New version 800-225 plane completed

[Ron Brese]

A while back I posted some pics of a plane that was a first stage prototype for a smoothing plane that I was developing. Last week I posted a pic of the body,iron and lever cap for this new version and today I'm posting pics of the completed plane. Specs are as follows: 8.00" sole length, 2.812 overall width.
Sole made from 3/8" bearing brass, sides from 1/4" thick brass, Lever cap .500 thick bronze. Stainless steel cap screw. Iron is 1/4" thick 2.25 wide 0-1, no cap iron used, the mouth aperture is about .010, total weight approx.8 lbs., infill is walnut finished with shellac applied in polish fashion.

Ron Brese

[Ryan Cathey]

I like it Ron. By the way my tech ed teacher let me use the bandsaw to cut the rear infill for my 101 today so I'm just that much closer lol.

[Jim Becker]

Purdy! A beautiful tool, Ron.

[Eddie Darby]

Sweeeeet! How does it work? Must be super sweeeet!
I like the handle a lot!


Thanks for the post.

[Zahid Naqvi]

Ron, the plane looks fantastic, I think the Walnut works real well with the brass.

[john mclane]

What a piece of craftsmanship and design. Excellent

[Ron Brese]

I really appreciate all the kind words about this plane. I have a lot of effort in this design and in the creating of this particular tool. Eddie Darby asked "how does it work?" It is really a sweet planing tool, one of those things you really need to experience to fully appreciate, besides it would be a real waste if the performance didn't measure up to the looks. I have read where some people stated that the wood doesn't know the difference, that may be true but I'm human and I do know the difference. Mass equals leverage and when it's assembled in good balance less effort is required of the user.

Ron Brese

[Eddie Darby]

Can you tell me what the brass object is for at the top of your blades?

[Ron Brese]

Eddie,

The brass button at the top of the iron is actually a knurled head brass screw. It is in essence a safety device. When you do not use a cap iron it is possible for the iron to slide thru the mouth of the plane when the lever cap is loosened. The head of the fastener would keep this from occurring. Is it me or is there a post missing somewhere. I posted in response to your other question and when I looked the other post was missing and my post seemed totally out of context. I'm a little confused by that.

Ron

[David Tiell]

Ron,
That is one BEAUTIFUL plane!!!! Glad to hear it works as good as it looks. The walnut works very well with the brass. Did I read that measurement right on the lever cap? Is it really half an inch thick?!!! I bet that thing has no clue what chatter is! Great job!

[Ron Brese]

David, Lever caps fabricated from .500 thick bronze or brass are pretty standard on these type planes. A fair amount of this material is excavated to create the profile, still though it creates a stout way to retain the iron. In this plane the lever cap also does the work of the cap iron, so it has to be tuned to the iron quite precisely. Thanks for the compliment on the plane, and it seems that serveral of us are in agreement that the walnut works well with the brass. Mahogany looks good with brass also, especially when it's finished with dark garnet shellac. I have plans to make some special edition planes with rosewood infills, however I'm finding it difficult to locate 12/4 rosewood that is dry enough to put inside a metal plane body. I may just have to buy the driest I can find and put it on a shelf for a while and wait on it.

Ron Brese

[Garth Keel]

What a perfect combination of wood and metal. When so much work and thought goes into something it is really satisfying to have a result that shows the effort.

[Eddie Darby]

I changed my question. Sorry about that!

Question was is this the final plane or are there any modifications?

[Ron Brese]

Thanks Eddie that clears it up, and yes this is the final version of this plane.

Thanks,

Ron

[Derek Cohen]

Ron

Simply beautiful!

Your woodworking and metal working are equally top drawer.

I agree that a single iron configuration is preferred to a double iron. 1/4" is probably overkill for the iron, but what a nice way to go :)

One question about the pinning - is this from the sides or the underneath?

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Ron Brese]

Derek,

The infills are pinned thru the sides no pins thru the sole, the tote tang that extends from the sole is attached using fasteners from inside the plane body prior to installing the rear infill. I had concerns about these loosening so I applied a metal epoxy to the fasteners before final installation. I had given thought to fastening the tote tang from the bottom of the sole but I dislike the idea of protrusions thru the sole of a plane.

Thanks,

Ron Brese

[Ron Brese]

Derek.

I forgot to address your comment about the 1/4" iron. There is more going on in the use of a thicker iron than one might imagine, yes it prevents chatter and is quite stout, but there is also the issue of heat. As we bed irons at higher angles the heat issue comes into play a bit more. The same heat that we feel on our fingers when using a scraper is also occurring at the edge of higher pitch irons. Maybe not to the extreme that it occurs with a scraper but as the iron starts to loose it's edge the amount of heat generated increases, this along with the fact that we are forcing shavings thru a quite small opening is why you've noticed discoloration on the back of your irons after a good bit of smoothing work is done. This is to me the important aspect if the thicker iron. It has the ability to absorb and then dissipate this heat as compared to a thinner iron. I believe this ability helps it retain it's edge for a longer period of time. I also think this is one of the advantages to a two plane approach to smoothing work that I have spoke of on several occasions. It allows time for the irons to cool off between usings.

Ron Brese