BU Plane blades and the steel ruler trick

Hi all,

Does the steel ruler trick when sharpening the back of the plane blades apply to BU plane blades as well? A lot of Youtubers swear by it but from what I've seen they're all using BD planes in their demonstrations. I'm leaning towards "yes" but require confirmation from the more experienced/knowledgeable. Most of my planes are BU.


TIA,
Mike

Yes, but only if you are flattening the back of your plane iron, and its a once-off.

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Originally Posted by justonething

Yes, but only if you are flattening the back of your plane iron, and its a once-off.

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Thanks, but I'm not sure if we're talking about the same thing. From what I've seen, it's done every time that the blade is sharpened. One particular Youtuber that comes to mind is Rob Cosman. Every time he sharpens plane blades, he does the ruler trick to the back.

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Originally Posted by KahoyKutter

Thanks, but I'm not sure if we're talking about the same thing. From what I've seen, it's done every time that the blade is sharpened. One particular Youtuber that comes to mind is Rob Cosman. Every time he sharpens plane blades, he does the ruler trick to the back.

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IIRC he only does the back of the blade on his 16000 grit stone, he just does it to knock the burr off after sharpening the bevel. Just watched his sharpening 2020 video yesterday where he covers his routine.

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Originally Posted by bueller

IIRC he only does the back of the blade on his 16000 grit stone, he just does it to knock the burr off after sharpening the bevel. Just watched his sharpening 2020 video yesterday where he covers his routine.

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Yep, that's right. It produces a polished micro-bevel on the back of the blade. I think I may have found my answer in a similar thread here. It seems this question has already been asked and answered but it didn't come up when I did my search.

Here's what Derek wrote in the other thread:

"Hi Anthony

You can use the Ruler Trick confidently as the backbevel angle is less than one degree. It will not affect the cutting angle or the clearance.

I choose not to do so on my blades simply because the backs come flat and I strop them (freehand) as I work - this keeps the blades usably sharp for longer. If you add a micro back bevel, then stropping is not practical and you need to sharpen more frequently (and do it completely).

It is just up to the way you prefer to work/sharpen.

Regards from Perth

Derek"