Last Projects 1 .

I am using the last bit of 1/8" bronze that I have had for many years. This plane is going to be lower than normal, very slightly longer and wider, with a lower bed angle of 22 degrees. I have had to make a new wooden template to cut the dovetails. Around the heel I have marked, whilst still in the straight, a small plane with BSC and a star above. I had enough bronze left to mark out one more plane.

This shows the new template, spare bit of bronze for the next plane and how much I have done, in the foreground.

The heel of the plane showing the mark I have struck.

After bending in the vice, I finish off with a sash cramp.

The body assembled, the mouth on the sole finished and the sockets set out.

All the filing is complete and I have put more marks on the sole front and back before assembly.

Again using a blunt chisel.

Still some more work to do on the wedge and iron.

The whole plane soaking in warm raw linseed oil.

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I have started to work on a mitre plane, it will be Bronze with a curved bridge.

I decided to put a tennon in front and rear on the base of the plane.

Cutting the slots for the tenons on the base.

I have cut the slots in the sole, cut the 2 dovetails in the front and just trying it in place.

I spent the day peening, lapping and filing, the body is now finished. I think I will use Rosewood to infill the plane.

The plane is finished and works very well on Boxwood.

A lovely fine mouth.

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The plane I am making is a copy of a very rare Norris 11 all steel mitre plane. Mine will be all bronze and very slightly larger. It measures 6" long x 1 3/4" wide. The original Norris had a swivelling bridge, mine will be fixed. I am waiting for a piece of bronze for the sole. I was going to use steel but have changed my mind. The infill will be boxwood. I can't finish this plane untill I get the bronze for the sole.

This afternoon I took delivery of some bronze, so tomorrow I will start on the sole of my next plane. This time I ordered part of a sheet, about 3' 7" X 12", £230. First time I have had to cut it out of a sheet, this proved a bit tricky it is 3/16" thick.

It took my all day to get this far. Tomorrow Iv'e got to do the through tenon's front and back before I can fix the sole.

The tenons cut and the sole fitted. This time I intend to colour the bronze before putting in the infill and all the filing has to be completed first.

I have put tiny cupidbow dovetails on the sole even though it is all bronze and you can't see them, hoping that at a later date they might just be visible.

I couldn't resist trying to colour it a little with Purma Blue on the bronze even though I haven't finished the filing. (I do like messing)

Today I made and fitted the front and rear infill in boxwood. Inside the front infill I have marked SBC London, which stands for Sarah and Billy Carter. Tomorrow I should finish the plane. The 1987 on the rear bed was when I finished work to make planes.

The plane is now finished.

I decided to make the iron snecked and have soaked the wedge in warm raw linseed oil. Because I have coloured the bronze body before infilling the plane, I have not soaked the whole plane.

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A mitre plane with a Bronze body, with a steel sole and bridge.

2 Bronze tenons coming through the sole.

The finished plane with Boxwood infill.

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I am using my last lever cap and screw which I have had for a long time. I am going to attempt to make an all steel Mathieson type thumb plane but wider than the original. This time it will not have a front infill, again like the original.

The plane is partly finished.

I have worked hard all day and peened and filed the body.

The infill is ready for shaping.

I have finished the plane, a lovely piece of Boxwood.

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I've started to make another plane, bronze body with a steel sole, boxwood infill. It's a fair bit bigger than the last few, 5 3/8" long X 1 3/4" wide.

I have drilled the 2 holes in the body for the lever cap and screw and filed the cupid bow decoration around the top edge of the body.

This shows the finished plane.

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This plane is going to have slightly different dovetail's and cupid bow decoration around the top edge.

Showing how I start the cupid bow decoration.

The front edge.

This is the first time I have done dovetails like this, they remind me of ducks feet.

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This is the Burr Elm I am going to use to infill Charlies plane.

The Burr Elm planed and ready to use.

I worked all day today on Charlie's plane and peened the body ready for the sole. I thought I would give him a cupid bow bridge. He likes cupid bow.

I've made the sole and fitted it, done all the peening and filing, finished the body complete and coloured it with gun blue cream.

The 3 pieces of Burr Elm needed to infill Charlie's plane, this seems a lot of wood for such a small plane, but there are many imperfections in each piece.

I only managed to get one piece of wood out of each piece, when planing the wood it didn't really work like wood and I had to take a very small arris off the edges of the wedge to try and eliminate breakage.

The plane has been soaked in raw linseed over night.

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The pattern is resting on the vice. First saw cut to get 2 sides out of the bronze.

I wanted to use ebony for the infill but couldn't find a piece big enough, so instead went back to my old faithfull, boxwood. When I infill a plane I like to use one piece of wood for the whole plane, front and rear infill and wedge. I found a piece lying around which was sutible for the front and rear infill and it left this one piece below that I could just manage to cut the wedge out of.

As you can see it was a tight squeeze, but worth the effort, as when the plane is finished the colours will match up.

Nibbling away with a hacksaw.

I have drilled 3 holes in each side, with a little bit of 3/16" rod holding them together while I saw out the dovetail's.

The 2 sides almost finished showing where the lever cap will fit.

This shows all the body parts.

Trying the tongue and groove for fit.

I have placed the side edge on the sole, marked the dovetail's and cut the sockets out. I have a vertical line on the bronze side for the rear mouth, which I lined up on the sole where I wanted it, before I scribed the sides of the dovetail's onto the sole.

I have now done both sides of the sole, started to put the sides in place. I haven't knocked them fully home as it is difficult to part them once this is done. I now know they will fit as they are very tight in order to pull the mouth joint closed.