New Jack plane test drives, and the fixes are done

[steven newman]

Did not go too well. But, that is why they have a test drive for. First the track. Old Barn Siding, with the tongue still in place (almost) and a trip along with the #31 Jointer to get things leveled out for the test

 

 

Seems there used to be a groove thing going on here.   Anyway, after a bit of hammer work to set the iron just so

 

 

Ah, little curlies? Hmm, got the tongue planed down to get a wider base for the plane

 

 

A little bit better..

 

Found out a few things from this test drive

 

 

1) wedge is way too short, allowing the iron to chatter along ( the short curls0

 

 

2) mouth was cut WAY too big by the idiot with the saw (guess who that would be)

 

 

 

Fixes planned for this plane:

 

 

1) make a new, longer wedge. And adjust the eyes a bit, as one is a bit bigger than the other (happens0

 

 

2) make a 1/4" or so  thin patch, chisel out a spot ahead of the mouth opening. insert the patch close to the edge of the iron. This will close up the mouth, and still allow mr to plane the sole to keep thing flat over time.

 

 

 

Lessons learned.Will apply these to any more i build. Might make a smoother later....

 

[lew]

I'm sure after you make the mods it be perfect!

[steven newman]

Got out some tools to fix this ugly looking thing

 

Like I said, that idiot with the saw can't saw a straight line to save his ....

 

So, I had a block of scrap that was cut off the plane's blank. Split off a chunk from it to make the patch

 

 

BIG hammer, BIG chisel, set the block on the leg of the bench. Couple of GOOD hits and we have a piece to make a patch with. Was a bit oversized, so, that block plane did some trimming, a 50 grit belt on the sander smoothed it down a bit. Then some finer grade toys took over to cut a spot for the patch to go into

 

 

Clamped the toe to the bench, and made sure the "work area" was over the bench leg. Chop, fit, cuss, chop, fit, and cuss some more. Did enough of each until the patch fit in. I can come back after the glue cures and plane it smooth. Big block acted as a caul for the glue up

 

 

set it aside for awhile. Now, about that wedge that was way too short the iron would chatter? Had a chunk of Barn Rafter sitting around, doing nothing special

 

 

 

Hmm, more uglier. Anyway, it was close to the thickness I wanted. Grabbed the sabresaw and made a blank. Cut the two prongs as I went. Then back to the belt-sander to make a slight ramp. Block plane to straighten the edges a bit. Test fit without the iron looked good, wedge goes all the way to the sole.

 

The "OEM"alnut wedge in front, the New Model wedge in the rear. Black mark is from a cut nail that is long gone away.

 

 

Awaiting the glue to cure out, then a few swipes with a jack plane to flatten the sole. Then we will see about a second test drive. Stay tuned...

 

 

 

[Charles Nicholls]

Looks great so far, will check back to see how it's going.

[steven newman]

Well, the clamps came off a while ago. Used the Stanley #5-1/2 to smooth the patch down, and gave the sole a few swipes to make it all flat

 

Not perfect, but it will do. Tried it out on that strip of wood there

 

 

We be making ribbons now. tried the block plane out, too

 

 

Yep, that is a Stanley Cordovan 9-1/2 block plane. Worked on the two tabs that hold the wedge in place, to get them at least even. Called eyes. When I was done doing them, I found the new wedge was too skinny, so... dug up the barn wood plank, and made a third wedge. A wee bit thicker, but it holds the iron better, almost all the way to the iron's edge.

 

 

yep, I can whale on it's fat rear end now. Iron is tight, no chatter. Iron does sit at 50-55 degrees though, due to that idiot with the saw. Makes it a wee bit harder to shove along.

[steven newman]

Might make another one, sometime. Next time, the saws will be better, and maybe I can follow a line with them.

 

 

Will be out and about Thursday ( picking up a van?) and maybe a Rust Hunt or two. If I find a couple decent irons on junky planes......

 

 

[John Morris]

Moving another Newman project up from the archives!