Looking for a hand plane....

[Hal Steele]

I am reseaming the teak decks on my boat. Each plank has one rabbeted edge which, when laid next to the adjacent plank, leaves a 3/16"-1/4" seam to fill between the two. The rabbets started out about 1/2" deep. As the teak has worn down over the years that depth has decreased. In some spots it is as little as 1/8". I need to increase the depth of the rabbet in those spots so the new caulk has enough teak to adhere to and stay in place.

There are a couple of really bad ideas (for me at least) out there to do this. They involve a router or a circular saw. There are jigs that help with these but they are cumbersome and not something I want to use. I have used a 1/8" chisel on some spots which works but is slow. I am thinking that a small hand/rabbet plane would be the best alternative but I have no idea on what to look for. I use quite a few tools i.e. table saw, routers, drill press, power planner, etc. However, I've never owned a hand plane in my life. Any suggestions on a plane that will handle that small of a rabbet? Any comments and help appreciated!

[Derek Cohen]

Hal, I think that this will be difficult to do with a rebate plane or a plough plane. You may have better luck with a router plane. My thought run, however, to a small power router guided by a track.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Tom M King]

If they are all the same width, a guide that keys off the first correct groove could guide a small plunge router to run the next one. Just do 1/8" per pass and it would not be hard to control. Not cheap, but Microfence probably has something that would work like a charm.

[Jim Koepke]

The problem that comes to mind is you will be cutting a slot into the wood making it thinner in the area of the gap between where the planks overlap.

jtk

[steven c newman]

Simple hand plane to mill a rebate.....Stanley No. 78....or Sargent No. 79

[Jim Koepke]

I am reseaming the teak decks on my boat. Each plank has one rabbeted edge which, when laid next to the adjacent plank, leaves a 3/16"-1/4" seam to fill between the two. The rabbets started out about 1/2" deep. As the teak has worn down over the years that depth has decreased. In some spots it is as little as 1/8". I need to increase the depth of the rabbet in those spots so the new caulk has enough teak to adhere to and stay in place.

There are a couple of really bad ideas (for me at least) out there to do this. They involve a router or a circular saw. There are jigs that help with these but they are cumbersome and not something I want to use. I have used a 1/8" chisel on some spots which works but is slow. I am thinking that a small hand/rabbet plane would be the best alternative but I have no idea on what to look for. I use quite a few tools i.e. table saw, routers, drill press, power planner, etc. However, I've never owned a hand plane in my life. Any suggestions on a plane that will handle that small of a rabbet? Any comments and help appreciated!

An answer to a question might help to determine what will work best for you.

Are you going to disassemble the decks to do this work or are you planning on doing it in place?

If you are going to do it in place you may need to make your own router plane. It isn't really all that difficult. Something similar to this:

Router Prototype?.jpg

Of course a shop made router would be made out of wood and start out looking more like this:

Fancy Router Plane.jpg

It wouldn't have to be so ornate. The main consideration would be to have a keel fore and aft of the cutter to guide it in the groove you want to make deeper.

jtk

[Tim Janssen]

How thick were the deckplanks originaly? Just wondering. Is there enough thickness left to go much deeper.
If I undertand you correctly, your teak deck in some areas has worn down by 3/8". That is a lot of wear!
How big is your boat?

Tim

[Hal Steele]

Thanks for all the responses. The boat is a 42' Grand Banks trawler. I believe the decks were originally 3/4" thick. They have been sanded by previous owner (bad idea) and worn down with time/cleaning. The conventional wisdom of the teak deck experts is that 3/8" thick is considered "serviceable". Mine are that at a minimum with some areas slightly more.

I am doing the reseaming with the teak planks in place. No way to remove them without destroying them as there is an agressive adhesive underneath to hold them to the fiberglass deck.

The planks do not overlap. The rebate on one side of a plank butts against the next plank over which leaves a space for the deck caulking. I believe the seam rebate was 1/4"-3/8" deep. The amount of teak left in the rebate is not an issue. Actually, I have been told to remove it entirely if possible and put the new caulk all the way to the deck below. New teak decks are made without a rebate, just an open space between the planks which is then filled with caulk.

If I was reseaming the entire deck, with all seams open/cleaned of the old caulk then a jig would be a no brainer. I have plans for one that is used. About 6' long, adjustable, screwed into an adjacent seam every 8" or so. However, I hate to screw it into the good seams that are there. I have read about using a small router with a guide off the front and back that was placed into the seam to guide the router. Not really sure about how to do that though.

I think I answered all the questions from above? Jim, thanks for the plane suggestions. I haven't looked at them yet but will shortly!

[Reed Gray]

You may be able to do it with a hand plane,, but teak is hard, and has a lot of silica in it, so your irons will go dull quickly.

robo hippy

[Tom M King]

Grain will probably run all directions too. I've figure out a way to use a small plunge router. Even then, you will probably go through several bits. I wouldn't screw anything down either. You could even just have a guide on the bottom of the router base that fits in existing grooves, but you would have to be careful to keep all the pressure against one side of the existing groove.

A side rabbet plane could clean up any scallops you make.

This guy screws down a guide, but there has to be multiple ways to do it without screws.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30ws7nB09po

[Keegan Shields]

Instead of screws for that jig, could you use one or more vacuum hold downs? Wouldn’t be hard to make if you have access to a vacuum pump.

[James Pallas]

Hi Hal. Real job you have. Decks are probably curved both perpendicular and longitudinal to the caulking rabbet. Makes it difficult to use a flat based router. A rigged up router plane may work somewhat. You may have to do it with traditional tools. A good sharp reefing hook will dig into the bottom as well as any hand tool. Just dig deeper where you have to. Having an even bottom makes little difference. If you get the sides all wonky it looks awful. Tipping power routers or planes that cut into the sides are problems. Tapered sides won’t hold onto the caulk. Good luck with your project. I don’t know of any other way than hard work. She should be a beauty when done.
Jim

[Jim Ritter]

Since I was in that business I’ve dealt with shallow caulking seams and popping bungs way too much. There is an electric tool called a seam ripper which I use for bigger jobs, but this is the Neanderthal section so I’ll stick with that. If you don’t have a reefing hook (made from an old file) you can easily make one. Grind the hook to the width of the seam and put a nice edge on it. Teak is a wonderful wood and will carve out nicely under the sharp point. I’ve tired all the previous suggestions and the reefing hook is the best for small lengths.
If you need pics I can take some pics of tools I’ve made specifically for this task.
Jim

[Mike Evans]

I would use a router with an axillary base having strips sized to fit the existing slot and aligned with the bit. The strips would just fir into the slot and guide the router. A base with one strip could be used to reach the end of the groove. The bases should be simple to build. This is not a hand tool answer but probably the best solution overall.

[Jim Koepke]

Is it possible to make the grooves wider at the bottom than the top? This would be like a running dovetail for the caulk.

Side rabbet planes with slanted depth gauges could do this.

jtk