Derek Cohen (in Perth, Australia)
I'm interested in how you went about designing this plow. Was there an existing plane that you reverse engineered? Was there a written source you consulted?

Hi Patrick

The only actual plane I handled was a derelict Mathieson wedge arm plough, from which I salvaged the depth stop. It offered a few insights into construction.

There is only one book that has anything on building ploughs, the one by Whelan. This was helpful to conceptualise the process, but the design is quite different. I poured over photos, collecting whatever I could - all types of ploughs - just to get dimensions. There were a few images on the Barrett website, along with a few dimensions. Chris Schwarz added photos and a few numbers in his review of the plane he purchased from them. Rob Lee introduced me to Douglas Orr, who was most helpful with photos from his collection (Douglas is sending me some screws to use, the same ones he gave to the Barretts for their planes). Slowly a picture came together. One of the reasons I included the build on my website is that there is no other manual around. Someone may find it helpful.

Regards from Perth

Derek