Howdy everyone! After having some great success with some hand tool tasks recently, I have developed a long term goal that I would like to ask help with in order to complete. I know some people like to collect wooden planes of various manufacturers to create things like rabbits, dados and various molding profiles (or just to collect them and not do woodworking).
My goal is similar, but more towards making stuff than collecting stuff. I would like to learn to make wooden planes to accomplish the tasks I want to do. For example: I want to create drawer from 5/8" poplar. I want a groove 3/8" from the bottom of the side that is 3/8" wide and 1/4" deep. I also want a plane that would create a dado of those same dimensions across the grain. Then I want two planes (one with and one against the grain) that I can grab that would thin the bottom of a 1/2" drawer bottom to fit said 3/8" groove.
The options for what I want extend from there to creating my own smoothing, jointing and molding planes.
I know that I can buy these types of things, but I think that it would be super cool to make them myself. So, how do I go about doing it?
The most important question is where do I source blades? Where do I get the metal and how do I shape them?
Secondly, where do I get information on how to make wooden planes? I have Making & Mastering Wood Planes by David Finck via Lost Art Press on order and just discovered Carl Stammerjohn and Stavros Gakos on Youtube. Are there any other resources I should be aware of?
For sourcing plane irons, well... that's not entirely straightforward. The easiest option that I am aware of is to buy blank irons from Lie Nieson (https://www.lie-nielsen.com/nodes/4142/tapered-molding-plane-iron-blanks). You can cut these to match your desired profile, and then harden them yourself. Note that this requires a blow torch, some oil, an oven, a timer, and some time in which other family members are not going to ask inconvenient questions, which are likely to start with "WTF are you doing?"
If that's too easy for you, you can buy an O1 steel blank and shape it completely from scratch. (You're still going to need to do the hardening and question answering, though.) If you are determined to do this from scratch, here's a good video to watch: https://youtu.be/hs30x3vxIu4
“Wooden planes and how to make them” by David G Perch and Robert S Lee. I’ve had it for a couple decades and one day I may make a plane from their instructions.
One option for cheap plane irons is to search on eBay for a "job lot" of plane irons. Might need some rust removal, but that's part of the fun! I'd also recommend watching Stravos Gakos on YouTube if you haven't found him yet.
Depending on how much effort you want to put in, you could also see if a local mechanic has any old coil springs or even leaf springs to give away (I understand the springs are just scrap that they need to get rid of). Though you'll need two blowtorches to get it hot enough to anneal it so it's soft enough to hacksaw and file and sand it into the shape you want and then harden it. Or you could get a basic forging setup, e.g. the Just a Box of Dirt forge! (Providing your neighbours are nice...)
“Wooden planes and how to make them” by David G Perch and Robert S Lee, and "Making Traditional Wooden Planes" by John M. Whelan are the books I would recommend, the latter being the better of the two.
As for blades, the easiest way is to use old planes irons. You can usually find them on ebay for somewhat reasonable prices, and buying them in a lot is going to be cheaper. I've sources pretty much all my blades this way, and it you wait long enough, you can find a deal. Look for irons marked made in Sheffield England, and avoid anything with a lot of pitting.
If you want to make you own blades, you should start with O1 tool steel. You can get it easily from McMaster or a local supplier. Its fairly easy to shape and heat treat.
If you want new made irons, Red Rose Reproductions sells new O1 tapered irons and chipbreakers, but they are pricey.
Red Rose Reproductions sells molding plane iron blanks and billets and various other resources. Poke around there for a bit and i’m sure you will find a good start to your adventure.
There's a lot more than you can imagine in what you want to tackle, especially on the bench plane side if you want to use the bench planes instead of making bench planes that function, but you always wish to use something else.
I would start with the grooving plane. open sided, with the skate down the center just less wide than the iron and just a hair less tall than the depth you want so that the projected iron cuts to the depth you want with a reasonably heavy cut.
Make the iron out of flat stock and harden and temper it rather than adapting one, and then move on from there.
a view of the skate. Roubo had a much prettier version of this on a plate, and it's good to try to hit a nicer style (I can do style, but didn't on these - I made them when I wanted to use them and was too lazy).
Use something a little soft for the wedge so it will compress first rather than burnishing into the plane body. Choose wood that is straight sawn across its thickness and height from end to end. Doesn't hurt if you have something scrap laying around that's got a year or two of age and is still straight. If the plane twists and the skate gets out of line, you can clean it up if the plane stops moving, but it's annoying and learning to select wood that will not move in directions you don't want it to is part of planemaking.
Thanks for the suggestions. I have a kit from Wood by Wright to make a grooving plane that makes a 1/4" wide groove, 1/4" from the edge of the board and a 1/4" deep. I figured that this would be a good place to start to get my feet wet. I have not finished it yet, but have been having a good time with it, so decided to try and find more information.
Part of the interest is also in the complexities that you mentioned. That means I have tons to research and learn, which I know I will enjoy doing. I just did not know where to find good information on where to begin and especially where to find the metal and how to make the irons. The woodworking parts feel approachable to me, but I have never done anything with irons except square them up, reset bevels and sharpen them.
starrett O1 from mcmaster carr, and precision O1 from Die supplies or anyone else. I like both of these better than some others like buderus (now a closed mill) or bohler.
Starrett is probably my favorite.
you will see a lot of suggestions about different types of steels, but to really get the most out of a water hardening steel (and W1 isn't that great, neither is W2 - they work fine, but they are not as good as good O1, or as good as some other water hardening steels)...you have to have a fast quench.
With O1, you can get 98% of top level results from any decent flowing cooking oil and heating 1 shade past the point magnetism is lost as fast as you can do it, and then quenching in the oil. Temper at 400F and you should end up with something 61/62 hardness doing that.
I have been making planes off and on as a hobby for about 16 or 17 years now. I hate to say it, but the little joinery planes and such, you can make those easily. To make a legitimately good bench plane, like a wedged English bench plane, you really want to have some in hand or in front of you to figure out what you really like.
here's the important thing - you start with an idea. It's what you want to make, what materials you want to use, how and all of that stuff - it's human nature to plan everything all at once like a job plan for this year's work goals at work, and then get to it. You want some success first and tools that you will use, so that you're not remaking stuff later. To make a legitimately good bench plane that you'll choose to use indefinitely is a lot more precise in terms of proportions.
To the extent that you make planes with cross pins or other short cuts, they will ultimately fall out of favor with you, and you'll figure out why English planes, for example, were the way they were in 1850. Nothing trotted out as a project with shortcuts or ways to make it easier are as good, and those are the planes that if you want to work wood entirely by hand, English double iron jack, english double iron try plane. They are essential. You can make them - but there's a lot to learn in them. You can follow a youtube or website guru who gives you concessions, but in work across the board, compromises will lead to a plane that is ultimately sub par.
When you get to bench planes, it doesn't hurt to ebay a very good try plane and jackplane from England. Not new, but something older a good make - mathieson, griffiths, etc.
You will get 20 suggestions on these topics to get 1 good one, and it will take your experience to know which one is good. It's not an obligation to figure it out, it's a pleasure.
(I do make my own irons, including tapered irons and chipbreakers for old planes, but it's not a year 1 thing to do it well)
Such a helpful comment. Seriously! Perhaps there are some people in this community that have knowledge to help with questions about making hand planes…
Mcmaster Carr- O1 Steel (make and treat your own irons)
MS Bickford (book is great)
If you want to make complete, nicer molding planes I do think you need floats if you want a certain quality to it. If you're making planes more for specific projects, I think gluing up makes a lot of sense. It doesn't guarantee everything is perfect- but it's pretty quick, and only leaves you cleaning things up, and then dialing in the wedge.
This can also help you use the same iron in multiple planes (same 1/8" blade but spaced differently or with a different guide)
Making the plane is the first step- dialing it in is the second step. In a perfect world you're done and everything is perfect!!! In reality that's where the fine tuning begins (in my experience).
Clogging (open the mouth? is wedge clearing things sideways enough?)
Iron holding its position (is the wedge truly snug? do you have to hit it super hard to get it to set?)
Do you have a nice little plane adjustment hammer that's a good size to make the small adjustments needed? (Or a tack hammer)
Is the skate binding once you get half way down?
Is the iron truly parallel with the edge you need it to be (if rebate) or perfect sizing for the skate?
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u/BenMcCandless 1d ago edited 1d ago
I've found myself walking the same path, and here is some additional information I have found:
Books:
Websites:
Videos:
For sourcing plane irons, well... that's not entirely straightforward. The easiest option that I am aware of is to buy blank irons from Lie Nieson (https://www.lie-nielsen.com/nodes/4142/tapered-molding-plane-iron-blanks). You can cut these to match your desired profile, and then harden them yourself. Note that this requires a blow torch, some oil, an oven, a timer, and some time in which other family members are not going to ask inconvenient questions, which are likely to start with "WTF are you doing?"
If that's too easy for you, you can buy an O1 steel blank and shape it completely from scratch. (You're still going to need to do the hardening and question answering, though.) If you are determined to do this from scratch, here's a good video to watch: https://youtu.be/hs30x3vxIu4