Making a plane from scratch...

[johknee]

Thought this might be of interest to some here...

[IanW]

It certainly interested me, Joh! Thanks.

Many years ago I was keen to try casting a brass plane body or two, but the more I researched the various techniques of casting brass & bronze, the fainter my heart grew. So I settled on the fabrication method, which I venture is infinitely more practical for a one-of (or even a two or three-of! ) & requires far less investment in equipment. However, if you want to make a few dozen planes or more, then casting is definitely an attractive way to go.

I admit to feeling a strong pang of envy watching that thumping great milling machine plane surfaces so effortlessly. You can clean up a casting with files, but it's a heck of a lot of work & the results are probably not quite up to the quality shown in the video.

I was intrigued by the design of Corinth's little plane. It bears a certain resemblance to the Norris "50 series", brought in near the end of the firm's life in an attempt to compete with Stanley (so it's said). Norris used the same sort of 'frog' arrangement, with the two vertical plates swooping down & extending to the back of the plane so a tote/handle could be fixed between them.

The one thing I found odd was machining the blade bed to be a tight fit for the blade (he makes a point of mentioning this, twice). I'm wondering if this bloke actually uses planes on a regular basis. Maybe he use that fancy milling machine to grind & sharpen his blades to sub-micron accuracy? But for the average punter, even the most careful sharpening usually requires a touch of lateral adjustment for an even shaving (& for hasty freehand sharpeners like myself, sometimes more than a touch!).

Cheers,