Fig. 176.—Chariot Plane.
Fig. 177.—Preston’s Chamfer Plane with Adjustable Fence.
Fig. 178.—Melhuish’s Chamfer Plane with Adjustable Fence.
Fig. 179.—Nurse’s Chamfer Plane.
Fig. 180.—Mitre Shooting Plane.
Fig. 181.—Handled Plough.
HOW TO USE THE SMOOTHING PLANE.
Fig. 185 shows the method of holding the smoothing plane, the right hand grasping it firmly at the back, whilst the left hand steadies it in front. In starting, the tool is applied to the fore-end of the board, and gradually worked backwards, thus taking out any marks previously used tools may have made. It should be held firmly, and lifted sharply at the end of stroke, or a mark will be left where the plane finished. The work is continued until the board presents a perfectly smooth surface, without marks of any kind. The left hand should frequently be passed across the face of the board, as any marks made by the plane can be readily detected in this manner. It may also with advantage be held so that the light passes across its surface from the side, thus showing up imperfect planing. Should there be too much iron out, a few blows with the hammer at the back of the plane will draw it back. Take care to tighten up the wedge again. A few drops of linseed oil applied to the face of the plane will facilitate the planing.
Fig. 182.—Holding Jack Plane.
Fig. 183.—Planing with the Grain.
Fig. 184.—Planing against the Grain.
PLANING HOLLOW.
A plane in operating on a rough piece of wood removes successive shavings from the more prominent parts, until a level surface is attained. The flatness attainable with the plane is greatly dependent on the skill of the workman. He must always try to plane hollow rather than round, for if a plane be flat and long in the stock, it is impossible, as has been stated, to give any appreciable concavity to a surface of moderate size. For this reason roughing-out planes, or jack planes, are made as long in the stock as possible without making them too heavy and inconvenient. Planes used for trueing are invariably called trying planes, and are used to correct the inequalities left by the jack. Very long ones go by the name of jointers, and are principally used for making long joints.
NEW PLANES BECOMING CHOKED.
New planes often are a source of trouble owing to the shavings getting fast in the mouth, the plane refusing to take any more until the wedge and iron have been removed, and all cleared out. The cause of this difficulty is that the mouth of the plane is too narrow (see Fig. 186). Sometimes workmen cut a little out with a chisel, but in many instances this results in spoiling the tool, because in a short time the bottom of the plane wears away, and consequently the mouth gets larger, subsequently getting so large as to require a piece to be planted in. The mouth of the plane can be kept open as long as needed by gluing a strip of soft leather, about 3/4 in. wide, in the mouth of the plane under the top end of the iron (see Fig. 187). When the plane bottom is sufficiently worn the leather can be removed and the iron put back into its original position. The leather causes the iron to be more upright, and consequently there is a larger opening in the mouth (two thicknesses can be put under if necessary).
Fig. 185.—Holding Smoothing Plane.
Fig. 186.—Plane with Narrow Mouth.
REMEDYING WORN MOUTH OF PLANE.
Fig. 188 shows the section of a plane that has its mouth worn very open, through the plane having been shot and the iron ground short. One method of remedying this defect is to let a piece of hardwood into the face; but the simplest and best plan is to glue a thin strip of wood or leather behind the iron at the bottom (Fig. 189). This gives the iron a sharper angle, closes the open mouth as much as desired, and, when a new and thicker iron is bought, the strip can be reduced or removed.
Fig. 187.—Leather Slip under Top of Plane Iron.
Fig. 188.—Plane with Wide Mouth.
OILING PLANE STOCKS.
Plane stocks are oiled in order to improve them for working and to preserve the wood in perfect condition. A wooden smoothing plane is hardly regarded as complete until it has been saturated with linseed oil, a very common plan being to fill the hole with oil, after stopping it on the face, and leave it till absorbed. Planes that are too greasy to handle pleasantly will improve with time. This oiling, however, largely increases the weight of the plane; and a tool that has been soaked too long in the oil so as to be too heavy for convenient use should be placed in a moderately warm oven for a few hours to evaporate some of the oil. The oven must not be hot, or a number of shakes will be produced, and the plane will warp.
Fig. 189.—Leather Slip under Bottom of Plane Iron.
PITCH OF PLANE CUTTING IRON.
To assist the reader to understand correctly the principles of plane-iron