Project working

My likes:

• The blade seems to hold an edge forever, even though 100% of its wear is limited to the half inch in the middle.

• It is comfortable to use as the tote is the same one used on the No. 3, a size that seems to be just perfect for my hands.

• It also does an excellent job at producing a very true and even chamfer, for miles, if need be.

• The wood has a beautifully patina.

• I think it is one of Stanleys better designed tools, an excellent example of design following function.

My dislikes:

• Registering it properly at the beginning of the stroke is next to impossible (On a power planer, the problem is always at the end of the board and its called "snipe". What do you call the same issue at the beginning of a board when using a hand plane).

• It lacks a blade adjuster, something I truly hate in any plane (now there is a statement you dont want to hear from someone who collects wood molding planes).

• It sells for a ridiculous price.

So all that said, what bugs me to no end with it?

Its condition.

The japanning on the main casting is just...well...sad.


The V-Sole has some lumps and craters that came with the plane from the factory, I believe.


The japanning on the adjustable sole is almost none-existent.



The blade cap isnt too bad, but it has its issues.


Its a "B" casting.



I paid another $225 for the beading attachment, but Im still looking for the bullnose.

The question is, what do I do with it?


I sent my Miller Falls eggbeater off to Wiktor Kuc, over at WKTools.com three months ago. Mr. Kuc broke his wrist just after that, and that put him out of commission for a while, so the return of it is understandably delayed. One of my requests when I set it to him, though, was he not make it look like a brand new drill. That look is impressive, but not the look I like in a vintage tool and remember, to me, looks are half the battle.

So how do you deal with missing japanning without having it come back looking like a repainted plane?

I found a guy who restores planes on eBay and I really like what he does with these old planes, but the problem I have is that they do not look like old planes any more. I emailed him with my thoughts, and Steve assures me he is well equipped and experienced to deal with it within my requested limitations.

If the plane can be redone without looking like a remake, I then have to be concerned about the value of the tool. Will refurbishing it increase its value, or decrease it?

Oh, what do you do with an old seventy-two (sorry, I like that rhyme).

Peace,

Mitchell

Will has started construction a pair of our classic half round tables. Weve made maybe 20 versions of this design over the years, 3 legs, 4 legs, paint and natural, paint and stain, etc., but for some reason, none in the last couple of years ... styles change I guess. These clients bought one of our cherry and burl dining tables about 10 years ago and it was nice to have a visit with them at their table while we were working on the final designs. Half round tables involve lots of nice jigs and processes and I will try to keep up with the whole deal here as we go along ... Click the photos to enlarge them.
Close up showing edge inlay
The cad drawings with a little extra perspective added manually.
First step was to layout the taper of the legs and make this two step jig for cutting the four tapers on the table saw. The 3/4" plywood base is 6" wide and the angled guide blocks are set using the pencil lines laid out on the first leg blank. Two adjacent sides are cut with the clamps in the #1 position and then the clamps are moved to where they are in the photo and the final two tapering cuts are made. We find its best to layout and cut the dadoes for the break moldings and cut the mortises before we do the tapers. that way you are working with rectangular stock.
Here Will is assembling the forms he needs to glue up the curved aprons. These tables are not half rounds but are custom size (45.75" x 19.5") ovals so none of our existing forms would work. The CNC though can make extremely short work of cutting the ply pieces for the forms quickly and accurately.
The forms are lined with a layer of cardboard and the laminates are glued with Elmers white or yellow, or Titibond, as you wish.
Here are some glued up pieces and two sets in the clamps ... After the outside final 1/8" veneers are all glued to the core stock, the laminates will be jointed and ripped to width on the table saw. Then well add the borders and do the joinery.
The cherry tops will have our standard trapezoid edge inlay ... details of that coming soon ...

A Closer Look at Mortising using a Brace and Bit

I had a few comments from my last post and thought it would make sense to answer them here. Been busy this week so I apologise for the delay. To start off with, no...I wont be publishing the address of my clients home where this door is destined so you can do a drive by...they may not think thats such a good idea! :) As for a template, I tried to get some shots of the one I made; sorry for the quality but with the low ceiling in the basement shop I cant get the entire template in one shot so Ill try to sketch a diagram for my next post. I basically just cut out a piece of luan to match the finished door size and then carefully drew to scale all of the elements of the finished piece...joinery, rails, stiles etc... I was asked about the process Ive been using to cross cut the rails with a inadequate size back saw. I actually took a few approaches to this and will describe it here; for the bottom rail as well as the mid-locking rail I started the cut on the board edge to establish a square kerf on either side. I then proceeded to make two passes working in from each surface. This worked well and the edge kerfs gave a track for my back saw to follow. The upper rails are thinner in width so I just made the two surface cuts meeting somewhere in the center of the board. When I lay out these lines Im careful to work off of only my reference face and edge to keep things as accurate as possible. Once the sawing is complete Ill use a large paring chisel when it comes time to square off the end; if I was working with thinner stock then this would be accomplished on my shooting board but for 1 3/4" stock I prefer a chisel to say a low angle block plane. (Just my personal preference-either way works.) I hope that explains the cross cut system I follow; I should say that I used my bench hook as well as my miter hook for these large timbers...you can see my set up in the first photo. I considered my saw bench and did a test cut with my panel saw but with my limited shop space and the nature of this Oak I had better results with my large Lie Nielsen back saw. (still waiting for the Bad Axes to arrive...wont be soon enough!!) With everything cross cut, ripped and surface planed square I lay out the mortises. These will be 5/8" thick and range from 2 1/2" to 3" deep. They all have 1" deep by 1" wide haunches but will be later cut down when the door panels get introduced. The 3" ones are on the stiles and wider lower rails and the 2 1/2" for the top 5" rail. The upper window rail gets a relatively shallow 1" mortise. I actually started with that one to get into the feel of the Oak and get a rhythm for the work. I have a great old Millers Falls brace I cleaned up about 4 years ago and its been my daily user ever since. Its a standard 6" sweep but I dont have any issues with this smaller size. A sharp, straight bit really helps as well and Im using a vintage Irwin auger bit I purchased for a couple of dollars at a local antique dealer. It only has one spur and is a perfect size...9/16" so Im left with a small amount of waste to clean off the inside cheeks of each 5/8" mortise after drilling. This is a good thing-Id never want to use a bit the exact size of my finished mortise due to the slight tear out and human error involved in the process. Even after I clearly define a center mark to register my bit some holes seem to drift ever so slightly. I figure this is mainly due to fatigue and mind meandering while performing the task. A reader mentioned using a brace with a 10" sweep...I would love to find one sometime; I can only assume it would make this process a little less demanding on the arm muscles but again, my old Millers Falls seems to be up for the challenge. When starting out the hole Ill check for plumb with a small engineers square placed along side the bit. Ill slowly get into the wood fiber and check again on the opposite axis. Begin working down and stop frequently to remove the waste. I just blow this off and never have to back out the bit. I should also mention my elaborate system of depth gauge...the ball of blue tape around the bit is it...nothing could be simpler. I should probably drill out a long piece of wood and cut it to length again placing it on the bit while I drill...this would indeed result in more accurate depths but these mortises dont have to be exact. Close to about 1/32" but not exact. Its only end grain meeting down there so as long as theyre deep enough I dont worry too much.
The following is a quick clip of my process...one thing to notice is which hand Im using where. Im right handed so this goes at the top of the brace; I think the natural tendency would be to use your stronger arm for the turning motion but this is inaccurate. Use your leading hand to hold the brace secure and square and your other hand to turn. A bit of practice and youll be reaching for the ol brace all of the time.

"Unplugg the drill and wrap your hand around the words of working man..."