Flattening an infill plane
This is probably about one of the most difficult areas in the making of a dovetailed infill plane.
The amount of forces and stresses generated from the peining usually causes the whole structure to convex depending on the force of the peining. The longer the plane body the greater the amount of movement at the centre of the plane. Flushing the dovetails off after the peining will not straighten the plane out. The only way to flatten the sole is with a milling machine, rubbing the sole of a plane on an abrasive surface is not going to work. However most planes will still work if they are not entirely flat, but this isn’t that kind of tool.
After peining, the amount of removal necessary to bring about a flat surface would be far too much for filing or abrading. The abrading system practised by quite a lot of people would only level off the high spots. The pressure applied to the plane to do this will flex the body of the plane to try and match the surface you are pushing against only to spring back once you release it. This usually means that you will still have a plane with a camber or a twist.
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There has been much discussion about the brass pads on my blade bed but the logic is quite simple. The blade is supported only where it counts i.e. along the bottom edge directly on the frog and at the rear where I have inserted the brass pads. Theoretically the three legged stool principle would be ideal. The idea of bedding a plane blade over the entire surface would only be possible if you were using some sort of bedding compound. But it is pointless anyway especially with a blade thickness of 3/16ths”. There is no way I want the blade touching the bed in the centre as I might be relieving some of the pressure at the front end where it counts and I could get a see-saw effect. This is eliminated by raising the contact points a small amount. There is also less chance of the blade coming to rest on any debris.
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The cupids bow section needs a slight camber similar to that of a carriage roof. This needs to be done by hand.
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A1 14 1/2″ dovetail infill smoothing plane
After grinding and drilling the sides they are then screwed to a holding jig via jig screws for profiling.
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Welcome to my blog. It is my intention to use this forum to give a better insight into my workshop so you can see what makes my planes different. It may change some opinion when it comes to the pricing of my planes. It will allow you to see ‘inside’ my planes where the work is hidden.
I will show my work piecemeal and in no set order as I have lots of things I want to say and show, both current and past. I do not have the time to edit into any order. I have a large archive of photographs which I will be publishing over a period of time. Also I will discuss techniques etc on request if time permits.
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In the beginning when I set about making my first dovetail infill plane there wasn’t a lot to go on. There certainly wasn’t a text book on plane making. The A1 14 ½” Norris smoothing plane is what first drew my attention to plane making. The first plane I made was a 15 ½” panel. Having decided I wanted to build Norris type planes I spent 3 years researching these tools and I have come to know many collectors and found them extremely helpful. I also had the opportunity to examine these planes closely and have been involved in a lot of restoration. In the time of my working with these planes I didn’t find a single plane that could match up to its reputation. Basically the quality and work standard to put it bluntly was quite appalling with the exception of one, which I saw a nice picture of, a 17 ½” A1 was just enough to inspire me to take the project up. It would seem that in the heyday of the infill plane that the people building these dovetailed infill planes were working under a considerable amount of economic pressure with poor tooling and equipment. Probably in conditions similar to a sweat shop.
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