Questions about Spiers Infill Plane

[David Rechlin]

Hello,

I came into possession with a Spiers infill plane and am curious if anyone knows more info regarding the time period in which this plane was made. Also, to what extent should the plane be cleaned? Posted below are close ups of the plane. In case the pictures are unclear or the markings are not quite legible, the plane iron reads, "Est. 1840(?) Stewart Spiers, Cast Steel Warranted, Ayr, Scotland." On the lever cap it also reads, "Ayr, Scotland." Eventually I would like to get some use of this plane. If anyone has any additional information aside from it's time period to share that would be greatly appreciated, as I do not know much about infill planes in general. Thanks,

- -Dave

[george wilson]

I am not an expert on early English infills(yours is Scottish). The early Spiers had TAPERED Ward irons. I can't make out the lettering on your iron in the picture. It might say Ward,I'm not sure.Yours has the number 36 stamped on the iron. Look all over the plane to see if it has a MATCHING number on the plane and on the brass cap. It's hard to find irons that match the plane because old time workers would have 3 or 4 plane irons they would sharpen in the morning. Then,they would interchange them during the day,to work without interruption having to stop and re sharpen the iron.

Your iron has the less angular shape of LATER planes on its top side. Earlier planes had about 45 degree corners,and 18th. C. irons had round tops. But,those took more work to make,and were replaced with angular tops which could be hot cut with a chisel at the anvil,and filed up a bit.

These are fine old planes. I have 2 Spiers myself,but with the "coffin" shape of curved sides. They are made of thick iron dovetailed together. These dovetails can be hard to see if well done. Look along the bottom edge of your plane body,and see if you can see the faint outline of the dovetails.

Cheaper and LATER(post war) infills,even Norris(considered another top maker),had cast iron bodies. I have a Norris with a cast iron body made about in the 1930's. They are worth less than the earlier dovetailed ones. The earlier dovetailed planes would not break if dropped on the floor(which was hopefully wood!),because they were made of wrought iron,or maybe mild steel when it became available in heavy gauge sheet. I can't tell from your pictures if yours is cast. You need more light,and a closeup of the inside of the body.

Your infill will be Brazilian rosewood. It was considered the premier infill wood at that time.

The earlier Spiers had a more decorative cap screw,but yours does have a rather thin cap screw,which I think is an early-ish feature.

Try looking up Patrick Leach. He sells tools like yours,and every month puts out a new listing of his tools for sale,including infill planes.

[Frank Drew]

Dave,

Here's some information, including mention of a 1998 book about Spiers:

http://www.spiers.net/stewart.htm

[David Rechlin]

Hello George, thank you for the reply. Sorry about the dark photos. I did find a "36" stamped in the wood on the left side where the iron seats (first photo.) Hard to see in the photo but I am fairly confident the iron and plane are a match. I am fascinated with the history of this particular plane so if you have any additional info that would be great. Hopefully I can get the plane restored to working condition (cap iron does not sit flat on the iron very well.) But we will see. Thanks again,

-Dave

[David Rechlin]

Thank you Frank for the info, I appreciate it
-Dave

[george wilson]

It looks like an iron dovetailed plane from what I can tell. Mine use the same coffin shaped curved bodies. But,one has no tote. Pushes like an ordinary wooden smoother. The other has a handle.