One of the planes I bought last Saturday. I’m intrigued by the method of construction. Presumably the “C&G” stamp means City & Guilds of London Institute. I wonder if the plane was for the use of the students or else made by one of them?
Well that's an oddity.
It doesn't make sense as a means of construction - there's still a normal mortice in the wide part, so no time was saved by having the screwed-on side.
So my guess is that it's a neat and tidy repair, where some hamfisted student has broken one of the thin cheeks of the top of the mortice.
I'd also think that C&G were the owner - makers never put their names on twice.
I have a vague recollection (and I'm damned if I can remember where I saw it) of seeing that method of construction suggested as an alternative simplified method, the advantage being that the whole 'mortice' can be defined by two sawcuts, and the waste removed rather like a through housing. The 'mortice' is then closed by screwing on the cheek-piece exactly as the example in the photos.
Speculating - could it have been an advanced City and Guilds cabinetmaking exercise sometime in the early 20th century? Something along the lines of 'here's how to improvise a moulding plane if you can't obtain a proper one in a hurry'?
Edit to add - Found it! Hayward's 'How to Make Woodwork Tools', page 16.
CC, Ithink I can see a horizontal line on the end of the plane, level with the rebate, so that sawn method of construction isn't what we have here, is it RXH?
So there was no saving in mortising effort.
Thanks Andy and CC. I suspect that the sawn method has been used and I think it must be easier than making a mortice by chiseling alone. This German plane seems to have been made in a rather similar way.
Looking at the first image posted. I don't see continuity of grain into the 'added' piece, this is to be expected. However I don't see continuity of grain on the other side of the joint either. The other end seems to be as expected.
Could be my eyes of course.
xy