rolleyes:

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You will notice a bit of funny looking carving on the back of the plane. Initially I made it the traditional or text book way, but I have smallish hands and the grip felt too big. So I thought I'd do some practice on shaping. I held the plane with what I percieve a normal grip and drew the outline of my thumb and some part of the palm. Out came the rasp and sand paper. The resulting thumb imprint is probably better visible in the following (and mandatory) thin shavings view.

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Of course I did make a small adjustment hammer to go with it. Didn't have any brass rods so a chunk of purple heart had to do as the head, seems reasonably balanced.

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[Maurice Metzger]

Zahid, that's a great looking plane. I think the purpose of the custom handgrip was pretty apparent even in the first picture, it looks good.

Maurice

[Jim Hinze]

Zahid,

Beauitful plane.....

Your gonna get hooked.. Since I made my first one about a year ago, I've made several more to substitute for my old Stanley's... I reach for a woodie first before nearly any plane I have... I find they work better... or it's just the pride in the fact I made it :)

[Javier Gonzalez]

The proof is in the pudding. Nice lacy shavings, congrats.

[Alan Turner]

Nice work. Enjoy.

[Mark Singer]

Very nice work! Zahid,
I think you will really enjoy using it!

[Larry Gelder]

Nice. I want to make a smoother too. I made a jack, same style (Krenov). I initially sanded the body so it was smooth, but found the surface a little too slick after using it a few times, so I took the rasp to the body and left it somewhat textured. Fits my hand better now.

[Lars Thomas]

Zahid, very nice work. I have one of those on my wish list.

[Tyler Howell]

Well done Z!
:cool:

[Alan DuBoff]

Nice plane and nice mallet as well! :)

[Deirdre Saoirse Moen]

Nice job on both. I really like my Hock kit plane.

Speaking of, did everyone else catch Chris Schwartz's take on same in his Woodworking magazine blog?

http://www.woodworking-magazine.com/blog/Friends+Krenovians++Countrymen.aspx
http://www.woodworking-magazine.com/blog/Romanstyle+Handplane+Completato.aspx

[Dan Forman]

Fine job on both the plane and mallet. Please keep us posted on how you like it over time.

Dan

[Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan]

Very nice, how long did it take you to make?

What will you finish it with?

Cheers!

[Rob Millard]

Zahid
The plane looks great, but the proof is in the shavings, and those are perfect. I made a couple of planes, with the Krenov method, but in a traditional style. It’s fun using tools you’ve made yourself.
Not having a bandsaw must have made it a chore.
The Purple Heart was a good choice for the head. I have a mallet made from it also, and it has taken quite a beating with no signs of wear.
Rob Millard

[Michael Fross]

Great Job.

This is on my list of things to do one of the days.

Very nicely done. Impressive

Michael

[Zahid Naqvi]

Very nice, how long did it take you to make?

Stu, it took me much longer due to lack of mechanised tools, I think it was about three weeks(working mostly weekends and one day per week). No jointer so I had to joint everything by hand, plus all the curves had to be cut by a coping saw, and then alligned by scrapers and spokeshave.


What will you finish it with?
Cheers!

I was inclining towards no finish, I like the lived in look :D . And many recomendations from fellow creekers suggest it's a good option, so that is what I am going to do.

I'll probably end up making several at different angles and use the same set of irons. I have a visit to Dennis' shop coming up this weekend. If I can get all the bandsaw and jointer work done at his place this weekend, the rest will be a breeze, based on my experience with this one.

[Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan]

Thanks for the reply Zahid, I was thinking of the natural look too. I would think that over time, the oil from your hands, (not to mention the sweat from your brow) would do nicely as a finish.

Again, great job! :D