A box full of planes....the kind that don't fly

Storebought or Homemade: Tell Us!
Post Reply
Kevin Sjostrand
Posts: 3712
Joined: Sat Feb 09, 2008 8:06 pm
Location: Visalia, CA

A box full of planes....the kind that don't fly

Post by Kevin Sjostrand »

I picked up a box full of planes today at the local flea market for $40. There is nothing amazing in the box. I was hoping to find the diamond in the rough, but it wasn't to be this time. There are 8 planes. A couple of #3 size, a couple of #4 size, an older #5 Shelton, a rabbiting plane, and a Stanley 6 like a type 12 or so that needs some work, and this maple, what appears to me to be a scrub plane.
It is 14" long, 1 7/8" wide with a 1 3/4" iron. It does have a chip breaker. I have not taken the wedge and iron out yet. It is all maple and it appears to me to be factory made, not handmade, but I find no markings, even the iron looks to be void of a marking.

So I was wondering if anyone has seen one like it before.....Ed you there............and might recognize who may have made it, if it is not hand made.

I may not have purchased this box full of planes had I not sort of committed to buy it before I saw it. This person keeps an eye out for planes for me, so I felt like I needed to buy it. Nothing special in there, but I suppose it was worth it.....at least It will give me something to clean, paint, sharpen, and finish. :)
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
Kevin Sjostrand
Posts: 3712
Joined: Sat Feb 09, 2008 8:06 pm
Location: Visalia, CA

Re: A box full of planes....the kind that don't fly

Post by Kevin Sjostrand »

couple more pics
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
tippie53
Posts: 7011
Joined: Fri Mar 03, 2006 7:09 pm
Location: Hegins, Pa
Contact:

Re: A box full of planes....the kind that don't fly

Post by tippie53 »

worth the work
John Hall
Blues Creek Guitars Inc
Authorized CF Martin Repair Center
president of Association of Stringed Instrument Artisans
http://www.bluescreekguitars.com
ruby@magpage.com
Posts: 1564
Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 8:03 am
Location: Chestertown Maryland

Re: A box full of planes....the kind that don't fly

Post by ruby@magpage.com »

Kevin

That does not appear to be a scrub plane as the blade is too wide. Some will steeply crown the blade on a #5 for scrub use, but then the part of the blade that contacts the wood is narrower than the sole of the plane. In scrubbing, you are taking off a pretty aggressive chip, so a wider plane will wear you out much more quickly. The Stanley 40 and 40-1/2 scrub planes have a 1-1/4 and 1-1/2" blade respectively. I use a 40 and after about 20 minutes I am ready to quit.

Double irons were first used in the 17th century, but single irons were used until about WWI. Check the body where the blade rests on it - if there is a groove for a double iron attachment screw, you will know that it was intended to have a double iron.

A friend has a spectacular tool box belonging to a finish carpenter who started about 1860 and retired in 1919 at age 75. His 7 wooden planes started life as double iron planes and he converted them back to single iron - only time I have seen this:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/ruby1638/ ... 405997020/

Look at the beginning of the set of slides for his hand saws - civil war era in fabulous condition.

Ed
Ed M
Kevin Sjostrand
Posts: 3712
Joined: Sat Feb 09, 2008 8:06 pm
Location: Visalia, CA

Re: A box full of planes....the kind that don't fly

Post by Kevin Sjostrand »

Those are some amazing tools Ed. They are in fantastic condition. I especially like what I believe is a Colt 1851 Navy revolver? I had an 1860 and was into the black powder guns 40 years ago.
So do you think that wooden plane is handmade? Thanks
ruby@magpage.com
Posts: 1564
Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 8:03 am
Location: Chestertown Maryland

Re: A box full of planes....the kind that don't fly

Post by ruby@magpage.com »

It looks manufactured - and it looks to be 20th century. In the early part of that century, most bench planes were made in prisons using prison labor for Ohio, Sandusky, and Auburn. The way the handle socket is a little lowered from the top of the plane makes it a razee. This is to get the push from your hand more in line with the cut so there is less torque at the handle - some claim this to be a big benefit but I have never noticed it. Flatten the sole and sharp it up - they are very pleasant to use - snick, snick, snick

The gun is an 1861 Colt repro, according to the owner - a gun guy from way back. He was demonstrating that the hump in the saw handle had a similarity to the hump in the gun handle. The owner actually drove a car around the world in a race - twice. 1968 and 1969. He still has the 1967 Rambler he used for both trips. He also built a log canoe for racing on the Chesapeake in the 80's, and in the early 00's he built a log bugeye. A picture of that boat is the first one in the slide set I sent you.

Ed
Ed M
tippie53
Posts: 7011
Joined: Fri Mar 03, 2006 7:09 pm
Location: Hegins, Pa
Contact:

Re: A box full of planes....the kind that don't fly

Post by tippie53 »

the looks like a ship wrights plane
John Hall
Blues Creek Guitars Inc
Authorized CF Martin Repair Center
president of Association of Stringed Instrument Artisans
http://www.bluescreekguitars.com
Post Reply