Hand plane newbie

[Chance Raser]

I apologize first, I searched quickly and didn't find an answer. Could be my age, 36. Lol. Normally I am in the all things spinning section but recently got commissioned by the wife build a hood above the stove and a 9'x5'x2" solid walnut island top.

Background. Hands planes, I am new to them. I inherited numerous planes from the old man, 2 that are 6" long, 2 that are like 7" long with the handle on the front (most are Stanley frogs or irons but no name on the plane itself), a 9" Stanley and a behemoth No 6, 18" Bailey (cast on the plane in front of the front handle) /Stanley (on the frog).

I have watched hours of Rob Cosman and similar, bought the right stones, know they are sharp and can get respectable shavings.

To the point, I can't figure out which direction is the right way to go when face planning. One way seams to give me smooth and shiny, the other is smooth and dull. There biggest confusion is that I may have to switch direction based on the grain of the wood on the same face.

Which is the desired result? Most of my stuff is planed smooth and ready for finish but depending on the lighting you can see the direction I planed. Will that matter during finishing? I plan on 3 coats of mineral oil for the large island for nice finish and easy maintenance.

I specifically planed this board to get this result to highlight my question. It is smooth to the touch but you can see the difference in the middle.1601696412412551772357356227704.jpg

Will this matter during finishing?

When the face grain changes direction and I have to switch direction to get the smooth and shiny look it some times ends up with some gouges in the wood from the abrupt changes in grain. Is this normal?

Insight anyone? Or is it not that simple?

[Jim Koepke]

Hi Chance,

One place you may want to start/bookmark is the Neanderthal wisdom/FAQs > https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?103805

It is the old archive of many posts on techniques and such.

You may also want to search using Google (or other search engine) on > Setting a Cap Iron weaver

With changing grain it may be necessary to change directions at times.

When it gets real tough, having the blade as sharp as possible and as thin as possible shaving helps.

Sometimes the side of a board will look like the grain is going one way when it is actually going the other way. One way to work with this is to take note of the growth rings:

Planing Growth Rings.jpg

The V shapes on the face of a board are sometimes called cathedrals. If you look at the end grain and it looks like a smile, go in the direction the Vs point. If the end grain looks like a frown, run them down, or plane into the Vs.

jtk

[Tom Trees]

Hello Chance
This is the information you seek if you want the right answer to your situation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pAVgfSPMN0&t=4s

https://www.woodcentral.com/articles/test/articles_935.shtml

All the best
Tom

[Dan Hulbert]

I can rarely go from a planed surface to finishing for any number of reasons. My tool of choice for the final surfacing is the card scraper. I hate the noise and dust from sanding, but have a good selection of card scrapers to get the final surfaces. A card scraper is not sensitive to grain changes and leaves a great surface. I'm a hobby wood worker, so production speed is not really an issue.

Search this site for card scraper and you'll learn more than you ever need to know about how to set them up and use them.

[Joe A Faulkner]

To your question, will this matter during finishing? Short Answer: Yes, but to what degree is subjective.

longer answer: Who defines success? You and/or your wife may be happy with the finish, while others may be more demanding. Definitely look into the David Weaver threads on setting the cap iron. Some resort to sanding or scraping while others have a knack for reading grain and knowing how and when to change the angle of approach using a smoothing plane set to take very fine shavings. My experience is that walnut is not as prone to tear out as hickory or white oak. The dull spot in your photo will absorb finish differentLy than the smoother surrounding grain. You likely will notice it right off. Another note is that digital cameras are harsh critics. I often notice defects in photographs that escape me when looking at the piece. So the flaw in question may not be that noticeable in practice, but again this is highly subjective.

From the look of things you are well on your way to a beautiful counter top.

[steven c newman]

Instead of "straight ahead" go at a slight angle..
Pipe Tap Box, side clean up.JPG

More of a slicing action....you are still going straight ahead, but the plane is cutting at an angle....

[Jim Matthews]

You're already getting good results.

Regarding "reading grain direction" : the side of the board can be examined as can the surface.
Imagine a driveway, or similar ramp. The blade going "up" the ramp will shear off the surface.

(Polished, burnished, shimmering)

The blade going "down" the ramp *may* catch fibers and cause tearout.

I think from your picture that you have skill in getting your blade sharp, and might work regardless.

[Robert Hazelwood]

Sounds like you are not getting tearout- that's good. If you are getting tearout then you'll need to become familiar with setting the cap iron.

But when you plane against the grain its a little duller. That's normal to some extent. For the best finish you want to plane with the grain.

If your goal is to finish directly off the plane (no sanding) then you need to take full length shavings- anywhere you start or stop a shaving on the surface, or if the blade comes out of the cut, will leave a tell-tale mark. So you can't really accommodate the grain to the extent you'd like.

However, if your island is a glue-up of several boards, then you can plane each board in a different direction if required. Just make sure to go full length, whatever direction.

Thinner shavings and sharper irons will help mitigate this as well.

Lastly, try burnishing the surface with a handful of shavings, or a white scotchbrite pad. Rub like you are buffing a car. That should help brighten up the dull areas and make the whole top shine. At that point I'll bet you can apply oil and not see much of a difference.

[Chance Raser]

Thanks for all the great info. I did come back and read through all of this it has helped greatly, it just took me a long time to get back on and respond!

Thanks so much!