Highland Woodworking Blog

Beginning woodworkers can take the flat smooth surfaces on our hand planes and other metal tools for granted. And sometimes the seasoned woodworker can as well. Even with the highly accurate grinding and surfacing that occurs at our factory, it can still seem like a bit of a battle pushing some planes across the wood. At least when compared with the same settings, but adding just a quick swipe of paraffin on the sole. I always advise everyone who is trying the paraffin for the first time to make sure they don’t let the tool get away. The first time I used some paraffin, I thought I was going to send the tool flying off the end of the bench. Friction is the enemy. To this end, prevention of friction, or additional friction, is worth the effort. One thing that can certainly add friction is rust. I’m sure most of you have felt a piece of metal that has rusted. It is usually quite rough.

Most people know whether or not they live in an area where rust forms quickly. Many times the areas with elevated rust are near a body of water (ocean, lake, pond…), but high humidity alone will facilitate the formation of Mr. Rust. Obviously (or not so obviously), the bodies of planes made from bronze do not rust, even though the blade is still a potential target for rust. This is because rust is iron oxide. The metals used in most non-bronze planes, however,  are subject to rust. This includes the blade, which is made from steel. Woodworkers will try a multitude of procedures to ward off rust. In our show kits, we will put Jojoba oil onto a rag (Ed. note: camellia oil also works extremely well), and wipe a liberal amount onto all at-risk surfaces. This usually does an excellent job preventing rust formation.  Unfortunately, there can be the rare occasion where even this level of attention is lacking. When we opened up our show kit in Santa Ana California, the tools in the top-most crate were completely covered in rust, but only on the surface facing the lid. And I’m not talking about a few little specs of rust. It looked like the tools had been left out in the rain for weeks, if not months. This kit was in use in Santa Rosa just a week and three days earlier, with no rust. This can be scary, just how fast the heavy rust occurred. Initially we were in shock.

When we finally closed our gaping mouths, we got out our ultra-flat granite plate and a couple of maroon Scotch-brite pads. This combination provides enough abrasive to remove the rust quickly, while limiting the hard metal removal. We made sure to retract the blades, but leave them in the planes, under the same tension as when in use.  Next we applied controlled elbow grease.  I say controlled, since we made sure to keep consistent centralized pressure on whichever side of the plane we were working. If we put pressure onto one edge of plane’s side, there is good chance the flatness of that side would change. This is very similar to the procedure used when sharpening a blade in our honing guide. Centralized pressure results in a square shaped blade, while pressure towards the corners will conversely result in a camber. Strangely enough, even though the rust was covering complete sides of planes, since we’d applied the oil liberally, some of the rust would release when rubbed with a finger.

We worked all of the affected planes, until there was no active rust left. A by-product of rusting is metal staining. Even after the brownish-red active rust is gone, usually there will be some signs that rust was there. If the rust is on a surface long enough, it will also cause pitting in the metal. When the metal pits, it also tends to have rough edges around each pit. These rough areas have a tendency to abrade the wood, so it is unlikely a plane in this condition would provide a useful surface. Luckily, we only had one plane that showed any minimal signs of pitting. The lack of more widespread pitting is likely due to both the diligence shown when applying the oil when packing in Santa Rosa, as well as the short duration since the rust began.

So what can be learned from this? Most tools made from iron or an iron compound are at risk of rusting. Another thing, which in my mind is a bit more distressing, is just how quickly the rust formed. And this was on intentionally protected surfaces. If you live in an area, or take your tools to an area that is prime for rusting, elevate your protection measures. This could include wrapping the oiled tools in Ferro-wrap paper, which is treated with a compound inhibiting rust, or using a paste wax directly on the metal surfaces, or buying a dehumidifier for your tool storage area. Additionally some include desiccant packs in with their tools, to absorb moisture. (Ed. Note: We have found Zerust products are also a great solution: check out the drawer liner and the vapor capsules.)

Try some of these techniques to see what works best for you and your area and also check with some of the local long-time woodworkers, to see what they use.  Do whatever it takes to keep the tool’s surfaces smooth and rust free. You’ll see the difference.

I hope to see some of you at our upcoming events, listed on the Lie-Nielsen website.

Lee Laird has enjoyed woodworking for over 20 years. He is retired from the U.S.P.S. and works for Lie-Nielsen Toolworks as a show staff member, demonstrating tools and training customers.

I talk a lot about both setting up and using hand planes. Probably about 95% or more of my audience will either go to their favorite shop to buy a plane, or work to restore an old family heirloom or a garage sale find. There is another way to obtain a plane, and it brings with it the chance to hone some extra skills: Make a wooden plane.  The majority of my personal planes are manufactured, but I did make a wooden plane about five years ago, and have made a couple more recently. For some reason, the thought of making a plane can seem pretty daunting, but most can make one successfully.

Now, there are really two types of wooden bench planes, in my opinion. One requires a bit more skill than the other.  The first is what you’d likely find in workshops in the 1700s on into the  invention of the metal hand plane (and even beyond for many).  This plane type requires wood to be evacuated from the area that will become the mouth of the plane and up through the body.  In most cases, the body of the plane retains most of its structure.  The second, and in my opinion less demanding plane to make, is one where the wooden body is cut into three base pieces.

Two outside “faces” are removed from the center core. The center core is again cut into three pieces (toe, heel and a left-over that will make the wedge). By having the core separate from the other two pieces, you can easily use saws (table saw, band saw, hand saw…) to make the cuts establishing the “heel” piece which will create the bed for the iron, and on the “toe” piece, the curved relief opposite the bed, so shavings can easily be removed from the plane. The bed is what the iron rests on, while it is in the plane.  Many bench planes utilize a 45 degree angle for the bed, as this is good for the majority of work. If you are working with very figured wood you can change this bedding angle from 45 degrees up to 50, 55 and even 60 degrees. It does become more difficult to push a plane that is bedded at these higher angles, but they do an outstanding job of handling some of the most figured woods.

The wood for the body should be a dense hard wood.  There are many different types of woods that can be used, so it’s basically up to the maker. You can make a plane out of 8/4 wood, with the thickness of the wood as the maximum height of the plane, or you can laminate any thickness of wood where the wood thickness is now the width, rather than the height. This provides more flexibility in the design phase, removing the body height limitation you incur with non-laminated wood bodies, while also keeping the cost down as thicker wood blanks (10/4 and thicker) usually command a higher cost.  One last thing to remember, relating to the wood grain, is you want the grain running from the toe down towards the heel.

Before you make any cuts, I like to drill holes for alignment dowels, in the four corners of the plane blank.  These will allow you to get the pieces back into their original orientation when you are gluing up the pieces, after you’ve cut the blank into the required pieces. The next step is to do some layout. For this stage, it is best if you already have the iron you will use in the plane in your possession. This allows for direct measurement, so things actually fit together after the glue-up. Measure the width of your iron, and then add on between an 1/8” and 1/4”, so you can adjust the iron slightly when setting the plane for work. Center your measurement on the plane blank. Mark lines down the length of the plane, as reference, before beginning your cuts.  One reminder, always cut on the outside of your line, as any material removed from the center section could diminish the available adjustability, or even send you to the grinder in order to remove metal from the iron so it will fit the opening.

Next is cutting the center section into the three sections.  First, choose the angle you want for your iron.  Mark the angle on the outside edge of the center core, with the angle intersecting the sole about a third or so back from the toe.  This cut can be done on a table saw, which can leave a glass smooth surface, or you can use whatever means are available to accomplish the same end results. The other cut line is to a slight arc, coming up from the sole with enough angle so you can reach in to get out shavings. There is nothing hard and fast about which angle you choose.  I chose between 60 – 70 degrees, but you can try some different, if you wish.  This second cut, since it is a curve, is best made with a band saw, or something else that can handle the curvature.  Remember to keep the extra “triangle” piece, for your wedge, and it also comes in handy to back up the side walls when drilling the hole for the cross bar.

Next up is removing material on the bed of the heel piece, so the screw for the chip breaker has enough room for the iron to sit flat on the bed. Measure the screw head and then mark out with a little buffer added on, centered on the bed, from the top down to about a half-inch or so from the sole. This will give you enough range so your plane will function for a long time, even after many many sharpenings. I used my dremel, with a flat bottom bit, to remove the necessary material. I did use one of the attachments that allow the dremel to work much like a mini router, so it kept the depth of cut consistent.

Join us here tomorrow to read the rest: I’ll talk about the process for gluing up and finishing my homemade wooden plane!

This is Part one of a two-part post. To continue to Part two, click here.

Lee Laird has enjoyed woodworking for over 20 years. He is retired from the U.S.P.S. and works for Lie-Nielsen Toolworks as a show staff member, demonstrating tools and training customers.