Tiny wooden plane, but what’s it task?

[AdrianUK]

A small 4” plane, unusual design so it must have had a particular task in mind.
Small rebate was initial thought, but the sole is slightly convex, so not sure. The cutter is also thickly tapered for such a small plane.
Assume is likely artisan made, certainly has some good age and is a attractive little plane.
Any thoughts?

 

[MARK.B.]

Cutting curved rebates maybe

 

[Droogs]

Part of a coachebuilders self made set of planes for inny and outy curves on coaches Alomg the line of these

 

[Adam W.]

Furniture and circular joinery such as windows.

I've got quite a few small boxwood planes, which are quite similar. Some are home made and some are factory made.

Nurse Invicta were selling them in their catalogue of1902.

 

[IWW]

Could be useful in some patternmaking tasks, too. The nose looks quite fragile, so whoever made & used it (it does look well-used) was a careful craftsman, methinks.

I think we moderns tend to forget how readily the craftsmen of a century & more ago made & adapted tools for specific purposes, many of which have vanished along with the objects they were used to create (or are now done by CNC machines!) ....

 

[Ozi]

What would be used to cut the groove to fit the lid into a barrel?

 

[Jacob]

With interesting old tools there's always the possibility that they are still with us because though nobody has found a use for them nobody could quite bring themselves to bin them. I've a got quite a few that fit the bill! Their day may come.

 

[Adam W.]

What would be used to cut the groove to fit the lid into a barrel?

Coopers have their own specific wooden planes and they are quite unlike anything else, with names like chiv, croze, swift and sun plane.

I think the chiv does the rebate for the lids and the croze does the bevel. It could be the other way round though.

 

[Adam W.]

With interesting old tools there's always the possibility that they are still with us because though nobody has found a use for them nobody could quite bring themselves to bin them. I've a got quite a few that fit the bill! Their day may come.

Found these in a US auction catalogue. It doesn't say what they were used for, but I think they look very well made.

 

[AdrianUK]

Thanks everyone, all useful information.
They look very similar to the images from Droog, thanks, so fine joinery of some sort.
I was in two minds as to whether they were manufactured or artisan made, be interesting to see the Nurse catalogue mentioned.
The toe is unfortunately is cracked, but as Jacob says, can’t throw it away, it may no longer be useful in today’s modern world, however, it earns its keep just by its small size and looks.
Thank again

 

[Droogs]

What would be used to cut the groove to fit the lid into a barrel?

A cooper would use a "croze" for doing this

 

[boggy]

The word croze has always puzzled me as the French equivalent tool is the 'jabloir'. Croze must be derived from the French 'creux' which means a hollow. Any etymologists out there?

 

[Droogs]

Yep, from middle french for groove, rut

 

[Concizat]

I have a house in La Creuse and yes it's in a hollow. At least it was last time I got to visit it thanks to Covid