Handmade infill plane (woodwork)

[Hattori-hanzo]

Beginning this evening on the lathe again, I started making the lever cap thumb screw.
Much like the tote I want the thumb screw to be larger than normal and a feature.
I machined a piece of brass down to 30mm and added a knurl.
I have to say machining brass on the lathe is a lot nicer than steel.

Next I machined the shaft down to 12mm and added bevels and shoulders to the top and bottom of the wheel.

I cut a thread on the shaft using a 12mm die. I used the tail stock of the lathe to hold the die square to the shaft, doing this helps make sure the thread is straight.
After the thread is cut I gave the thumb screw a light sand and parted it off.

Next I made the pivot rod.
I started by machining a piece of brass down to just over 8mm. I wanted the rod to be a tight push fit into the lever cap through hole.
this stage took a bit of time to get right as the fit had to be perfect. To tight and it wont go on, too lose and there will be too much play in the lever cap.

I then machined the other end of the rod to 10.3mm and put a 2mm bevel on the outside.

And here is the finished brass pivot rod. The 10.3mm end will get hammered into a corresponding 10mm hole in the plane body to fix it in place.

Next I drilled a 10.7mm hole through the aluminium and set up a 12mm tap in the pillar drill.
I started the thread using the pillar drill to ensure it was cutting square.

Then finished off the thread by hand.

And here is the finished lever cap, thumb screw and pivot rod. I still have to sand them to finishing grit and polish but that will come later.

Thankfully the pivot rod was a perfect fit onto the lever cap, it was worth taking the extra time getting this right.

I'm pleased with how the lever cap turned out. Like I mentioned earlier I may still have to shorten it's length slightly but I can do that once the pivot rod is fixed to the plane and I've got a measurement to go to.

That's another few evenings down. Time really is running away with this project but I'm still really enjoying it.

---------19

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

With the lever cap made I can drill the holes for the pivot rod.

I marked out and drilled an 8mm hole through the body of the plane.

I test fitted the steel rod and could see that the front part of the infill needs reducing so as not to obstruct the throat of the plane.

Next I counter sunk the 8mm hole on the right hand side of the plane and enlarged the left hand hole to 10mm

I then marked out and reduced the front infill using a block plane, approaching from both sides to avoid break out.
Maple is a beautiful wood to work.

With that done I could drill the three remaining holes needed to secure the front infill in place and the rear infill plus tote.
I marked out the holes and drilled them on the pillar drill.

I'll use 4mm brass rod for the front infill and rear of the tote then 6mm brass rod for the front of the tote.

Here is the front infill and rod test fitted.

And the two rear rods test fitted.

I drilled the two rear holes with the maple infill fitted but with out the tote in place. Once the holes where drilled I then inserted the tote and marked the holes, I then offset the holes very slightly so when the rods are finally fitted they draw the tote downwards tightly onto the sole of the plane. It's the same principle as wooden draw boring.
Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures of this.

Next I marked out the taper on the edges of the plane body. I used a vernier gauge and blue marker to help show the lines.

The taper is 2mm onto the edge and 5mm onto the face. Here are the curves marked out.

I initially filed with a course file to remove the majority of the waste, being very careful not to file past my lines.
The curves where particularly tricky to file.

I then went back over the taper draw filing with a finer file.

I used a combination of needle files for the curves.

After both sides where done I gave them a light sanding

Another long stage, this part took a good few evenings to complete.
The initial waste removal is fairly straight forward but fine finishing takes a lot of time and patience. Cutting down to the scribe line and getting sharp corner transitions was very difficult.
I'm pretty happy with the finished taper, it really finishes off the sides nicely.

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

It's been quite the journey so far, from a few sketches on a piece of paper.

To what's in front of me now. Hard to believe there is over 3 months work in this little lot.

The finish line is in sight now.

With all the parts ready I can start to assemble the plane, no going back after this stage!

I start with the front maple infill.
I mixed up some Araldite in the plane body then inserted the infill

I add a little more Araldite to the pin and secured it in place.
Next I did the same for the rear infill and tote.

I hammered in the rear 4mm and 6mm rods to secure the tote in place.

Wonder wipes did an excellent job of cleaning up any surplus glue that squeezed out.

Once the Araldite had cured I cut off the surplus brass rod and filed it flush with the body of the plane.
I then inserted the brass lever cap pivot pin. The hole for the head of the pin is 10mm and I made the head of the brass pin 10.3mm so it was a very tight fit.

To secure the pivot pin further I used a pencil torch to heat the head of the pin

Then flowed soft solder into the counter sink.

I did this on both sides of the plane and on the 6mm pin securing the tote.

Once the solder had cooled I filed away the surplus flush with the plane body.

I then spent the next 3 years flattening the sole of the plane, did I say years? I meant days but it felt like years!
I fixed sand paper to the bed of our planer and worked the plane back and forth until it was flat.
The only part of the project I've not enjoyed, it was bloody hard work!

As if that wasn't enough, after that I flattened the blade and ground the final bevel.
I then sanded the blade with fine paper to remove any deep scratches left over from the hardening process.
The blade seemed to grind well so hopefully it will hold its edge.

Finally I sharpened and honed the blade, I use Autosol and a leather strop to get it razor sharp.

And that was me done, my arms, back and legs where shot, I needed a sit down.

 

[jimbo84]

That taper edge you've done on it is stunning.

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

Thanks Jimbo, it took a long time to do but I think it was worth the effort, I'm pretty happy with the result.

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

Now the majority of the work is done on the body of the plane I can start to final finish each part.

I started with the lever cap.
I used wet and dry paper starting at 800 grit and sanding up through the grades to 2000 grit.

Once I was happy with the sanding I used Autosol metal polish and a buffing wheel to polish the lever cap to a shine.

Tedious work is sanding, Always moving the paper in the same direction to avoid cross scoring, gets tricky when there are curves.
Finishing each part of the plane is going to be a long process, there where a good few hours in the lever cap alone.

With the lever cap done the plane is finally ready to take its first shaving.

I fitted the blade and screwed down the lever cap, adjusted the depth of cut and pushed through a piece of Tulip wood.
A shaving was instantly produced but I could see as the plane travelled along the shaving was not clearing the mouth.

A little adjustment was needed with a file, fortunately I could just get a file in between the pivot pin.

The smallest amount needed to be removed and a few passes with the file was sufficient.

I loaded in the blade and had another try.

A beautifully fine shaving was produced and ejected from the mouth perfectly.
The finish left on the wood was immaculate and required no further sanding.

Tulip wood planes nicely, I'm yet to try the plane on some harder wild grain timber but for an initial run I'm very happy.

I noticed that when tightening down the lever cap there was a little lateral movement in it which I wasn't happy with.
To combat this I decided to add two Allen bolts on the side of the cap.

I marked out and drilled the larger hole for the head of the bolt then drilled the smaller hole for the thread.

Next I tapped the hole

And inserted the bolt. I used a little ptfe tape to help hold the bolt in position.

Then wound it in so the head of the bolt was just protruding out of the hole.

I repeated the process for the other side.

The heads of the bolts fit firmly against the insides of the body when the lever cap is inserted which has eliminated the lateral movement as I had hoped.

Next up is sanding, lots and lots of sanding...

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

With the plane now working I can start to final finish the body.

I sand the maple infills, tote, front knob and edges of the brass sides up to 500 grit. Another slow and painstaking process.

I then use fine line and masking tape to cover any part I don't want to be lacquered.

I give the plane 3 coats of polyurethane lacquer, not a traditional finish but I like its feel and durability.

After the 3rd coat I cut down with 1000 grit wet and dry paper to smooth out any roughness and key the lacquer

I then apply another 3 coats. The lacquer really brings out the natural beauty of the wood.

I'm going for a satin finish so once the lacquer had dried over night I cut back with 2000 grit wet and dry paper then use 0000 wire wool and soft paste wax to finish.

With the wooden parts finished I started on the brass sides.

I want a brushed look to the brass, I sand them with wet and dry paper up to 800 grit.
I use the bed of the planer again for it's flatness.
When trying to achieve a brushed look its critical to sand in perfectly straight lines. Any deviation results in squiggly lines which you then have to sand out.

The sanding leaves the brass looking quite dull so I used Brasso to add a little shine back to it.

Just about right.

With that the body of the plane is almost done. I've still to fix the front knob in place but I've decided to add an extra collar of brass under the aluminium just to give it a little more contrast from the wood.

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

Next I return to the blade.

From the beginning of the project I wanted to add a makers mark to the plane which is normally placed onto the blade.
I researched a few methods of doing this and after weighing up the pros and cons decided electroetching might work out the best.

Again this is something completely new to me and I was uncertain if it was even going to work how I wanted it to, or if I could even achieve it.

I started by designing a mark in Photoshop. My initials and my daughters name.

I'm fortunate to have a friend with his own laser cutter. Its not powerful enough to etch steel but can cut a perfect stencil.

I'm using black vinyl wrap for the stencil and after a few tries and creating a small fire inside his machine we get the settings dialed in for a perfect cut. (He wasn't happy about the fire!)

Unsure of how many attempts it would take me I asked him to cut me a few to practise with.

I cut one of the stencils out and stuck it to an off cut of steel.
Using an old 12 volt battery charger I connect the positive wire to the steel and the negative to a cotton bud that had been dipped in a salt water solution.

I then moved the cotton bud around the stencil holding it in place for 5-10 seconds before moving on to a new part. Changing the cotton bud regularly as it starts to blacken and burn.
after 15 minutes or so I removed the stencil.

I ran my finger over the mark and disappointingly it had not etched at all but only left a burn mark through the stencil that was now rubbing away with my finger.
I'd done something wrong and my first guess was connecting the positive and negative incorrectly.

So after changing them over and another 15 minutes later I removed the stencil and to my surprise it had worked, and work far better than I was anticipating!

It was time to try it on the real thing.

Good placement of the stencil was important. After a few attempts I was happy with it.

I stuck the stencil to some masking tape and carefully removed the backing.

The masking tape helps to place the stencil and once stuck down is removed. I then masked out around the stencil to prevent any salt water etching where I didn't want it to.

I spent a longer time etching the blade as I knew the steel was harder than my test piece and I wanted a deep etch. It took around 35-40 minutes

Removing the stencil the etch is looking good so far, there is a little water bleed through in parts.

With the stencil removed you can see the etch is darkened by the burnt salt water and cotton bud.
I used fine wet and dry paper to clean it up and remove the water marks.

I then used a tooth brush and some Autosol to clean the burn marks out of the etch. Once I was happy I gave the blade a quick polish too.

I'm absolutely delighted with the results, I never expected it to come out so well.

While I'm sure the mark isn't to every ones taste it means something to me and I'm really happy with it.

It's also another process I've learnt through the making of this plane which I'd never know about in my day to day work.

The plane really is starting to take shape now, there isn't long to go.

 

[MattH]

Beautiful work.

 

[galooph]

Really enjoying your build thread – thanks for sharing it

 

[Ton-up]

Superb!!

 

[jordan1]

Better than excellent work, but have to say it's a tool, will it work better than a good quality one available off the shelf. Not detracting from what you have do, I applaud your work and dedication.

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

Thanks for the comments guys

will it work better than a good quality one available off the shelf.

Functionally it will be very similar to any other hand plane in the fact it will cut wood.
I mentioned the Norris style blade adjustment mechanism on my plane has been superseded by the Stanley version which is far easier to use and can be tweaked on the fly with one hand.
No doubt the Stanley mechanism is better in that regard, however some people still prefer a Norris style adjuster.

As with many hand made tools its often more about ergonomics and aesthetics.
I mentioned that the tote on my plane is made to fit my hand perfectly, which is better for me.
As for aesthetics, I like the design and there are a lot of features on it your'll never see on a commercial plane. To me that makes it better.

To answers your question whether it will cut wood better than a well tuned commercial plane, no probably not but it does look cool

Also, and I think this is the main point, the enjoyment I've got from creating this plane means more to me than probably using it.
The things I've learnt and the skills I've acquired are the main reason I started the project. Sometimes it's worth making something just for the love of making something.

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

With all the hard work that's gone into the plane so far I thought it would be a good idea to make a box for it to live in.

I Didn't want any thing too traditional looking. I wanted something with a modern twist so people are unaware of whats inside.

I had an image in my mind which involved an irregular octagon, and with that I set about making it.

I started by Ripping up some Birch plywood to the required dimensions.

Next I set up a spindle moulder to 22.5 degrees and ran the edges of the plywood through.

I then trimmed the plywood to length and used masking tape to join all the pieces together.

I applied a healthy amount of glue to the joints

And used the masking tape to hold it all together.

Finally I add ratchet straps to pull the joints up tight.

I cleaned off any surplus glue with a damp cloth and left it to dry overnight ready for the next stage tomorrow.

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

With the outside of the box made I started work on the plane holder.

The plane will be secured in the holder and the holder will slide in and out of the box.

First I cut out and shaped the sides.

Then rounded over the edges on the router.

I cut out the bottom and front for the holder.
I then cut a dovetailed groove on the under side of the bottom, then glued the bottom and front to the sides.

While that was drying I cut out some guides that are the same shape as the ends of the plane.

I then glued the guides to the bottom of the holder. The plane sits tightly between them.

Next I cut and fitted the front and back of the box. The back will get glued in place to the box while the front will be fixed to the holder.

Here you can see how the holder slides into the box.
I fixed a dovetailed rail to the bottom of the box that corresponds to the groove on the underside of the holder.

Lastly I set up the spindle at 45 degrees and ran a chamfer around the ends of the box.

All that's left to do now is sand it up ready for paint.

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

I needed a way to lock the box so came up with a simple latch solution.

I started by cutting a piece of steel flat bar and inserting a small length of brass rod which I had cut a thread onto one end.
The brass rod fits through a hole in the front of the box.

With my last bit of brass I machined a round handle and threaded the centre of it to fit onto the brass rod.
I also made the catch out of another piece of steel flat bar.

I filed a small bevel on the front of the catch, it then gets screwed to the inside of the box.
Ignore the screws sitting proud, this was just a test fit.

Next I cut the lever to length and filed a corresponding bevel to the under side, I also cut a slot for a spring to hook onto.

With the front of the box fixed to the plane holder the lever can be inserted and the spring fixed to it.

Twisting the brass handle on the front of the box raises the lever, the spring then pulls it back down.
The bevels on the lever and catch are to let the lever rise and full into the notch in the catch with out any input needed on the handle.
This means the box will lock on it's own when the holder is pushed shut.

Lastly I added a small steel key pin to the brass rod to stop it spinning in it's hole.
And finally gave every thing a sand and polish.

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

Now the latch is completed I could finish the box.

I fitted and glued the back of the box in place then sanded every thing to 500 grit.

The inside and slide of the box are going to be clear lacquered while the outside will be painted. I used masking tape and paper to cover the external of the box so as not to get lacquer on it.

Next I applied 4 coats of lacquer to the inside of the box and the slide.
Leaving 10 minutes between coats and lightly rubbing down with 1000 grit.
The wood burner was lit so drying time was quick.

Once the inside of the box was dry I removed the masking tape and paper.
I want the grain of the birch wood to show in the paint so I used a brass brush to open the grain.

I then applied 1 light coat of black paint.

I left 10 minutes before applying another coat.

2 coats was enough to cover the wood, I didn't want to apply to many coats as the paint will start to fill the grain.
I've still to lacquer the box but will do that once the paint has cured over night.

I took a few very short videos of some of the processes while making the plane which I've put together into one video.

Not massively interesting but some of you might like to see it.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

Not massively interesting but some of you might like to see it.

Certainly will

 

[jenki]

Superb, I am just in awe of your work.

 

[Hattori-hanzo]

Thanks for the content jenki I really appreciate it