Forgive me stating the bloody obvious, but as has been pointed out that little wiggly lever thing on a metal plane is there to adjust the iron's squareness.
Not all plane irons are square. Wooden jack planes are traditionally sharpened with a slight curve, mine, (with a 1/4" thick iron) is almost 1/16" proud in the middle when the outer edges are flush. It whistles off the roughness on wide & uneven boards, and if I have the least doubt about how clean reclaimed wood is a few passes tell me. If you see one on sale, do have a go, 300 years of history can't be all wrong, and it's a sight lighter to use than my 18" Stanley No. 6.
My Stanley 4 1/2 is square, heavy and removes plenty in a controlled manner when set for a deep cut.
To lessen the tramline effect on wider stock I round the outer corners of the iron by about 1/32"-- 1/16" by trapping the corner between the top and bottom of an oilstone box and sliding it up and down a couple of times, as you would when re-edging a flat scraper.
I'm not going to offer unsolicited advice on how to sharpen things, but thought those two tips above seem to have fallen out of practice / common knowledge and may help someone new to the game.
PACE
Not all plane irons are square. Wooden jack planes are traditionally sharpened with a slight curve, mine, (with a 1/4" thick iron) is almost 1/16" proud in the middle when the outer edges are flush. It whistles off the roughness on wide & uneven boards, and if I have the least doubt about how clean reclaimed wood is a few passes tell me. If you see one on sale, do have a go, 300 years of history can't be all wrong, and it's a sight lighter to use than my 18" Stanley No. 6.
My Stanley 4 1/2 is square, heavy and removes plenty in a controlled manner when set for a deep cut.
To lessen the tramline effect on wider stock I round the outer corners of the iron by about 1/32"-- 1/16" by trapping the corner between the top and bottom of an oilstone box and sliding it up and down a couple of times, as you would when re-edging a flat scraper.
I'm not going to offer unsolicited advice on how to sharpen things, but thought those two tips above seem to have fallen out of practice / common knowledge and may help someone new to the game.
PACE