Actually, I don't give a flying fig about "seeing through thin shavings," as you imply!Originally Posted by Paul Atkins
Sometimes I wonder whether people here are using planes as I do, to work lumber down from rough boards to fine finish.
0.001" shavings are, for fine smoothing, far too chunky, especially if you consider that the mic is probably compressing the shaving. I also wouldn't be taking 0.001" shavings to remove 1/8" of stock -- I would go for far woodier shavings than that. (Achieved with a cambered blade.) For me, 0.001" shavings might be the desirable thickness for correcting an out-of-square edge. (Any thinner = too many passes, any thicker = losing too much stock and risking missing the target width of a board).
As far as I am concerned, all other factors being equal, the thinnest possible shaving that a plane can get is a reflection of the flatness of the sole. If someone can't manage to get shavings thinner than 0.002" or 0.003", I would seriously recommend examining the sole. If the mouth is in a concave hollow that is 0.002" deep you are never going to get finer shavings than 0.002". Even if the plane is intended for rougher work, to me, that degree of out-of-flatness is unacceptable. (And I don't believe that I am fanatically in pursuit of elusive flatness -- but come on folks, you need to get within 0.001" over 12 inches.
I fully understand that super-fine shavings are not practical for any purpose other than smoothing (especially difficult wood). However, I have never had a vintage Stanley in my hands that wasn't capable of a sub-0.001" shaving (unless the blade was cambered). So a new plane that can't handle that kind of shaving needs some effort to be put into flattening the sole.
I believe that David Charlesworth also indicates 0.001" shavings as being considered to be "medium" in his workshop.
-Andy
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