Making a brass infill plane (Hattori Hanzo, DP)

[IWW]

Very satisfying polish you have there, Dan, but it won't last if you use the plane...

There was a time when I read too many magazine articles & felt my plane bottoms should all be shiny & flattened to Hubble telescope tolerances. That meant hours of work on even a medium sized sole. Advancing age & decreasing endurance have modified my opinion a lot on that score. I certainly don't lap beyond 240 grit these days, the scratches left by 240 grit are about the same or slightly finer than our abrasive woods create in use, so there is little point in polishing any more than that. My acid test for a smoother is if it will take full-width, .001" shavings from end to end of a flattened board. If it will, it's done, as far as I'm concerned.

I've just re-habbed an old type 11 #4, which some clown must have hit with a belt sander at some stage in the past. Initial passes over 180 grit showed high & low spots all over. After a half-hour of lapping, the heel & the part of the toe just in front of the mouth are essentially flat, but there is a big dip extending between 12 & 20mm back along the front of the toe. There are also some small chips on the front of the mouth that I will never be able to clean up:

I needed a break at that stage, so out of curiosity, I tested the plane (on some wood that would be unknown in your parts but it's about the same as Beech to plane). Lo & behold! Even,1 thou shavings from end to end.

That surprised me a little, and I'll have another go at getting the sole flat all the way to the toe on some rainy afternoon when I'm bored, but in the meantime, it will serve me well enough....

Jacob will be 'liking' me at this rate....
Cheers,
Ian

 

[Hattori-Hanzo]

Cheers Ian. Polishing the sole was definitely a pursuit in vanity, I did it mainly for the finished photos. Like you've said, even after a little use it's lost it's shine, though it's certainly been the quickest plane that I've lapped so far. I remember the first plane I made I spent 3 days lapping it! My arms shudder at the thought of doing that again

Cheers.

 

[IWW]

.........I remember the first plane I made I spent 3 days lapping it! My arms shudder at the thought of doing that again .....

Yep, know that feeling well!
I've done two panel-planes - you'd think I would have learnt after the first. My shoulders still ache every time I look at them, but are soothed by how well they perform, so I'm getting over it. It's no coincidence, perhaps, that since then I've done a string of minis & nothing larger than the English thumb plane I showed a while back, but someone recently gifted me a piece of 5mm stainless steel plate that should make a very nice sole for a smoother.

I'm weakening.....

Cheers,
Ian

 

[Hattori-Hanzo]

With the body of the plane complete I could move onto finishing the infills and wedge.
I used masking tape to cover the brass to prevent the finish going onto it.

I then pulled out my finest Douwe Egberts French polish. A mix of blonde shellac flakes and denatured alcohol.

I applied the French polish with a simple rubber to the wedge, building several coats.

I used a small piece of cotton pad to polish the infills as the rubber was too large.

I kept building the layers of shellac, around ten or so, then left it to harden

before finally spiriting off with a higher ration alcohol to shellac

The plane was now nearing completion, I took a picture of it next to my record block plane for comparison.

 

[Fred48]

Amazing craftsmanship. I'm really enjoying reading this. Thank you.

 

[Hattori-Hanzo]

With the plane nearly done I was eager to take a shaving.

I was pleased to see it make a cut but the mouth needed some refinement, I used a barrette file to ease it slightly.

With that done I could move onto the box.
I mitred some piece of oak and used masking tape to pull it all together to check the joins.

Once I was happy I then mitred the top and bot of the box

Again using masking tape to pull it all together while the glue dried.

I made the padauk liner in a similar fashion but no need for the top and bottom on this one. Once the glue had dried I polished the seen area leaving a part unfished to be glued to the inside of the oak box.

With the oak box glued together I could cut it in half at the desired angle and begin to polish it.

Next I started to make the retainer for the plane, I removed most of the waste with a forstner bit

Then removed the rest on the band saw before cleaning up with hand files and adding a rebate around the outside.

I could then assemble the box and fully French polish it.

I finished the retainer in black paint and added black card to the top and bottom of the box to finish it,

and finally the plane and box were complete.

I really enjoyed making this one, the curved shape and small size threw up quite a lot of challenges but it was very satisfying thinking of ways to overcome them and to see the plane progress how I had envisioned it.

I couldn't get any video of making the plane but I've done a short clip of it in use if you're interested to see.
Cheers, Dan.



[youtube]v=0DgMm5c5[youtube//]

 

[Droogs]

Outstanding Dan, really well done with that little beauty. You will get a lot of joy using that from now on.

 

[thetyreman]

beautiful plane and an equally nice box to match it as well!

 

[Hattori-Hanzo]

Thanks for the replies chaps and all the likes, really appreciate all your support

 

[imageel]

I've only just come across this thread and was captivated by the quality and skills you have Dan, and also the insightful comments from others along the way.
Truly inspirational work and such fine attention to the design and details - absolutely fabulous and I applaud you wholeheartedly!!
Ed

 

[Wilco Flier]

Very beautifull work! As said above, very inspirational!

 

[mwinfrance]

Absolutely incredible beautiful, like jewelry, gorgeous designs, stunning , precision, and the boxes are the perfect accompaniments.enraptured following your thinking processes and conversations with Ian.I've read this thread in one sitting, it is the most fascinating and interesting piece that I have read in years.
Your photography is excellent.The entire thread made me smile from beginning to end in anticipation of each post.
Please keep making these things, the how and the why of you making them makes the world a better place.magical.
How does one like an entire thread.
Practical Works of Art.