Thread: Shooting advice

Years & years ago when I was taught woodworking, we were told to lift the plane off the work after each stoke to reduce wear on the blade. Along with the other plane commandment (putting the plane on its side when you put it down), I decided to put theory to test & quit doing both. That was a very long time ago, I've honoured both rules in the breach rather than the observance ever since, & I have to say my blades seem to last just as long as anyone else's between sharpenings.

On the return stroke, particularly when you are shooting with the plane on its side, there is very little pressure on the back of the blade, so I reckon any wear from the back-stroke is liable to be minimal. There are a couple of potential explanations for your experience, but if you get the results you want by lifting the plane away on the return, and it doesn't wreck your rhythm, that's the way to go. It certainly won't do any harm....

Cheers,

I did try 2 different approaches. Pulling the plane away seemed like hard work after a while so I kept the plane in a straight line and just released the pressure of the wood against the sole of the plane and that seemed to work okay as well.