Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 31

Thread: Skew rabbet woes

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2014
    Location
    springfield,or
    Posts
    644

    Skew rabbet woes

    Hi all
    Hope everyone had a good 4th.
    I picked up a 1-1/2" wood skew rabbet from eBay. I have never used a rabbet plane or even handled one. But it looked to be in good condition and for $19 shipped I was willing to try. Anyways it arrived looking good. The right side is slight cupped (hollow long the length) but not bad. Anyways my excitement overcame me and I lapped the bottom flat and squarish to the right side,made a new wedge and sharpened up the iron and went to work.... I watched a number of YouTube videos and am not sure what I have wrong , but basically instead of continuing to create a groove or rabbet and keeping the shoulder.it Continues to cut a new shoulder and or a stepped shoulder as it goes down. I adjusted the iron to just microscopically proud from the side to way to much and I continue to get the same result. Everytime I start the cut, it is just removing a tiny bit from the shoulder / wall. The skew isn't exact to the mortise angle, but it is very close.
    What am I doing wrong? At this point I'm just thinking that maybe I should've invested in fillister instead.
    Thanks in advance.
    Michael

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Michiana
    Posts
    3,046
    Are you using a batten to guide the plane?
    Sharp solves all manner of problems.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Location
    South Coastal Massachusetts
    Posts
    6,824
    Here's a video from Bob Rozaieski's excellent podcast.

    https://brfinewoodworking.com/video-...h-hand-planes/

  4. #4
    Try putting a straightedge along the right side very near the bottom. It should rock just slightly showing that there is clearance. It needs to clear the whole side of the plane, not just the part near the iron.

    Also check the right side edge of the iron. We usually put a small relief angle like 10 degrees on the edge to make sure it is not rubbing against the wall. And make sure that the side of the iron does not stick out more above the point than it does at the point.

    Make sure point of skew is sharp. You have a clearance issue; you have to find it.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Location
    New England area
    Posts
    588
    Set a bevel gauge to the skewed mouth, mark the iron, grind and hone it to the exact angle. Set it a little proud on the right side, run it against a batten, if it still won't work the body of the plane is warped - cupped, twisted, bowed, etc. maybe some of all of these. You can fix this, but it'll likely just keep moving over the course of the seasons. I lose interest in them at this point - the tail begins to wag the dog. I have an ECE adjustable mouth wedged rebate plane (not skewed), that cuts perfectly every time. This plane can be run both directions. When going cross grain, you just have to sharpen up and close the mouth down a bit. A skewed iron is no panacea. This plane has stayed dead flat/square for literally years. I may have lucked up and gotten a good one, but I'm surely thankful that I did.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Longview WA
    Posts
    27,347
    Blog Entries
    1
    Quote Originally Posted by Michael J Evans View Post
    Hi all
    Hope everyone had a good 4th.
    I picked up a 1-1/2" wood skew rabbet from eBay. I have never used a rabbet plane or even handled one. But it looked to be in good condition and for $19 shipped I was willing to try. Anyways it arrived looking good. The right side is slight cupped (hollow long the length) but not bad. Anyways my excitement overcame me and I lapped the bottom flat and squarish to the right side,made a new wedge and sharpened up the iron and went to work.... I watched a number of YouTube videos and am not sure what I have wrong , but basically instead of continuing to create a groove or rabbet and keeping the shoulder.it Continues to cut a new shoulder and or a stepped shoulder as it goes down. I adjusted the iron to just microscopically proud from the side to way to much and I continue to get the same result. Everytime I start the cut, it is just removing a tiny bit from the shoulder / wall. The skew isn't exact to the mortise angle, but it is very close.
    What am I doing wrong? At this point I'm just thinking that maybe I should've invested in fillister instead.
    Thanks in advance.
    Michael
    With a cupped side the iron is never going to register to the same spot. The cupped side of the plane will always hold the blade away from the prior shoulder and cut a new one.

    The skew of the blade not being exact to the plane body is a different problem. Close, even very close, only counts in horse shoes, hand grenades and nuclear warfare, not in skewed iron rabbet/rebate planes.

    jtk
    Last edited by Jim Koepke; 07-08-2020 at 5:23 PM. Reason: wording
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Location
    twomiles from the "peak of Ohio
    Posts
    12,120
    Happen to have one made by Auburn, of New York....No. 181, 1.25" width, skewed Rebate plane....
    Auburn skewed rebate, logo.JPG
    Right side..
    Auburn skewed rebate, right side.JPG
    Left side..
    Auburn skewed rebate, left side.JPG
    sole...
    Auburn skewed rebate, sole.JPG
    Iron....each corner does "poke out" a bit....about the thickness of a piece of paper..
    Auburn skewed rebate, iron.JPG
    Works best when the rebate is already started, or, if a batten is used. It can start it's own rebate, IF you tilt it to the side a bit, and get a "V" started, THEN bring it upright to mill the rebate

    Beach body, about 100+ yrs old.....hasn't "moved" for me, yet.......

  8. #8
    There are a number of good suggestions in this thread, but I'll add what I think is the most likely cause: you don't want the right (leading) side of the iron to be sharp. On a skew plane, the skew forces the plane into the wall (to the right), and if the side is sharp, it will just keep cutting. First make sure the right side has a slight relief as Warren said, then drag that edge lightly across a fine stone a couple times to keep it from cutting.

    The other thing is that it's much more difficult (though not impossible) to freehand rabbets with a skew plane. The skew rabbet is best used with a batten. If you want to use it freehand, either practice a lot or get yourself a square-mouthed rabbet plane.
    "For me, chairs and chairmaking are a means to an end. My real goal is to spend my days in a quiet, dustless shop doing hand work on an object that is beautiful, useful and fun to make." --Peter Galbert

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Longview WA
    Posts
    27,347
    Blog Entries
    1
    Michael, Here is a post you might find helpful > https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?242156

    The 26th post in linear order shows one way a rabbet can be cut freehand.

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

  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by Michael J Evans View Post
    The right side is slight cupped (hollow long the length) but not bad.
    There's your problem right there. Straighten it.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Dec 2014
    Location
    springfield,or
    Posts
    644
    Quote Originally Posted by Rob Luter View Post
    Are you using a batten to guide the plane?
    No, I was just trying freehand.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Dec 2014
    Location
    springfield,or
    Posts
    644
    Well gentleman, I went to work tonight. I trued up the right side best I could (not the best yet) but the first inch or so up is dead square to the sole and flat along its length. I also put the bevel gauge on the skew of the plane mouth and then against the iron. The skew angle of the iron is quite a bit off from the plane mouth. I've attached some pictures of the plane in its current condition. One thing Warren and I believe Steve mentioned is a relief angle on the iron. I tried to snap a photo of it. The left (higher side) would be the belly of the iron. Whereas the right side in that pic would be the top (bevel side) it appears to be at a angle, but seems backwards from what Warrren and Steve described... I would think you would want the relief on the belly side, not the top side? I also spent some time trying to regrind the iron to the actual correct skew angle, I haven't finished so cannot report to use yet. But expect I'll be making shavings tomorrow. Also I tried to take a pic of how much the iron projects from each side, I measured it with a rule and it was about 1-1/2 , 1/32nds. plane body, skew angle.jpgplane body skew angle 2.jpgskew angle against iron.jpgrelief angle_.jpgside projection.jpg

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Longview WA
    Posts
    27,347
    Blog Entries
    1
    Michael, you have lost me in all the talk of belly side and such.

    This type of plane is usually of a bevel down design. All the bevels should be on the same side of the iron. The side of the blade at the front when moving forward during the cutting should be flat. All the sides slope toward the back at varying degrees less than 90º.

    As Steve said, you do not want the side of the blade cutting in to the edge. It is somewhat of a guiding edge.

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

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Longview WA
    Posts
    27,347
    Blog Entries
    1
    Quote Originally Posted by Michael J Evans View Post
    If this plane was giving me problems on the next try my thoughts might turn to doing a little flattening on the blade bedding.

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

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Dec 2014
    Location
    springfield,or
    Posts
    644
    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    Michael, you have lost me in all the talk of belly side and such.

    This type of plane is usually of a bevel down design. All the bevels should be on the same side of the iron. The side of the blade at the front when moving forward during the cutting should be flat. All the sides slope toward the back at varying degrees less than 90º.

    As Steve said, you do not want the side of the blade cutting in to the edge. It is somewhat of a guiding edge.

    jtk
    Jim I mean that in the picture the high side would be on the (what I call) belly or flat side of the iron (without the bevel). Whereas the low side would be on the bevel side of the iron (what you sharpen). Maybe I am using the terms incorrectly?

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •