The right tool for the job...

[Jelly]

Tonight, I made a rebate plane specifically for roughing out the field on some panels for a bookcase (which inspired me to finally stop lurking and join)...

I'll happily admit that it's pretty rough and ready, being built from scrap pine, a dowel i found lying about, an old doorknob for a tote, the sole is made from some keruing offcuts and the iron is one i found in a cigarbox full of plane irons that a friend found when they moved in, and i'm waiting to get it re-ground and heat-treated by the toolroom at work tomorrow before trying the plane out.

However, (getting back to the point) the experience has made me wonder how many of you have built or modified tools to carry out a specific job/operation?

Edit: Added attached pictures.

 

[Sheffield Tony]

I've had a go at making a few things; my molding plane attempts weren't all that successful, if truth be told. The one thing that does the intended job rather better than I had hoped is my scrub plane. By way of a stark contrast to the thing of beauty we are watching the making of in another thread , here it is :

All the wood was once part of a sofa. I think it is hemlock and meranti, but I might be wrong The iron is a bit of M3 which was once a power hacksaw blade. The only power tools used were for grinding the iron.

 

[bugbear]

I've had a go at making a few things; my molding plane attempts weren't all that successful, if truth be told. The one thing that does the intended job rather better than I had hoped is my scrub plane. By way of a stark contrast to the thing of beauty we are watching the making of in another thread , here it is :

All the wood was once part of a sofa. I think it is hemlock and meranti, but I might be wrong The iron is a bit of M3 which was once a power hacksaw blade. The only power tools used were for grinding the iron.

Great tool!

BugBear

 

[jimi43]

I think there is a serious amount of understatement going on on both of the examples here.

I simply love the approach of making tools simply and especially out of other bits and pieces...mind you...a sofa is way out there on the recycling genius! And a door knob! =D>

It is important to understand that a plane is just a hand holding device the key part of which is the iron. Everything else is just refinement and anybody making any tool has my admiration...especially if it works so well.

I am really excited by this thread to see how other ingenious options surface...I am sure we have a lot of people here who have built planes in the past...I can think of dozens I have seen...and I hope they all pop up and share their skills.

Jim

 

[Jelly]

Whilst resourceful, mine is definately a bodge job, I intend to drill through to create a pair of bolt on fences, one with a stanley knife blade as a nicker; it's very much intended to be disposable (and thus will likely become indispensible to me )

The whole point in case you're wondering is to let me shape the panels with my current moulding planes, to fit stiles and rails rebated with my existing grooving plane.