Making a Wooden Plane
Making the Wedge
The wedge can take on a variety of shapes, but I keep the slope fairly consistant. A ratio of 1:6 seems to work quite well. Put the iron in the plane and measure the distance from the breaker to the flat of the pin. This is the approximate thickness of the midpoint of the wedge.
Measure the wedge thickness |
Mark this out on the piece you previously removed from the blank, and carefully cut it out. Doing this with a coping saw is difficult, so I keep the shape simple and make the wedge with a few cuts of a sharp handsaw.
After you've cut the wedge, flatten the bearing surface with a file. If your pin is not parallel to the bed, you will want to adjust the wedge to compensate. This is not ideal, but it's a reasonable solution. If you're dealing with a slight discrepancy, you can round the top of the wedge so that it makes contact with the pin at the center, and not along the pin's entire length.
Back To Index | To Next Topic |
-
Steve Spodaryk
Medford, MA
-
article
12.10.2008
- Making a Wooden Plane
Introduction
Tools
The Iron
The Chipbreaker
Wood
Marking Out the Blank 1
Marking Out the Blank 2
Forming the Plane Bed
Drilling the Pin Holes
Making the Pin
Test Fit
Glue Up
Post Glue Cleanup
Adjusting the Mouth
Making the Wedge
Test Run
Shaping the Plane Body
Troubleshooting
Advanced Topics
- Making a Wooden Plane
NEL Members
The New England Luthiers is an association of professionals and amateurs brought together by a common love of making stringed instruments