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flh: I had a look on Youtube and enjoyed seeing your bike in action. It makes my 1968 Triumph T120 look like a youngster. Eric: Thanks for the tips.

Thanks to all for your replies. I've done a bit of research and it seems that genuine chrome plating involves very dangerous chemicals and is not advisable to attempt. However, it is nickel plating that I'm interested in so I am tempted to try Gateros but I'll do some more reading first. I'll...

Thanks for all your comments. I started with a piece of round bar stock - it would have been easier to use square but round is what I found in my junk box. I removed some of the waste by milling but most of the work was done with hacksaw, ordinary files and rifflers. The round bit at the...

Here are some photos of my machine that may be useful for comparison with yours. This may be a silly question but have you checked the length of your blade. It should be 73".

Does anyone have recommendations for a supplier of equipment and consumables for electroplating? I am interested in the possibility of nickel plating small items such as tools and motorcycle parts.

I've had a Euro 260 for years and never had any trouble with it. If you can post some photos I'll compare with my machine and see if there is any obvious difference that is causing your problem.

A couple of years ago, before I discovered UK Workshop and the wisdom that it contains, I bought a Brook No.7 plane (pause for gasps of horror). I mainly make small items of furniture and musical instruments and my Record No.5½ was the largest plane I felt the need for until I set out to make a...

I have found that ash, beech and yew can also be tapped using taps intended for metal bolts. Metric coarse or Whitworth threads work best. Ash can even be tapped in a hole in end grain. I made this three piece hill walking stick in ash several years ago and the threaded joints have survived...

Here are a back bent gouge and a spoon chisel that I made from silver steel. There is no need for bolsters because they are not intended to be struck. The handles are of yew and pear respectively. The ferrules are ordinary copper plumbing tube.

Yes Mignal, that brass tube method looks a quicker way than mine and the result looks very nice. Thanks for showing it to us. OK Favino, I’ll try and describe my way better. First I made the two blocks that are the “meat” in the “sandwich” (a UK sandwich, that is :) ). Then I clamped the...

Thanks Favino. I'll take photos if I make another one. Ibex make good little planes. A UK stockist is Touchstone Tonewoods.

Thanks to all of you for your comments. I have a number of books and series of magazine articles on violin making but I wouldn’t recommend any of them as a complete guide for a beginner, so I am pleased to see the recommendation for the Courtnall Johnson book (and I have ordered a copy). To...

Thanks. I'm self taught in violin making (and in metalwork).

This is another of my plane making efforts. It is made from 1/2" square MS bar stock and 3/32" thick MS plate held together by five 3/32" dia. rods and one 1/8" dia. rod. The rods were hammered to spread them into countersunk holes and then filed flush with the sides. The blade is made from...

As Jim says a soft steel or brass rod should do the trick. Find an ordinary round wire nail of a suitable diameter and file the head down to a smaller size if necessary. Cut the nail so that that about 2mm will protrude when it is inserted. Rest the head on a resistant flat metal object (e.g...

The adjustable mouth is now added. Maple and brass added to the list of materials.

Here are some details of the adjuster construction, as requested by Richard T. The brass disc is glued to the plane to provide a sliding surface and prevent contact between moving metal and wood. The brass tube was made by drilling a piece of 3/8" OD bar and is glued into a hole in the handle...

Here are some details of the Bob Wearing smoothing plane and scraper plane designs I found. Also a Marples ad. from May 1960. It looks like hybrid type planes were popular at that time.

Many thanks to all of you for your kind and knowledgeable comments. I believe I have now found where the design comes from - it is almost certainly a Bob Wearing design. My father did not possess the books mentioned but he did buy the Woodworker magazine. As I mentioned, the original knob did...

This plane was found at the back of a cupboard in my parents’ house. It must have been there undisturbed for at least 25 years and was evidently an unfinished project by my late father. As you can see, it is fabricated rather than carved out of a single piece of wood and was coming unglued. No...