Richard Keller
01-06-2007, 9:46 PM
It's taken me two days to figure out FTP transfer... This is my first post here, so if it turns out bad, you'll know why. I just switched to openSUSE btw... learning, but already better than XP...
Anyhow. I bought the Butt Mortise plane a couple of months ago. I figured if it could be half as good as the catalogue description, then it would be GOOD. Well ... IT IS AWSOME! A big time saver. I fooled around with it out of the box, hung a couple of doors, but these photos are from my first "real" woodworking project with it ... it is slick.
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0043.jpg
This is the plane sitting on the tablesaw/workbench. I am building a footboard for a bed here. I would saw "excuse the mess in the shop" but this really is the cleanest its been in years. :)
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0046.jpg
This gives you a better idea what's going on in the shop, what I'm building.
I found that the blade in the plane was too wide for the hardware I am using out of the box, so I ground the cutting end of the blade narrower.
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0044.jpg
If you are not familiar with this plane, basically the idea is that the blade sticks out the bottom of the plane the same measure that your hardware is thick. The plane is then basically like using a chisel bevel down to mortise, except that now we have perfect depth control, giving us nice flush, level hardware. Also much much less time to set up than a router. For this project I have a total of eight mortises to make (about 1/2 x 4 and a 1/4 deep) So ... an hour to make a router jig, and still have to square the corners, or 2 minutes (max) each with the BMP. (Butt Mortise Plane)
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0045.jpg
This is the first step in the job ... making a cut around the hardware layout. The box drawn here is with a sharp knife, not a pencil (not sure if that comes thru in this photo. I took this with my cell phone ... I can remember when cell phones had cars teathered to them ... anyways) It is VERY critical that this be done well, as this basically defines the mortise. I use a very sharp utility knife with a brand new blade. You need to cut as deep as the hardware, or at least very close. (1/4 was a little much)
Also, make sure your work is clamped down (see second photo) as much force is required for this.
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0049.jpg
This was my first use on this project, and I though it would be better to take a number of light cuts. I'm taking about 1/8 off right here. But on the second hardware install, I found that it does a better job taking full depth right from the start. It also doesn't take any more force to do, like I would have thought it would.
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0048.jpg
The easiest way to set the depth of the blade is to set the plane on two pieces of hardware and drop the blade down on a flat surface.
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0051.jpg
Secondary reliefs here had to be chiseled out for the other half of this hardware to lock in (it's knock down hardware - I probably should have mentioned that sooner)
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0052.jpg
This is the finished product (Would have been faster w/o the camera) This is actually the second mortise, which I did at full depth in one pass. The first one, which I did in multi-passes, had a bit of tearout around it. This one had no tearout, go figure. The side rails hide all this later anyways.
So ... stay tuned. I will post some more pics as the project goes on/completes. Also, some other pics in the shop. Some of the machines I have rebuilt..... but I think thats it for tonight. Figuring out FTP was exhausting... :)
Richard Keller
Anyhow. I bought the Butt Mortise plane a couple of months ago. I figured if it could be half as good as the catalogue description, then it would be GOOD. Well ... IT IS AWSOME! A big time saver. I fooled around with it out of the box, hung a couple of doors, but these photos are from my first "real" woodworking project with it ... it is slick.
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0043.jpg
This is the plane sitting on the tablesaw/workbench. I am building a footboard for a bed here. I would saw "excuse the mess in the shop" but this really is the cleanest its been in years. :)
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0046.jpg
This gives you a better idea what's going on in the shop, what I'm building.
I found that the blade in the plane was too wide for the hardware I am using out of the box, so I ground the cutting end of the blade narrower.
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0044.jpg
If you are not familiar with this plane, basically the idea is that the blade sticks out the bottom of the plane the same measure that your hardware is thick. The plane is then basically like using a chisel bevel down to mortise, except that now we have perfect depth control, giving us nice flush, level hardware. Also much much less time to set up than a router. For this project I have a total of eight mortises to make (about 1/2 x 4 and a 1/4 deep) So ... an hour to make a router jig, and still have to square the corners, or 2 minutes (max) each with the BMP. (Butt Mortise Plane)
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0045.jpg
This is the first step in the job ... making a cut around the hardware layout. The box drawn here is with a sharp knife, not a pencil (not sure if that comes thru in this photo. I took this with my cell phone ... I can remember when cell phones had cars teathered to them ... anyways) It is VERY critical that this be done well, as this basically defines the mortise. I use a very sharp utility knife with a brand new blade. You need to cut as deep as the hardware, or at least very close. (1/4 was a little much)
Also, make sure your work is clamped down (see second photo) as much force is required for this.
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0049.jpg
This was my first use on this project, and I though it would be better to take a number of light cuts. I'm taking about 1/8 off right here. But on the second hardware install, I found that it does a better job taking full depth right from the start. It also doesn't take any more force to do, like I would have thought it would.
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0048.jpg
The easiest way to set the depth of the blade is to set the plane on two pieces of hardware and drop the blade down on a flat surface.
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0051.jpg
Secondary reliefs here had to be chiseled out for the other half of this hardware to lock in (it's knock down hardware - I probably should have mentioned that sooner)
http://www.execulink.com/%7Eboxcar/SSPX0052.jpg
This is the finished product (Would have been faster w/o the camera) This is actually the second mortise, which I did at full depth in one pass. The first one, which I did in multi-passes, had a bit of tearout around it. This one had no tearout, go figure. The side rails hide all this later anyways.
So ... stay tuned. I will post some more pics as the project goes on/completes. Also, some other pics in the shop. Some of the machines I have rebuilt..... but I think thats it for tonight. Figuring out FTP was exhausting... :)
Richard Keller