Chamfering with a bench plane?????

[jonathan snyder]

Hi Folks,

I'm working on a small end table, kind of shakeresque style. I'm looking to chamfer the underside of the top so it doesn't look so chunky.

Can I do this with a bench plane, a #5 perhaps? How do I keep the chamfer angle and width constant?

I was thinking about using double stick tape to attach a fence of sorts to the panel. This might help to keep the chamfer width equal.

I don't know, I'm kind of new to this Neander thing. Any and all help would be appreciated.

Thanks
Jonathan

[Kevin Blunt]

Hi Jonathan,

Not sure if you are willing to go this route but if you are this is your ticket. I recently pruchased a LV/Veritas LA block plane and just for christmas received the chamfer guide that was built especially for this plane. May cost you upwards of $150 but if you are going to be doing alot of this type of stuff it may be worth your while. The whole setup is excellent quality by the way. check out these links to see what i am talking about.

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=32685&cat=1,41182

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=46296&cat=1,41182

Just one other thought, what about using a router. Is this not an option?

kevin

[Roy Wall]

Jonathan,

I am no neander expert ... but you have a good idea of setting up a fence.

The best plane would be a low angle block....but if you only have a #5 then that becomes your "best plane"!

I would test on a scrap board similar to your top to get the hang of it first. Scribe a line on the thickness edge - and then on the underside edge - so you'll know when to stop and be consistent.

Cut a board about 6" wide and maybe a foot longer than the longest side. Bevel it to 45* for a chamfer or maybe 30* for an under bevel. Clamp it to the scrap piece (underneath) and work the end grain first. the wider the board the more room you have to clamp away from the edge and give "clearance" for the plane to work. Do not push all the way through as you may get tearout....you'll have to work inward from the edges.

If you had a low angle block plane, it would be easier to see your scribe line (and control it) so you wouldn't necessarily need a "fence" to guide.

But practice on some scrap first to obtain the skill!

[Steven Wilson]

I usually use a LA block plane for this since, with a table, you'll be going with the grain and across the grain. However, if all you have is a #5 then it will do as long as it's well tuned up and set to take a very fine shaving. What I do is to mark off the extent of my bevel with a pencil on both sides and then plane away until I've nearly snuck up to the bevel. Then I take one last, long, passing stroke to cleanly define the bevel.

[jonathan snyder]

Thanks Guys,

I have a vintage Stanley #65, all tuned up and ready to go, but I had not considered using it. I also have a #140 skewed rabbiting block plane. Would the low angle or the skewed blade at standard angle be better? I will have to experiment with both. I just assumed that a bench plane with a longer sole would be better. I dont know why I did not think about marking it out with a pencil.

I knew you folks would help me out. :)
Thanks
Jonathan

Edit: The #65 works like a charm! Now to decide how much of a chamfer.

[Pam Niedermayer]

If I envision this correctly, it's more like an upside down panel raising than chamfering; so most any smoother, panel raiser, or block will do this job. It's fairly easy to maintain an angle, at least close enough for woodworking.

Pam

[Alice Frampton]

Jonathan, fwiw second picture and accompanying text here (http://www.cornishworkshop.co.uk/sidetables04.html).

Cheers, Alf

[JayStPeter]

Be careful of grain direction also. You can really shred the edge if you aren't. Smaller chamfers I can just eyeball, but I have done some larger ones that sound like you describe (or like Pam describes anyway ;) ). I used a marking gauge and adjusted manually as I went. No guide required. I actually did the first edge by eyeball until I liked it, then used a marking gauge to get the others to match.
One of my few neander skills :cool: . But hey, it's usually faster to just knock out a couple edges with the block plane than set up a router.

[Mark Singer]

I do it all the time using a small block plane or smoother.....just hold it at whatever angle you want. If you want a rounded effect ....change the angle. Test it on scrap first. Watch the grain direction so you don't catch an edge .

[Steve Wargo]

If you're trying to get an exact angle around the whole top, then I usually mark my angle on both working surfaces. Then plane to one line, and increase then angle until I hit the other line. It is possible to get extrememly accurate in putting a large chamfer on the underside of the table. FWIW, I usually use a #5 for this. The key is to work one long grain edge first, then rotate counter clockwise to hit the next edge cross grain. This will make the possibilty of tearout on the crossgrain edge almost nonexistant. Good luck.

[Robert Tarr]

Interesting timing on this thread, as I did this for a hall table last night....all by hand.

I used a pencil to mark out the depth of the chamfer on the side and then marked out the starting point of the taper on the face. I did this all the way around the board (so 8 pencil lines) and also carried the angle along one face of the board. I used this to help make a angle fence for my LN 140 skew plane. I used a piece of wood that I planed at an angle to match the penciled angle (still following?) Unlike Steve W. I did both ends first, knowing that any tear/blow out will be eliminated by planing the long grain sides. I then planed the angle with the 140 until it bottomed out and then moved angle back with a #4 and a LA BU jack, depending on the grain. I repeated this until I got to the depth I needed (one side at a time.) The only reason I had to use a plane other than the 140, was that my chamfer was wider than the blade of the plane. I thing the 140 with an angled fence is your best choice here. Sweeten up the edge with the #5 if you need.

This process worked very well for me.

Let me know if I can help answer questions.

Robert

[Robert Tarr]

One more pic of the LN 140 with the angled fence attached.

Hope that helps.

RT

[Nancy Laird]

Issue #166 of Woodsmith has an article on this very topic. You might find it on-line at www.woodsmith.com (http://www.woodsmith.com) .

Nancy

[jonathan snyder]

Thanks for all the advise folks. I wont get the chance to work on it today, but I'll let you know how it goes.

Jonathan