www.KitGuitarsForum.com

The English perfected what is known as the infill plane. It is a plane (any length, any bedding angle) that is made of a metal shell with a wood insert at the toe and the heel. They are typically made with a mouth that is a few thou wide. The advantage is purported to be that they are very heavy and therefor easier to get through the wood, but tell that to the guy who uses wood bodied planes that weight 1/2 of what these guys weigh. I have used several and own one, but don't see the advantage as much as an acolyte does. They are simply gorgeous though. There are a lot of people who make these for sale ($500 - $10,000 or so), and even pre-cut kits, but the grandaddy of them all is Bill Carter:

http://www.billcarterwoodworkingplanemaker.co.uk


If you have a spare hour, this is a remarkable site. He even has a 30 part youtube series on making one of these, something that has been on my bucket list for a long time.

He is full of cool woodworking techniques throughout that series. and all of his videos, but here is one that we can all use once in a while, the Blunt Chisel Technique (said with an English accent):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=re_bp5Lp0To

I remember to use it only once in a while - I should hang a reminder in my chisel cabinet. I have a shallow gouge and 3/4" chisel set up - takes just a minute and works with any $2 flea market chisel of reasonable quality - think vintage as always.

Ed

Thanks, Ed. I watched the videos after seeing your earlier post. I can't wait to get over to the auction and procure some suitable chisels. Have you tried this with swan-necked chisels?