FWW article-OT
Adam Cherubini, NJ
>I told myself I wouldn't do this but the recent thread about FWW makes this topical.
The article below was written for you guys (and gals), but after finishing it, I thought a wider circulation could be possible. I editted it some and submitted it to FWW. They accepted it.
During the editting process, I was asked a few times to essentially add a tool review section. Frankly I didn't want to do a tool review for two reasons:
1) The article is about a technique and as such fits into a long heritage of FWW technique-based articles.
2) I didn't want to imply that you must spend a lot of money on a plane. In fact, I felt the opposite was true. Any plane can work, if your technique is good.
The editor I was working with left the company (I suspect she was my champion) and the article was quickly dropped.
The point I'd like to make is that I suspect the articles are very much the work of the editors and their (in my opinion) narrow interests.
From my knothole, it looks like the technique articles are all tool reviews/ads in disguise. Dunbar seems to have been defanged and pushed aside and I'm sad for it.
Now I know this sounds like sour grapes. In truth, I bear no ill will and look forward to each month's FWW. I love Tools and Shops. But here is the article. You can decide for yourself why it didn't make it.
Using Long Planes or Why your first plane should be a try plane
Try planes are long surfacing planes. The job of the try plane is to flatten boards� faces, and straighten and square their edges. Essentially, the try plane is the 18th century version of the modern power jointer. Once you learn how to use one, you�ll find it works fast enough to be a reasonable alternative to a power jointer�.or a reasonable alternative to a new wider power jointer!
Edge straightening
The try plane is used to straighten edges. With the board clamped on edge, the cut is started some distance in from the back edge of the board and is stopped short of the far end by a similar distance. The plane is moved an additional increment in from the back end, and stopped short by the same amount. The process is continued until the plane ceases to produce a shaving in the center of the board. At this point the board�s edge has been planed into a long concave arc.
The next cut is begun with the blade hanging off the back end of the board and with lots of pressure on the plane�s forward end (toe). As the blade passes the near end and the cut begins, hand pressure is gradually transferred to the back hand. As the blade approaches the far end of the board, all pressure must be on the back end (heel) of the plane. This first pass should only produce a shaving at each end of the board. Repeat the process until one continuous shaving is produced. Now the board is straight. One side benefit of this technique has come to me as I�ve gotten older; I can hear when the board is straight. More and more, I appreciate techniques that don�t require perfect vision! Note that you don�t need a straight edge to know the board is straight.
Edge squaring
Trying to square the edge of a board by holding the plane perfectly square is a fool�s errand. The try plane�s curved iron facilitates the squaring of an edge and the process below can be combined with the edge straightening process above. The board�s edge is first checked for square with a try square. Position the plane laterally so that the center of the plane is on the high edge of the board. The curved plane iron produces a shaving that is thick in the middle and tapers to nothing on the side. The try plane will thus take a thicker cut from the high spot and a thinner cut from the low spot. After a few passes the edge will be square.
As it is likely that the angle is not uniform, the plane can be slid from side to side during the cut to compensate. Thus, if the board is out of square on one end and square on the other, the plane would begin centered on the board�s edge, and end centered on the middle of its thickness.
Flattening
In instances where a board must be flat, the long length of the try plane allows it to ride on, and plane off, the high spots (risings). Like any surfacing plane, the try plane benefits from its curved iron. A curved iron doesn�t leave marks on the wood, corresponding to the sharp square sides of the plane iron. The amount of camber or curvature should be more than that of the smooth plane for reasons mentioned earlier. To flatten a cupped board, plane at a +/-45 degree angle to the grain. This imposes flatness and helps reduce tear out.
Work smarter not harder
I don�t know about you, but I rarely have all the time, shop space, or help I need. I admit I�m impatient. Half way through a project I start thinking about the next job. So I use whatever tricks I can to save time.
� Using wide lumber makes a project look prettier and saves me the trouble of jointing and gluing up (which I do with a different specialty plane called a gluing jointer, by the way). But passing a 16� wide, 8� long piece of 6/4 Pennsylvania Black Walnut over a stationary power jointer isn�t exactly my idea of fun. When working with big, heavy stock, the try plane is easier for me. The 60 lb board gets clamped to my bench and my 10lb plane works the edge straight.
� I don�t like planing out twist. It isn�t easy to do, and it rarely lasts anyway. What I plane out one weekend, tends to come back the next. Plus I loose thickness, which I really don�t like, because I pay extra for thicker stock. When I�m using a wide board to make a case piece, I figure I can restrain some amount of twist with my dovetails. When jointing the edge, its best to clamp-out the twist first by clamping the board to the work bench front, then working the edge with the try plane as usual. You can try to clamp-out the twist then pass the board, the stout timber you clamped it to, and the clamps over the power jointer, but that seems like way too much work to me.
Selecting a try plane
Several good quality try planes with bodies of either metal or wood are available today. All will work fine when tuned correctly. Don�t expect the blade to be curved from the manufacturer. You�ll have to do that yourself. I recommend at least a 1/16� of curvature.
Also, try planes needn�t produce wispy thin shavings in figured woods. That�s what smooth planes are for. Fit and finish matter like always, but the best performance will come from the longest plane, properly sharpened. Stanley traditionally referred to their #7 (22� long) as a try plane and the #8 (24�long) as a jointer. If you had to choose between these two, you�d do better with the longer. I use a second hand 28� long wooden plane. These are readily available and inexpensive. If you have your choice of two long planes, chose the narrower for the try plane and reserve the wider for use as a gluing jointer.
Conclusion
I really love using hand tools, but I can�t honestly say I can work faster or even as fast with a hand tool as I can with a power tool. But of all hand tools, the often overlooked try plane comes the closest to being competitive with its power tool grandson. You can easily work an edge straight before you can clean the paint cans and sandpaper off of your jointer bed!
If you haven�t yet purchased a power jointer, you may be able to get away without one a bit longer. (I don�t recommend using a hand plane on plywood, or MDF, so if you work with these materials a try plane may not help you).
If you�ve already got a jointer, but would like a wider one just to remove twist, a try plane may be a cost effective alternative. You can remove the twist with it, flatten your workbench top with it, or use it when you clamp-out twist.
Because you can concentrate your planing effort on a single area easily, you may be able to make do with a less accurate rip operation. You could rip at your band saw for example and skip buying a table saw altogether (see Gary Rogokowski�s article in Tools and shops �First 5 tools and why none are the table saw�).
