Thread: Best way to put a camber on plane blade

As it happens I just wrote a short blog entry on cambering. I'm in the middle of writing a series on dressing lumber by hand so I did a bit on winding sticks and cambering an iron.
It's not hard. My iron is curved about 1/8" - more might be better. it doesn't matter. I use a dry grinder. Don't be scared of them.

here is the link:
Joel's Blog at Tools for Working Wood

Like this? Just the corners?

https://www.woodworkforums.com/f127/s...estion-106018/

Or do you mean a radius? Like a scrub plane might have?

I just used a bench grinder to radius a jack plane plade......a bit rough.....but then again, it's the first plane on the timber (macrocarpa) and the jointer and smoother should take out any incriminating evidence.

If it is for a smoothing plane you really don't need all that much of a camber. How I was taught to do it was at the honing stage. I just apply more finger pressure on the pull stroke to one corner (say 10 -15 strokes), and then the other. You can check it with with careful use of a straight edge to check progress.

Cheers
Michael

thanks for your help, guys, I really appreciate it, and am learning lots.

joel, I found your blog very interesting, but I won't be dry grinding my blades

seanz, the post I was looking for was embedded in the link you supplied, thanks kindly. It was by Derek Cohen in WA, and can be found here, and showed how to do a camber on the waterstones

Originally Posted by JillB

Hello, I had a 220 mm pine board to flatten, so ran it through the 150mm jointer , taking 1.5mmm off that part, thereby leaving a 1.5mm x 70mm raised section for the length of the board.

I then used a Stanley #4 plane to lower the raised section. I have never used a camber on my plane blades, but after a number of slices into the board by the edge of the plane blade I find that I need to bite the bullet and learn to modify the blade to avoid this in future.

Can anyone please advise the extent of blade modification required, and how best to do it? I have waterstones #1200 and #6000 with a Veritas Mk II honing guide and access to a Tormek water wheel, and alos have some float glass and SiC grit. I have never put a chisel or plane blade on a dry grinder because of the heat generated and the effect on the temper of the cutting edges

Gooday JillB if you have the veritas honing guide you can buy a dedicated camber roller from Veritas to suit your guide--Saw them at the ww show in Melbourne I think they were about $36

Originally Posted by joel moskowitz

As it happens I just wrote a short blog entry on cambering. I'm in the middle of writing a series on dressing lumber by hand so I did a bit on winding sticks and cambering an iron.
It's not hard. My iron is curved about 1/8" - more might be better. it doesn't matter. I use a dry grinder. Don't be scared of them.

here is the link:
Joel's Blog at Tools for Working Wood

Hi Joel

Welcome to the Ubeaut forum!

Don't be a stranger - visit often. We really could benefit from your handtool insights here.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Derek,
Thanks for the welcome.
I find the Woodwork Forums pretty interesting but over the years I have been sort of restricting the number of forums I post too (too much time) - but now I realized I don't post much on any forums - leaving most of my writing to my blog - so I guess I can participate on more forums than I used to.

HI There, David Charlesworth has a piece on hand honing to create a camber, i think the book is Hand Tool Essentials, its in my local library. Also Dereks excellent method on his shop built belt sander jig, on his web page thro this forum, regards Rossco

Originally Posted by joel moskowitz

As it happens I just wrote a short blog entry on cambering.
here is the link:
Joel's Blog at Tools for Working Wood

I have a very similar method Joel but rather than working the blade in an arc I was taught to move the blade in a horizontal figure 8. The only time the blade touches grinding stone is when the centre of the blade is moving past the centre of the stone (or going around the top of the figure 8). You only get a short touch of the blade to the stone and by the time you get to that side of the blade again the blade cooled down. It's a little slower than working from one side of the blade to the other but it does help avoid over heating.

I only use this technique for my #5 & #6. For my #4 put a camber on my blade during honing. See this write up for instructions on how this is done.


Regards,

Denim

As long as you set the rest 90 degrees to the wheel and the wheel is properly dressed you can pretty much grind until the cows come home without danger of overheating.

The problem with overheating comes from trying to shape the blade when the angle is at a bevel. You will just easily burn the thin ground edge.

Joel has a great (and inexpensive) DVD (available from his website) on freehanding a blade on waterstones. His method is very similar to the one I use when I freehand, which is to move the blade sideways and diagonally. This offers the most control of all the movements in my book. To create a camber one still places more pressure on the corners, and it is a good idea to count the strokes so that you are performing an equal action at both ends of the bevel.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Would like to welcome Joel here too.

Love your blog mate.

Originally Posted by rsser

Would like to welcome Joel here too.

Love your blog mate.

Thanks!!!!

A note to Derek,
My sharpening DVD is the official Norton waterstone sharpening DVD for woodworking tools - We will be happy to ship it to you but you should be able to get it from any local Norton distributor. (they might have to order it if they don't stock it).

Hi Joel

I have your DVD!

I was recommending it to the others here as I think it is great.

Regards from Perth

Derek