First DIY plane

[Brent Cutshall]

Hello everybody, for those who aren't aware, I posted a thread about a side beader iron that I needed a body for. I had decided to make one already and Jim Koepke and Chuck Nickerson wrote in to help me.(thank you to the both of them) But after some work, vilo...vioal...vola, ta-da! Now it might stink compared to other people's planes but hey, it make beads so I'm keeping it in the workshop. It's also the first of many too and I'm proud of it. Not many high schoolers can even use a molding plane let alone make one. I shall sand it and stain it later. Sorry for the bad pictures.

[Phil Mueller]

You should be proud...looks great and works. Nice job!

[mike holden]

Well Done! I like the shape of the wedge.

You are ahead of the 99% who never tried.

Mike

[Lonnie Gallaher]

Brent,

Good job. Making tools is fun. It is more fun when they work as intended. We will be looking for more.

[Jim Koepke]

Very nice looking, especially like the wedge finial.

Not sure about staining. Though it is your plane and you can do as you like. You might consider just giving it an oiling. I like Howard's furniture polish which is an oil and wax mixture. It can take an old dried out plane body and make it look great again. It will surely bring out the beauty in a fresh piece of wood.

jtk

[Frederick Skelly]

Good job Brent! Be sure to let us see more of your work.

[Kees Heiden]

I think it is a great job, especially for the first one. You might want to pay a bit more attention to the fit of the wedge. Also on future planes I wouldn't make the finial of the wedge so vulnerable. You tap the wedge tight with a hammer. Your wedge looks like it will break immediately!

[george wilson]

I agree with Kees about the finial. The cut under the ball needs to be a lot shallower. And the wedge apparently doesn't fit the tapered mortise.

But,a noble effort for your first plane !!

[Andy McKenzie]

It looks nice! I can't tell whether the wedge issue is with the wedge or the photo, but the body looks quite good.

What kind of wood did you use, and can we get a picture of the profile? And how the bead looks when it's cut? That's what really matters, after all!

[Stew Denton]

Hi Brent,

Great job for a first effort! There are a lot of us, like me who have never made even one, and at the same time some like George who have made many that have be classified not only as fine users but also lovely to hold, use, and look at. You will only get better, and you have already made a great start, and your plane making is already way ahead of mine because I have never made one! (Some day I hope to build some also.)

Stew

[Brent Cutshall]

Y'all might have to give me a day or two for the pictures. My family and I have been away on vacation since I've been out of school. And as for the wedge, yes I have already replaced it with a better fitting one. I made it out of white oak. Now, I have had a friend of mine named Drew Langsner, he lives on my road and you all might know him, he says oak doesn't work that good for handles and tools. But I've used oak for saw handles and, my own specialty, ball-headed war clubs for a while now and I haven't caught a snag yet. I do have pictures of my stairway rail with beads on both sides, give me a minute and I'll post pictures.

[Brent Cutshall]

Here's that rail I was talking about. It's not that good but the beads turned out fine. Once again, sorry for photo quality.

[george wilson]

Your plane will work o.k. with the wood grain oriented as it is. But,for best wear and less possible warping,the growth rings need to be rotated 90 degrees,with the "outside" of the tree at the bottom of the plane. It's mostly for non warping on a thin plane like yours,though. Might be hard for you to find quartered beech planks to make them from,however.

[Andy McKenzie]

The results look great! That's what's most important, so I'd be pleased with it if I'd built it!

[Brent Cutshall]

Thanks for the kind words everybody