Thread: Molding plane question

Not really sure I understand, so please bare with me if I go off in the wrong direction.

A wood moulding plane, when made by a commercial company, or by an individual who planes on making more than one uses what is called a Mother. This plane is the reverse of the finished plane and is/was used to cut the profiles into the planes you or I would purchase to use.

The mother would be formed by a combination of techniques. Often a pair of hollows and rounds were used and the final profile cleaned up via a scraper which has the desired profile filed into it.

Then the usual functions are performed--the upper mouth escapement drilled, blade mortise cut in, the mouth sawn and filed or floated open, and the bed for the iron adjusted using floats until an iron inserted, the wedge made and then the whole fitted together.

Todd Herli has a video on making wood planes available. I believe in the video he makes a pair of hollows and rounds. ***just looked it up. Lie-Nielsen sells it***

Whelan's book The Wooden Plane has a section on how wood planes are made, iirc. It should still be available from Astragal Press.

Now, with all that said, and if we are discussing molding planes, it seems to me that a mother could be made from a molding plane by planing the profile into a plane body blank...

Take care, Mike

Surely a multi-blade or multi-insert profiling router is the only way for a DIYer to customise the sole of a moulding plane. That would be faster (and more costly) than scrapers. I'm assuming the sole has an "old" profile that can be sacrificed. The roller bearing runs on the heel. I'm also assuming that you can setup a reciprocal profile on the router for the pattern you want, i.e. lows where you want the highs. Then there's how to grind the blade for the plane....

I'm supporting your idea Kristian.

Originally Posted by MikeW

Now, with all that said, and if we are discussing molding planes, it seems to me that a mother could be made from a molding plane by planing the profile into a plane body blank...

Take care, Mike

That makes good sense.

If your content with a close copy of this planes reverse profile, what you could do, is make a scratching cutter. Be much easier to make and use than creating a new plane from scratch I'd say. Just lay your steel blank on the table , sit the old plane over the top as a template, and just transfer the profile to the blank with a pencil.....Cut to the line in the steel blank with grinders or files or whatever, sharpen it up, and bind it in length of wood, with a little fence, and you should be able to scratch out a clean profile.

Thats an idea. But I suppose we need a bit more info, Kristian. What sort of profile ? You got a name ? Do you want the profile to run along the woods edge ?

Sorry , I didn't explain myself fully. I want to make a molding plane from scratch out of a piece of poplar I found in class. I was thinking of making the profile like this http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.a...168,46177&ap=1 or just a simple double bead. Also I think that scratchstock idea seems niffty too

Kristian,
You've had three good answers given so far, I guess which way is "better" depends on your access to routers or moulders or the way you like to work (i.e. using new techniques versus old).

Making and using a scratch stock is not difficult, and it might be a good way of doing the sole of the plane. A double bead doesn't need much stock removed, so the scratch stock would tidy the sole up quickly after you remove most of the wood via saw.

Hi Kristian,

Scratch stock would do well for limited runs of the double bead. For the profile you show at the LV link, it is a bit much [2 1/4" long profile].

If I was making a similar profile as the LV one, I would use a pair of hollow and rounds. Making a dedicated plane to do that profile isn't technically too difficult for most woodworkers, but it is involved. The last time I made a molding plane I burnt the first body. And the second one.

If you really want to make the molding plane, which I commend you for, I would strongly suggest picking up Todd Herli's video and or book. I would also recommend a different wood selection. Poplar is too soft for such use, however, it might be just the ticket for the experience of making the body of the plane.

Take care, Mike

I agree on using H&R's. Should be fine. But sharpenings probably going to snag you. I don't know how much experience you have with sharpening them. I still find it tricky.

Personally, I'd be very tempted to use a stanley 55, cause I'd be able to cut that blade to profile pretty quickly with grinders and buffing wheels. See, IMO, ensuring the profile of the blade is the same as the soles, is what makes wooden moulding planes difficult to use. Much harder to sharpen. Don't have such problems with the 55. Also, just one blade to work on with the 55 instead of two or more with moulding planes. ,,,,,,but then you may have tearout problems with the 55. Depends on how well behaved your timber is I suppose.

Overall, of coarse, that router bits going to last blunten much slower than a planes blade.....A lot more effort required to cut that profile by hand. Have to find some patience....quite a few hickups no doubt, at least in the beginnings. But its a far more gratifying way of doing it, thats for shore. Goodluck.