Hi All,
I want to make a dedicated 1/4" grooving plane. Main reasons for making, as opposed to buying an ebay cheapie, are that I want a lefty model, and I want the fence to be removable, though probably not adjustable.
For $5, I obtained a nice plow iron, shown below. I'm considering two options:
(1) grind the sides and lop off the top, as indicated by the red lines in the photo. This would in effect create a 1/4" x 6" blade, snecked on top. Then I would build a plane along the lines of Matt Kenny's or Rob Cosman's.
(2) Leave the iron as-is and make a skated plane (here's a thread where Derek Cohen talks a bit about this type of plane-scroll down to post #4 if you're curious).
So, any thoughts about which plan would be better? I think #1 would probably be a little easier; grinding the blade would be tedious, but I've done it before. And the plane construction is very simple. #2 might be a more permanent option, since a steel skate will never wear out. And it might be a nice intro to making skated planes.
Which option would result in a more stable bed for the blade? I have no experience with plows. And which option would be best for mitigating tear-out? These are my main concerns.
Anyway, if y'all have thoughts, let me know. Thanks!
-Steve
photo-16.jpg