Thread: My last & final infill - a dovetail plane

Come on Ian,
Some of us have know you awhile is there something being hatched at present.
Tool wise ??
We all know it's hard to keep a good man down.


Cheers Matt

Very nice work as usual and many thanks for sharing with us mere mortals

Originally Posted by IanW

Guilty as implied, Mr. B., but I think I can hold my hand over my heart this time, & say "last one" with some confidence. Look at the tally & you'll see there isn't much more any sane & sensible person could wish for! (In fact I intend to get rid of several of the duplicates, but that's another story...)
...

I think the telling part of this statement is "any sane & sensible person". What woodworker, anywhere has ever stayed within the "sane & sensible" guidelines when it relates to tools?

Excellent planes, Ian - i've missed the discussion of all of this, and envy the leeway you've been given to go and work on these! My mind is exploding with things I'd like to make, but at the same time, I'm confined to about four hours per week - which means an infill or two per year if that were all I'd work on.

Originally Posted by Simplicity

Come on Ian,
Some of us have know you awhile is there something being hatched at present.
Tool wise ??
We all know it's hard to keep a good man down.....

Nope, Matt, nothing hatching - I think I done run out of eggs.

But don't worry, I'm not sitting on my hands, amongst other neglected duties, I have to tackle 6 months worth of accumulated yard-work.........

Cheers,

Originally Posted by D.W.

...... envy the leeway you've been given to go and work on these! My mind is exploding with things I'd like to make, but at the same time, I'm confined to about four hours per week -

Well, David, being retired & having a tolerant spouse sure helps with those sorts of problems. Last year was my first full year 'at home' (all but 2 weeks of it) since I supposedly gave up working for da man in 2011, so there was a good deal of pent-up tool-making wanting to be let out.

This lot represents all of those plane projects that I've been thinking about - for up to 30 years in some instances. So apart from the few that I decided I really had no use for, I've finally made every single one I ever thought seriously about tackling "some day". Most turned out up to scratch, and a couple exceeded expectations, and I've managed to squeeze all the keepers in my toolbox. So I'm feeling pretty satisfied (borderline smug ).

Now I must get on & just make things while I still have a few good shed-years left in me. Sometimes I wish I'd had this or that tool 30 years ago when I was struggling to find time to make stuff & still do all the things you have to do with growing families and a demanding job, but in all honesty, they wouldn't have made a lot of difference at the time - I had energy to compensate for inefficiency! Finally, I got the time to make some of those things that were in the 'nice but not essential' category and with somewhat better skills than I had 30 years ago, I think I was able to do a better job on them. What's more, I could work at a nice leisurely pace and enjoy the process to the full.

So take heart, I hope there's a good time coming for all you younger blokes who can't see it, just yet.....

Cheers,

Originally Posted by Sawdust Maker

........I think the telling part of this statement is "any sane & sensible person". What woodworker, anywhere has ever stayed within the "sane & sensible" guidelines when it relates to tools?....

Fair cop, Nick.

It's interesting how some of us who've been on the journey for a very long time hand out sage advice to beginners - "only buy what you need for the projects in hand, and keep it practical, blah blah". You can make great stuff with pretty ordinary tools, I've seen it with mine own eyes many a time. However, that's only half the fun for most of us. I'll bet there are very, very few woodies who can claim there isn't a single white elephant in their toolbox, or that they haven't bought at least a couple of tools driven by tool-lust rather than genuine necessity.

I don't think it helps to be able to buy whatever takes your fancy from day one, though. It might save a little time, but I reckon it's a recipe for ending up with more white elephants than users. I was frustrated then, but I'm glad now that I couldn't afford to buy most of what took my fancy in the late 70s-early 80s when I was first afflicted with this virulent strain of the wood bug. However, I think it's also a necessary part of the tour, to take a few side-trips, & you have to try some things for yourself to discover you can live without them. So after 50 years of woodworking, at least 35 of them in a 'serious' mode, I've gradually sorted the wheat from the chaff & ended up with a kit that is all users, albeit somewhat occasionally for a few....

Cheers,