I'm trying...I really am...

[Harold Burrell]

Little by little, I am trying to do more and more of my work with hand tools. I enjoy it. I really do.

Anyway...this past weekend, I was attempting to edge joint 2 boards with my hand planes. The boards were about 3ft long and 3/4" thick. I clamped them in my leg vise with their opposing faces together (I'm not sure if that is how you describe it, but you know what I mean) and started going at them with my #8.

I was getting a good full-length shaving. So I then took them out of the vise and put them together to check my progress...



Gaps on either ends that I could have put my head through...(well, not quite, but definitely unacceptable).

OK. I know that I need to work on my technique. And I know that I need to try and "scoop" the cut more. I also know that whatever mistake(s) I made was mirror-imaged and, therefore, doubled when I put them together. But...COME ON!

I almost tried to convince myself that this was what I wanted. You know, the whole "spring joint" thing.

Which makes me wonder...was the whole "spring joint" method created by guys who could never get this right???

Anyway...just wanted to vent and whine. You know, my wife wouldn't really understand. *sigh*

[george wilson]

A small spring joint is the correct way to glue up long boards. But,not too much hollowness or the board will eventually pull the glue loose.

[Robert Hazelwood]

It's pretty easy to make a convex surface, even with a long plane. So I usually do short stopped strokes starting in the middle of the length, as if I'm trying to make a hollow. Gradually make the strokes longer until I'm making through-shavings. And I'll stop after the first through-shaving, because taking any more will usually result in some amount of convexity.

[Mel Fulks]

Charles Heyward wrote about and explained sprung joints more than anyone else I know of, but some today are dismissive. I've used them since the early
1970s and never had a panel ,interior or exterior, open up. They can be done on a power jointer, and except in a few
special cases with old repair work , that's what I've always done. Certainly can be done with a hand plane.

[Patrick Harper]

Harold, one of the most important things you can do is check your progress regularly. This was one of the hardest lessons for me to learn. An easy way to get rid of a convex edge is to take short strokes from the middle, just until your jointer will no longer take a shaving. Then go from end to end just until you get a full length shaving. This has worked very well for me. It even works for flattening faces with a Jack and/or Jointer.

[Harold Burrell]

Harold, one of the most important things you can do is check your progress regularly. This was one of the hardest lessons for me to learn. An easy way to get rid of a convex edge is to take short strokes from the middle, just until your jointer will no longer take a shaving. Then go from end to end just until you get a full length shaving. This has worked very well for me. It even works for flattening faces with a Jack and/or Jointer.

"Short strokes from the middle"...do you mean in both directions?

[Patrick Harper]

No, just with the grain like normal. This will create a slight hollow, which will give your jointer plane support at each end of the board. This will make it a lot harder for you to accidentally make the edge convex.

[Harold Burrell]

No, just with the grain like normal. This will create a slight hollow, which will give your jointer plane support at each end of the board. This will make it a lot harder for you to accidentally make the edge convex.

Thanks for the replies all.

Patrick...please forgive me for my foolish questions...and, yes, I am probably over-complicating this...but should I start my cut then in the middle? Or, perhaps, at 1/3 or so?

[Warren Mickley]

A lot of beginners think that the plane is supposed to do the work and that if it does not yield a flat surface, they must be holding it wrong or something. Instead the idea is that the plane is used to remove the high spots. Use a straight edge to survey the landscape and make a mental picture of the highs and lows. Then use the plane only on the high spots until they have been eliminated. It is nice to take a full length shaving once the edge is already flat. If the edge is convex, don't plane either end until it is no longer convex. If it is concave, don't plane the middle until it is no longer concave.

For a beginner it might be helpful to flatten the edge with a short smoothing plane to disabuse oneself of the notion that the plane is doing the correcting rather than the operator.

[Pat Barry]

Gaps on either ends that I could have put my head through...(well, not quite, but definitely unacceptable).

OK. I know that I need to work on my technique. And I know that I need to try and "scoop" the cut more. I also know that whatever mistake(s) I made was mirror-imaged and, therefore, doubled when I put them together. But...COME ON!

I almost tried to convince myself that this was what I wanted. You know, the whole "spring joint" thing.

Which makes me wonder...was the whole "spring joint" method created by guys who could never get this right???

The answer is yes, tis better to be a wee bit sprung as you say. On the other hand, that implies a gap in center, not the ends. There is no doubt that 'perfectly' straight is the way to go but when in doubt spring it out. LOL

[lowell holmes]

If your just starting out, you may not know about using the edge of your plane as a straight edge to check for straightness.
It helps me when I'm planing an edge.

[Harold Burrell]

A lot of beginners think that the plane is supposed to do the work and that if it does not yield a flat surface, they must be holding it wrong or something.

Yep. That would be me.

Thanks for the info.

[Brian Holcombe]

Personally I just lead in a few inches and stop short a few inches.

If you do not have a ground straight edge I would recommend picking one up, it can save you a lot of headaches. Many people just lean the plane on edge and sometimes I do that for quick reference but I generally prefer a straight edge since.

If I need something to be very precise I will use a feeler gauge to find highs and lows.

Edit; looks like warren beat me to it.

[Patrick Harper]

Thanks for the replies all.

Patrick...please forgive me for my foolish questions...and, yes, I am probably over-complicating this...but should I start my cut then in the middle? Or, perhaps, at 1/3 or so?

Yeah, you're over thinking it just a little bit. Just concentrate on taking shavings from the center 2/3rds - 3/4ths of the board until you create a slight concavity.

[Judson Green]

Personally I just lead in a few inches and stop short a few inches.

If you do not have a ground straight edge I would recommend picking one up, it can save you a lot of headaches. Many people just lean the plane on edge and sometimes I do that for quick reference but I generally prefer a straight edge since.

If I need something to be very precise I will use a feeler gauge to find highs and lows.

Edit; looks like warren beat me to it.

Yeah I do the same, might start in farther/stop sooner with longer boards till I get the convex I'm looking for then I'll take one (or more till there's the cut is smooth) final pass full length.

A good long level will also work just fine for a straight edge, it does for me. If I see just a bit of light under the level in the middle I know the joint should be good.

You'll get it, just keep at it! And once you do it'll be easy peasy.