This seems like there wasn't a plan of action put in place before William showed up at the LV store.
If it were my job to set this up, a person would have taken the original sales order and duplicated the purchase. Then a person would have been set up to use and become familiar with that plane and the various components William ordered.
When he came into the store with his plane, it would have been set aside and all tutoring would have been done with the store plane. If that worked, there would be an exchange of old for new and the story would be done.
The blade needs to protrude a bit beyond the skates. This cuts the track slightly wider than the skates and prevents heating and binding. If the blade isn't cutting a hair outside of the skate, the skate will tend to push the whole plane to the side. If the opposite side is cutting properly this can make the plane seem to wander toward the side that is cutting and it will spoil the bead or slot being made.
A problem with one of my Stanley #45s is a slightly bowed skate. This does cause binding in a cut and heating of the skate from friction.
Light cuts are key to working in tough grain. If all is going well, then the depth of cut can be increased. If one must go against the grain, it might be better to set the plane up for left hand use:
Stanley #45 Left Handed.jpg
The fence needs to 'drop' along with the depth of the cut or the plane will not stay level in the cut.
Any pressure on the plane in front of the blade can cause the blade to dig in to the top of a bead being cut.
If the skates are just a hair out of true parallel to each other it can cause drifting and binding.
If a cam rest is used it needs to be able to adjust between each cut or it will not keep the plane level. If one makes their own, it needs to be adjustable. The only exception to this is if one is keeping the plane at the same level and adjusting the blade between cuts. This is not a standard method of using a combination plane but is alluded to in the Stanley #55 instructions when guiding on a corner with both fences. The cam rest isn't used in the described procedure.
There is a neat trick to help keep the plane square to the work. My recollection is this was something posted on Youtube by a person who went by the name of Alf. It uses a dowel with something on top to keep from poking the user in the eye:
Holding & Vertical Flag.jpg
There are likely many more little tips that make a big difference not listed above. I am kind of worn out after driving a U-Haul truck from California. 15 hours on the I-5. The best part was a burger in Dunsmire, CA at a place called YAKS. (Yes Another Koffee Shop) It is the only Koffee Shop to my knowledge with 20 craft beers on tap.
http://www.yaks.com/
It was a darned good burger.
jtk