Thread: Who else finds small/miniature tools useful?

Martin, you blokes are not being helpful at all! I do not need/want to have another plane (but I will not swear that it will never happen... ). My two user spokeshaves are catered for, they are sitting on custom racks on the right side of the middle shelf. Every now & then I think about making a small round shave along the lines of the HNT Gordon mini, but so far have always managed to finish the job I wanted it for before the shave got made. I think I can squeeze something like that in the corner above the other two, though it might need some adjustment of the existing rack, but believe me, nothing but a scraper blade will fit between the bench planes atm!

Actually, I do have one option, I have two #3 sized infill smoothers in there.

That's simply because I can't decide which one I like better! The differences are minor and both are excellent performers. One has Solomon Island ebony infill: Horn & grip mod b.jpg

.. a magnificent wood for the job once you persuade it to cooperate, and I got the shape perfect (for my hand).

The other has She-oak infill: Finished.jpg

.. & the grip is a couple of mm narrower, barely visible in a side by side comparison & still comfy, just not as 'perfect' as the other: Vers 2&3 cf.jpg

However, the she-oak came from the old family farm & so it has nostalgic connections, and is also about the only bit of fiddleback she-oak I have ever seen. I keep telling myself to stop dithering, just flip a coin & let fate decide since they are so close. But they are both still there (& get regular use). An utterly trivial dilema, I know.

Back to mini tools: Those Kakuri planes do look appealing, but I would need to completely re-train to use one! They are just so foreign to my experience - I do pull planes on rare occasions, but pushing is my preferred method - 60 plus years of habit is hard to break! The very long toe would also take some getting used-to, the short toe of British smoothers has a purpose, it helps them to follow slight dips better - long toes give you more of a jointer action. And the final straw would be setting the blade with a loose cap-iron - I could see myself fiddling away a morning & still not have it right. It's obviously possible, early cap-irons were not screwed to the blade on European planes for quite a while, either.

I see people demonstrating setting up their Asian style planes & doing amazing things with them & I'm filled with admiration, but my experience with pull saws suggests it's probably better for this old dog to stick with the tricks I know rather than learn too many new ones. But I'm happy to encourage all you younger folks to have a go....

Cheers,
Ian

I’m calling dibs on whichever smoother you can bear to part with !

Studley was a piano maker. So not only was he lugging it about, but he'd turn up at client's houses and so the tool chest was his business card. It was a statement, "look at how fine and orderly my tool chest is, trust me to make or repair your piano."

I read or saw somewhere that there are tools in Studley's chest that no-one has any idea what they were for.

Originally Posted by AnthonySeiver

........I read or saw somewhere that there are tools in Studley's chest that no-one has any idea what they were for......

Hmmm, I've got a few of those in mine, & what's worse, I must've made them for some reason or other....

Originally Posted by AnthonySeiver

Studley was a piano maker. So not only was he lugging it about, but he'd turn up at client's houses and so the tool chest was his business card. It was a statement, "look at how fine and orderly my tool chest is, trust me to make or repair your piano."

I read or saw somewhere that there are tools in Studley's chest that no-one has any idea what they were for.

I had thought he actually build, the Tool chest in his later year’s towards retirement, an during his retirement.
But I may be wrong, tho this is not helping Poor Ian with his abundance of hand planes, poor thing [emoji849].

Cheers Matt.

Hi all

" do not need/want to have another plane (but I will not swear that it will never happen... ). I think about making a small round shave along the lines of the HNT Gordon mini" - good thing that you're not swearing.

I second Chief Tiff and happy to help out with RAR, (rapid abundance reduction).

I do have a two plane theory - if you have two plane's, one of them is bound to be sharper and to boot have a better chipbreaker placement.
If you don't have two plane's, how do you know you're using the better one?


Also, a small dozuki is handy when trimming something freehand. Easier for the arm to brace a pull stroke.

Martin, I think I had some similar idea to your "two-plane theory" back in the late 80s, only mine would be better described as a "multiple-plane theory"

In those days, second-hand Stanleys & Records were abundant & cheap, there was always at least one under the rust-pile on every flea-market table. You could pick up a #4 or #5 for $5 or less quite easily. At one stage I had about 7 or 8 #4s, most of which were in need of more TLC than I could give them at the time. I semi-fettled several of them, but not to the point that any were brilliant. I'd start with the sharpest/best plane on a big job & work my way through to the dullest/least performing plane until they were all dull & needed sharpening. My sharpening technique was not as slick as it is now, & the thought of all that boring work would kill my enthusiasm & I'd pack up for the day & mow the lawn or something else instead!

I decided that, unlike clamps, you CAN have too many planes.

And despite appearances to the contrary, I still believe that's true. There's a cull coming on........

Cheers,

8 plane theory was game.

In these day's information is abundant and cheap. When I opened the internet querying tearout, there was an information deluge. Tight mouth, infill, thick blade, special chip breaker, ultra mega steel, low angle with high pitched blade, high pitched frog, scraper, super sharpening procedure, Lie Nelson and so on ad infinitum. Ended up with a number of planes for benchmarking purposes. Went full circle and ended up back with the first plane I had. It has however , it is rather better fettled , but it is essentially a standard Stanley Bailey, thin blade, Stanley chipbreaker.

Many ways to make hand tools challenging, I guess.





8 rusty flea market planes sound easier,.

Originally Posted by MartinCH

.......8 rusty flea market planes sound easier,......

Not sure my plane journey has been any easier, Martin, but pursuing it in flea markets was a cheaper alternative than splashing out on fancy high-end gear. I would have, I'm sure, had I been in a financial position to do so!

I started way back and have been through many of the fads & fashions you listed. I think a lot of us have come full-circle & discovered that a good old Stanley or Record can be a very good tool when they are well-fettled. I do remain a firm advocate of good-quality after-market blades, though I've lost my desire to find the hardest blade on earth - there are sensible compromises.

Funnily enough, making my own planes has given me a greater appreciation for the genius of Leonard Bailey. They are robust, general-purpose, knockabout tools that can still rise to the occasion when needed for finer work. I use a couple of old Baileys daily, for their convenience & all-round adaptability, but prefer to use my infills for the final finishing. That's partly because I do find them a bit more comfy to use & partly for the smug satisfaction that using a tool I've made brings

But in the end it's the finished surface that counts, and there are many ways to get the same result....

Cheers,

Ian

It occurs to me that you are running out of space more than you are running out of projects.

Perhaps you should revisit your storage options. Having said that, I am always very envious of the way you manage to pack tools into spaces, but it does look as though the boundaries have been severely tested. To use an automotive analogy, you have bored and stroked the motor until there is no more to room to go. Now you need to add extra cylinders or a supercharger.

So, my suggestion for your consideration, is to change the door(s) to have storage space. You need depth. Just to remind you, here are some pictures one of my two saw tills (the smaller, smarter one), which may give you some ideas. There is nothing terribly swish about the cupboard as far as joinery goes. It's a bit like my ute; Just Holden together:

The Front

P1090039 (2).JPG

and side. The outer leaf projects about 15mm and with the saw that is about another 25mm, but it takes advantage of thin air inside the cabinet that would not otherwise be useable.

P1090034 (2).JPG

It is a two-door cabinet, but I deliberately displayed this side. There are three layers, and I thought you may recognise the contents of the first two leaves:

P1090036 (2).JPG

The second leaf:

P1090037 (2).JPG

and the back section, at which John Kenyon might froth at the mouth over the plagiarism, if he had not been very dead for about the last two hundred years. I can see it now "Bloody colonialist thieves!"

P1090038 (2).JPG

The door depth is about 90mm

P1090030 (2).JPG

with the internal depth at about 70mm.

P1090032 (2).jpg

This of course was made for saws, but the principle would be similar for plane storage. You might get a couple of layers for smaller hand planes. Like the stronger valve springs for a performance engine, the extra grunt would need a more robust set of hinges. I used a piano hinge om my larger cabinet, but butt hinges for this one.

Apologies if this idea is impertinent, but we don't want the fertile IanW brain to be stifled. You may be retired from your profession, but that doesn't let you off the tool making hook.



Regards
Paul

Paul, it is unlikely that I'll run out of projects any time soon. If I were to tackle every appealing dea I've had/seen elsewhere over the last 20 years, I'd need another two lifetimes to finish them! But I really have more tools than I need (there, I've said it, just keep it between ourselves, please), and they do fit in the current tool cupboard, and I plan to off-load a few more in the coming months, so space is not the limiting factor, really - I just try to convince myself it is every now & then....

But don't panic, I know my plane-mking days aren't over, much as I try to convince myself - heck, I can't even convince you lot. In fact, I was tidying up in the shed this evening & came across a split sole I'd abamdoned because the crappy saw-blades I was using would not cut the SS & the thought occurred to me that I should finish it sometime....

WRT the multi-leaf doors - I used that idea many years ago & it didn't work very well. That was almost certainly because I didn't make a good job of it, the idea itself worked fine. I considered fitting extra fold-outs inside the current cupboard when I was making it, but rejected it, for reasons I cannot now remember. But the option is there - the way my doors are made, I can unscrew the frame & make a deeper one to fit another leaf if I wanted to. Maybe, someday down the track I will do that - it would be nice to have all my user saws in the same spot.

Cheers,

The Stanleys do pretty well and my Stanley is a significantly better Stanley than when I started using hand tools. Several small detail changes made a significant difference. While a I have some aftermarket blades - PMV11 / HSS and a couple of others I haven't been able to pin yet as "better". Maybe one day an advantage will reveal itself. I do try them out alternatives when the timbers figured/ hard/grain reversing but performance is generally similar in what I looking -surface finish.


This not say there isn't bad blades out there, some may found this of interest.

Acquired a Norris A5. Was quite excited when it arrived and keen to see how an infill performs. Quickly dampened. The plane was terrible. Talking to my wife about how bad the plane was to have it pointed out that plane seen quite a bit of action - so it had to have been useable and it wasn't working it was well, me. Back to investigation. Checked the blade with a file - proved there was problem, blade soft. There was quite alot of meat still in the blade but the assumption is that only tip hardened.

What to do - looked for a replacement. Available. Price , kings transom. Transport to be by robber barons.

Ok Plane B. Reharden. Budget for burner gas and some sort kiln wasn't looking great for one off. Plus you know the first time you do this kind stuff it always goes so well. Just read a book and mastery is achieved. Having decided the probability of burning the house down was high - had the blade hardened at the local heat treatment plant. it wasn't expensive ($70 comes to mind). Could have had several blades hardened for the price.

For the money they also provided the rockwell of the blade - 28 prior to treatment and 58 after.
Much better plane, now. Still took bit of fiddling to have both a tight mouth and a tight chipbreaker but managed.

Not however quantitatively better than the benchmark, well tuned, standard Bailey.

I do find smaller tools extremely useful. The thing is, the good ones usually aren't just miniature versions of big ones. As you see with handles and grip areas, certain parts need to be "regular" size. Like for example, teeny little fingernail size blades are hard to sharpen. Make them long enough, and they're fine.