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Thread: Fixing a convex sole hand plane

  1. #46
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    I think the OP may have missed your gentle inference.
    He may not be aware of your deep experience, either.

    http://www.planemaker.com/aboutus.html

  2. #47
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    Quote Originally Posted by Anuj Prateek View Post
    Noted. Have room for #7. Will size the board accordingly.

    My #7 saves the title of most used plane, for me.

    Another quick question. Does this help with using plane on shooting board: http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/pag...,41182&p=77042


    #7 is Lee Valley custom with standard configuration.
    First: That grip/knob will fit a Lee Valley Veritas® Customizable #7 Jointer Plane (06P07.71A and all customized versions). It screws into the fence holes which are standardized on the Lee Valley Veritas Custom planes.

    Second: I would try shooting with both your #5 and #7 first before buying it. That way you would know which plane you prefer to use first.

    Third: I don't have that grip/knob. But I do have the Lee Valley Veritas Miter Plane, which has a similar grip/knob. The grip/knob fits a hand position which works for shooting. When shooting one pushes the plane forwards, while at the same time pushing sideways into the board (low on the plane adjacent to the bottom wing).
    Last edited by John Schtrumpf; 06-05-2019 at 7:22 AM.

  3. #48
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Matthews View Post
    I think the OP may have missed your gentle inference.
    He may not be aware of your deep experience, either.

    http://www.planemaker.com/aboutus.html

    I did not have any clue.


    I am super happy to be part of this community where so many experts and experienced people from the field are helping beginners.


    On side not, now I want a wooden rabbet plane

  4. #49
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    Good choice.

    I live in a humid environment, where wooden body planes excel.

    ***

    We walk among Giants, here.

    Zahid Naqvi compiled essential lore, here:

    https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread....al-wisdom-FAQs

    Please explore Derek Cohen's most excellent site.
    Much of what I successfully employ in my humble shop was explained, there.

    http://www.inthewoodshop.com/

    Kudos to you in keeping our ancient pursuit alive.

    Jim in Massachusetts, USA

  5. #50
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    We definitely walk amoung giants here! I just scrolled through the list that Zahid compiled, the amount of knowledge represented there is really staggering! Sadly, there's many names there that we don't hear from anymore.

    Anuj, I'll cast my vote that you should work on the sole to make it flatter. Like Winston said I'd take a narrow strip of sandpaper on a flat surface and run the plane over it perpendicular only abrading the center area of the plane. Check your progress often and when a straight edge shows flatness or a little concavity switch to a big piece of sandpaper and lap the entire surface.

    But before you lap the entire surface put a series of crosshatches over the entire surface. Lap it just a little and see where the high spots are. If it's still convex go back to just abrading the center.

    Also, make sure that during this process you have the iron installed but retracted and the lever cap is tight.

    I had a plane early on that was concave and I just couldn't make it work well. It was so frustrating! Finally, I lapped it and it was amazing afterwards. It remains one of the best in the rack.

    I would also repeat the excellent advise that Jim K often puts out that you should reach out to other creekers; maybe someone is close by who would be willing to help you learn to fettle a plane. You'd likely gain an excellent plane and a friend!

  6. #51
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    Also, Don, it's good to see you here and I must pass along a 'hello' from my Dad, Terry. You guys were fraternity bros at BW!

  7. #52
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    Anuj, Do you ever drive to Portland?

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  8. #53
    Quote Originally Posted by Jeff Bartley View Post
    Anuj, I'll cast my vote that you should work on the sole to make it flatter. Like Winston said I'd take a narrow strip of sandpaper on a flat surface and run the plane over it perpendicular only abrading the center area of the plane. Check your progress often and when a straight edge shows flatness or a little concavity switch to a big piece of sandpaper and lap the entire surface.
    Just last night I decided to flatten a #5 that I recently acquired which badly needed a tune-up. (The person I bought it from buys and rehabs planes, and uses a belt sander to do so. He told me that he just likes planes; he doesn't really do much woodworking -- and I think the results showed that.)

    The sole was convex, and I used the short-strip technique to make the middle very slightly concave. Once the concave area was long enough, I felt confident that I could lap the whole thing without rocking it. I put down a long strip of sandpaper (well, really, one sheet of sandpaper ripped into three strips that I put end-to-end) and lapped the sole. The front right corner and rear left corner are still a bit lifted, but those relatively small areas don't affect performance in most cases. The plane now works very predictably and reliably.

    Here's a picture of what it looked like shortly before I stopped. You can see which parts were abraded by the sandpaper, and which weren't. At this point I think I had gone through three sheets of 80 grit sandpaper. If I were to completely flatten the whole thing, I'm guessing that I would use around five more sheets.

    IMG_8901.jpg

    A couple more notes: I used spray adhesive on the back of the sandpaper and adhered it to a granite countertop. I've checked the flatness of the countertop with a good straightedge, and I can't see any light between the straightedge and the granite. I'm lucky to have a large, very flat surface available without having to buy and store a huge heavy rock.

    In the future, I think I'd get a roll of PSA sandpaper, mostly because it's inconvenient for me to deal with the spray adhesive.

  9. #54
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jeff Bartley View Post
    Also, Don, it's good to see you here and I must pass along a 'hello' from my Dad, Terry. You guys were fraternity bros at BW!
    Hi Jeff,

    Very good to hear from you. Reading your father's name brings up memories from a "couple of years ago." :-) I remember Terry very fondly, so please say hello to him for me. Thanks!

    Don McConnell
    Eureka Springs, AR

  10. #55
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    Anuj, Do you ever drive to Portland?

    jtk

    Yup.

    Will most probably be planning sometimes end of June or mid-July.

  11. #56
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    PM sent.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  12. #57
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    Got it. Replied.

    (Let me know if you don't see it. It does not appear in my Sent Messages).

  13. #58
    In 1983 I had worn through my smoothing plane iron and I bought an old junker plane for its high quality iron. The plane was a wood bottom Bailey No. 35 from maybe 1915. I never used the plane, just the iron.

    Reading this thread I got the idea that I could replicate Anuj's plane. The Bailey sole was already convex from use, so getting it up to .016 out of flat was pretty quick. It worked OK. I was able to take .001 shavings and I was able to flatten an edge to where there was no light.

    One thing I was reminded of is that flatness across the width of the plane is much more important than flatness in length. A wooden plane whose sole is hollow or convex across the width has trouble taking consistent shavings. I also had trouble sorting out when the clumsiness of this plane was due to the convex sole or due to my not being used to this particular plane. I have used the same bench planes for so long that everything else seems clumsy.

  14. #59
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    Eureka Springs, AR
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    Well, Warren, in a previous post you described how your properly flattened Stanley plane was easier to use and get the desired results. So, I guess I don't quite the point of your little experiment. After all, Anuj mentioned that he was able to get better performance by changing his technique. So, I don't think anyone has claimed that a plane with such a bow in its sole could not be made to work at all. So, I'm a little unclear what you're attempting to "prove." Are you trying to imply that anyone who isn't willing to put up with such an issue is, somehow, a lesser craftsperson?
    I guess that might make sense if one considers planing to be a form of penance or some kind of masochistic ritual. Otherwise, as a mere mortal, I prefer to work with tools which are properly tuned and which I can easily work with to get the desired results. I know, from personal experience, that when I was working full time only with hand tools, properly tuned tools were not only more pleasant to use, but I was more productive. Of course, I was primarily working with wood-bodied planes, so flattening their soles when needed was relatively quick and straight-forward. I don't know that I would care to tackle a metal plane which is out of true by 1/64" - even a #3 Stanley.

    Don McConnell
    Eureka Springs, AR

  15. #60
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    One of my problem planes was a #60 type block plane. It had a concave sole. If the blade was extended enough to take a shaving without pressing down on the plane, it would grab into the wood and take a thick shaving, often breaking free and then repeating. Flattening the sole improved its performance. It was still not a great plane and was put up for auction.

    Technique can make up for less than an optimum tool. The ability to correct the problems of an errant tool are among the abilities a craftsperson needs to avoid the frustrations of such tools.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

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