Thread: Infill Plane build info

Nice!

But why brass sole & steel sides? Tradition does it t'other way round, - any particular reason for doing it this way??

Cheers,

Steel gave me a more controlled radius on the bent portion(the back) of the plane.

Russ

Hi Russ - thought you might have had a reason, but I was thinking it might have been to do with having a softer material for the fancy moulding on the ends of the sole.

I would like to do a small plane with dovetailed sides & a bent back one of these days. I would have gone for brass as I thought it would be easier to bend as long as the radius isn't too severe. Guess it will be a 'learning curve', alright!

Cheers,

Originally Posted by IanW

Hi Russ - thought you might have had a reason, but I was thinking it might have been to do with having a softer material for the fancy moulding on the ends of the sole.

I would like to do a small plane with dovetailed sides & a bent back one of these days. I would have gone for brass as I thought it would be easier to bend as long as the radius isn't too severe. Guess it will be a 'learning curve', alright!

Cheers,

Ian,
The key to bending brass is to choose brass formulated to enable bending.
For as long as I've been making planes I've been telling people to read the materials property information sheets. You will find that 360 brass has POOR cold working properties and good machining (cutting) properties...so that means it will machine nicely but won't want to bend nicely for you. However, if you choose cartridge brass # 260 you will find it has EXCELLENT cold working properties, so will bend and forge better than "good"....more like EXCELLENT!!
For most novice workers in metal this is a revelation. The sides of this plane I made was a section of 1/8 in thick, 3 inch diameter pipe in 260 brass, cut, bent and hammered flat with a hide mallet. Then annealed and bent around a steel bar held in a vice, annealed again and gently tapped across it's width (whilst on that former with, of all things, a mash hammer) to reduce the slight concave shape. Then a wide file followed by a few grades of emery paper wrapped around wooden sticks used at alternative 90 degree directions to get a nice finish.
When I want to cut, drill and file a brass lever cap that I especially want to resist bending, I choose the harder, bending resistant #380 or #360 brasses.

I'm intrigued by the selection of the #3xx series brasses for the sides of planes. They cut very well with a hack saw and machine tools, and maybe some plane-makes think that that is more important than how well it forges into shapes like curves and dovetails.
Having spent more than 35 years hammering and bending metal to achieve a desired shape, I know when I'm being challenged by a bad choice of material. (In particular there are a range of alloys in white gold to choose from. High nickle content or high palladium or platinum content, some are hard and springy and others are softer and more malleable and ductile).
So when you want to do your best work, you will do well to choose a suitable material. Metal workers and artists since the dawn of time have searched for material that will reward their effort, and when found, it can quickly take them to a higher level of expertise that will be a joyous surprise.
Getting a little bit philosophical...

Regards,
Peter

Hi Peter - thanks for that.

I did know that there are many different brasses, and have certainly encountered a work-hardening problem when trying to pein the tops of brass screws into my home-brewed sawbolts. I also had difficulty when I tried to do a dovetailed shoulder plane many years ago - ended up resorting to a generous dab or three of silver-solder to stop the mud-dauber wasps setting up home in some of the joins.

I have tried to get my hands on some of the more ductile alloys, but noone in Brisbane seems to bother carrying anything but the machinable brasses. I would dearly like to make a good dovetailed smoother, preferably of coffin shape, and so I am keen to get hold of the right material, more for the peining than the side bends, which are pretty large radius. What has stopped me from trying much harder to find some 260 or similar brass is that I have not really had the time to devote to the project (but I hope that is changing, soon!) and most of all, I am a bit uncertain about the side wall thickness to go for. I used 1/8" for the shoulder plane, but I'm wondering if that will be stiff enough for a 2 1/4" smoother. It was plenty stiff enough for a small 'hybrid' smoother I made recently, but might be a little light on a bigger & heavier tool? I noticed you used very heavy gauge material for the sides of the one you did a year or so back - what are your thoughts after having used it for a while??

Cheers,

Originally Posted by russgl

Metal infill Smoother
-9" by 2", brass, steel.ebony, MOP
-o-1 steel blade 5/16' thick, set at 55 degrees
-oil and wax finish
-designed to plane difficult grained woods
-takes .001 to .002" shavings chatter free
-adjusting hammer: brass and walnut

It took me several months to build from scratch. Steel: 5/16" starrett O-1 for blade, milled , heat treated and tempered using a homemade propane forge, RC 62. 360 brass .41" thick for sole, 3/16" 1018 steel for sides(back of plane was bent with a wood vise and hardwood forms (tricky to keep straight).Milling was done with a knee type manual mill(wells-index). Moldings and round shapes were done with a rotary table and end mills.
Sides were through riveted with 3/16" mild steel rod on 5/8" centers. this created very rigid sides that are perpendicular to the sole. Tolerances were held to one thousandth or less, including the length of the sole. This method limits the flexing and movement of the sides when dovetailing.
Threads were cut using 1/2-13 tap and die, by hand. Inlay was done with a dremel and small chisels.
The tight tolerances and thick plane blade make for effortless and chatter free planing. The blade is easy to change and sharpen. The O-1 steel holds an edge as well as the A2 blades on my LN and is easy to forge and heat treat.At 55 degrees and 1 5/8" wide (the blade) it is easy to push the plane through harder woods. Woods I have planed are : bubinga, birdseye maple, quilted cherry, purpleheart, mahogany with grain in 2 directions. It takes a thin shaving with no tearout, even against the grain.

thanks, Russ

Russ,
Thanks for those details. I was also intrigued why your sides were steel and base was brass.
I'm fascinated by how many different techniques are used in making these modern infill planes. I guess it might be a reflection of our previous history or training in hand and machine working.
Solving the problems of making the planes, then making something that really does outperform our best expectations is a very special experience.
Have you seen a tool like this, the two legged parser to cut the hole for inlay? I plan to make one and give it a try this weekend. I saw a video of one being demonstrated a few years ago, and the results were out standing.
Thanks again,
Peter

Hi Russ,

Beautiful work, I like the way you've carried the stepped design detail through to the blade. That is one heavy and solid piece of machinery, that huge blade coupled with the (nearly) 1/2 brass sole should make for a very rigid assembly.

I am reposting your picture (hope you don't mind), the thumbnail was a bit too small to see much of the detail.



One subtle advantage of a heavier plane, is the momentum tends to make it easier and smoother to use.

Regards
Ray

I am working on a jig for bending that will keep things in line when bending. when it is done I will post a picture.
With 360 brass annealing will help a lot. What you buy isn't always annealed 100%. When I began annealing my brass, steel and nickel-silver rods that I used to rivet the sides-well they peaned like butter, no breaking or flaking.
I have built planes with dovetails and prefer riveting the sides. The amount of work is the same, but dovetails tend to introduce twist when they are peaned.I have through-rivets on a 100+ year old Spiers that are very tight so longevity shouldn't be an issue.Brass pins on metal tails do have an elegant look(aesthetics).
A metal plane with a very thick sole almost seems like it is a magnet in the way it follows the wood being planed ( due to the extra weight).

thanks,Russ