Wooden Hand Planes

Ever since I started using hand tools, I have wanted to try making a wooden hand plane. I have heard many rave about wooden hand planes, and now that I have made these, I am sold. It takes a little practice to learn how to adjust a wooden hand plane, but once you get it down I am sure you, as I now do, will reach for your wooden hand planes often.

I figured that the place to start is the same place that most folks start when starting to use steel hand planes: A Smoother (like a Stanley #4) and a Jack (like a Stanley #5). The hickory core in these planes is not the prettiest wood I have ever laid eyes on, but Hickory is a performer. It adds a lot of weight to the plane and absorbs shock well and does not dent easily when whacking the back end with a mallet (for adjusting). One thing that I always find problematic using a Stanley #4 and #5 bench plane is that when lying them on their side to “shoot”, I can never find a good way to grip the plane. I also find that the sides are never precisely 90 degrees. As such, instead of using the more ‘boat’ shape for these planes, I made the sides dead 90 degrees. Interestingly, I found that getting the sides a refined 90 degrees required tuning by hand. After getting them as close a possible with a hand plane, I continued to shave of high spots with a card scraper. Once I got it as close as possible with the card scraper, a few passes on 220 grit sandpaper on a flat surface takes out any minor undulations left by the scraper.

Made from Hickory (for the core), Purpleheart (for the sides), Lignum Vitae (for the sole), and Ebony (for the wedge)

I used Lignum Vitae for the soles for several reasons. First, Lignum Vitae is dense, tough and durable, so it should last a long time. Second, Lignum Vitae stable, and should stay relatively flat and not exert stress on the hand plane. And last, but not least, Lignum Vitae s is self lubricating, so it glides smoothly across the surface being planed, needing no added lubricant.

This block plane was originally intended to solve a specific problem, which is for trimming the edging applied to sheet goods. I find that using a regular block plane or a #80 cabinet scraper inevitably ends up marring the sheet good, as the very corner of the sole ends up making contact. The wooden sole is less marring than the metal planes, and I have also eased the edges on the corners of the sole as well.

The original intention was to make a fence to go with this hand plane. However, I found that my idea for a fence did not work very well. I also found that the wooden sole largely solved the problem itself.

Most of the handtools I already have are old Stanley/Bailey tools. But some of these old tools also have collector value, making them out of my price range. Shoulder planes are one such tool, so I made my own. The blades in these are actually replacement blades for Clifton planes, which I got on clearance from Woodcraft. So now I have $90 planes for about $9. I have not had the opportunity to put these to the test yet, unlike the other hand planes, so the jury is still out. They look cool anyway. I chose a bed angle of 35 degrees as a compromise between installing the iron bevel up or bevel down. With the bevel down, the cutting angle is 35 degrees, a low angle ideal for cutting cross grain like a shoulder plane. Flip the iron bevel up, and I have a 60 degree cutting angle, suitable for long grain like a rebate/rabbet plane.

Wooden hand planes are adjusted using a mallet, so I figured while I am at it, and since I have a lathe, I would make some adjusting mallets. Either that or I am too stingy to buy some or just looking for an excuse to do some turning--or both!