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My handy Lie-Nielsen Violin Maker's Block Plane


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Measuring just 3 1/2'' by 1 1/4'' I do believe this little palm sized plane is filling a niche in my model ship making. From cutting out the rabbet to helping shape the tapering of the masts it's definitely making life much easier and enjoyable on projects that can sometimes be a bit too tedious with the standard hobby blade. I find myself really liking this little plane. 

IMG_4236.JPG

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Mike; Can’t go wrong with a Lie-Neilsen plane. I have one of these and use it regularly. The only problem I have is that the mouth is very small and this can cause clogging. Has this happened to you also or am I not using it correctly? Allan

Completed Builds:

Virginia Armed Sloop...Model Shipways

Ranger...Corel

Louise Steam Launch...Constructo

Hansa Kogge...Dusek

Yankee Hero...BlueJacket

Spray...BlueJacket

26’ Long Boat...Model Shipways

Under Construction:

Emma C. Berry...Model Shipways

 

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9 hours ago, Moab said:

Mike; Can’t go wrong with a Lie-Neilsen plane. I have one of these and use it regularly. The only problem I have is that the mouth is very small and this can cause clogging. Has this happened to you also or am I not using it correctly? Allan

Thanks for the reply Moab. To answer your question, yes, at first I did but it wasn't long until I discovered that I was trying to take off too much with a single pass. Once I adjusted the depth it then worked like a champ. Since this is a very tiny plane for delicate work the trick seems to be adjusting it to take very thin slivers at a time. The sweet spot for me seems to be where I can gently rub my thumb over the bottom without it catching. 

 

Mike

Edited by Mike Shea
Grammar.
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8 hours ago, Bob Blarney said:

The 'big brother' 102 is handy too, and bedded at 12d.   The Model Maker's  Block Plane looks interesting too.

Ha! Yeah, I've had my eye on that one for awhile. The problem was that the Sweet Pea wasn't too happy about my purchase of the Violin Plane so right now I'm trying to 'launder' my money so she won't know if and when I jump up to the 102! Perhaps a Swiss account. Once it's in the house I'm fine as all tools look the same to her - it's just when the FedEx guy shows up that I seem to get put in the doghouse. 

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That little plane is great. I’ve been cutting my own planks for a scratch-build I’m working on and it’s great for taking saw blade marks off the planks. 

249F16E2-1B5D-434C-9726-F438FCBE85CF.thumb.jpeg.04e025d9f9162b754914c570f92be65e.jpeg

 

Steve

 

"If they suspect me of intelligence, I am sure it will soon blow over, ha, ha, ha!"

-- Jack Aubrey

 

Builds:

Yankee Hero, Fannie Gorham, We’re Here, Dapper Tom (x3), New Bedford Whaler, US Brig Lawrence (Niagara), Wyoming (half hull), Fra Berlanga (half hull), Gokstad Viking Ship, Kate Cory, Charles Morgan, Gjoa

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On 2/1/2018 at 6:13 PM, Mike Shea said:

Ha! Yeah, I've had my eye on that one for awhile. The problem was that the Sweet Pea wasn't too happy about my purchase of the Violin Plane so right now I'm trying to 'launder' my money so she won't know if and when I jump up to the 102! Perhaps a Swiss account. Once it's in the house I'm fine as all tools look the same to her - it's just when the FedEx guy shows up that I seem to get put in the doghouse. 

L-N also made the 102 in ductile iron - just a functional at 3/4 the cost of bronze.  Maybe you could ask about that.  Also, keep your eye out at flea markets & yardsales (or Ebay) for a Stanley 60-1/2 low-angle block plane, or one of its analogues from Millers Falls or Sargent.  It might be a better choice for your arsenal since you already have the Violin Plane.

 

One more thing - an occasional swipe or two (not a coating) with a block of canning wax with make that plane glide, and won't make problems with finishing - try it on scrap - you'll like it.

Edited by Bob Blarney
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Maybe you might be interested in seeing this pic.  Here I'm planing down a ~9" x 24" piece of bandsawn  East Indian rosewood from about 4 or 5mm to about 2.5 mm for a guitar back. Note that the rosewood was bordered with 7/64" model aircraft plywood.  The plywood controlled the depth of cut of the planes' strokes. 

 

Most of the excess rosewood thickness was hogged off in diagonal strokes with the No.4 bench plane.  When it got down to about 3mm, then the No.6 foreplane was used.  It rested on the 7/64 plywood - on the sides or bridging the rosewood, and it shaved off the rosewood a little at a time.  Final cleanup was done with a No. 80 scraper and a L-N 112 scraper plane.  Note the can of Johnson paste wax that was used to lubricate the soles of the planes - I want my energy to go into planing wood, not lost as heat generated by friction.

It's quite possible to do this on a smaller scale with smaller planes.  Remember to put a small radius on the corners of the plane blade so as not to carve grooves.  Generally, a heavier and longer plane will produce more uniform and smoother thickness, but a sharp blade is most important of all.  In the long run, you'll find that it's much quicker to plane to thickness than  to sand, and the surface feels wonderful. Actually, sometimes you might need to sand a planed piece to achieve a good adherence of glue. 

>As always - practice on scrap to prevent savaging a beautiful bit of wood<

shavings - Edited.jpg

Edited by Bob Blarney
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  • 2 weeks later...

I too have this plane and as with all Lie products it’s great. I do have one problem and would appreciate any feedback. Because the mouth is so small and fixed I have problems with it filling up and clogging almost immediately. I have set the blade to make an extremely small cut and it still clogs. All help is appreciated.....Moab/Allan

Completed Builds:

Virginia Armed Sloop...Model Shipways

Ranger...Corel

Louise Steam Launch...Constructo

Hansa Kogge...Dusek

Yankee Hero...BlueJacket

Spray...BlueJacket

26’ Long Boat...Model Shipways

Under Construction:

Emma C. Berry...Model Shipways

 

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19 hours ago, Moab said:

I too have this plane and as with all Lie products it’s great. I do have one problem and would appreciate any feedback. Because the mouth is so small and fixed I have problems with it filling up and clogging almost immediately. I have set the blade to make an extremely small cut and it still clogs. All help is appreciated.....Moab/Allan

Allan, it does seem to have a tendency to clog with softer woods such as basswood, however, with each pass it should push out the shavings. It took me a couple adjustments to find a happy medium where it works the best depending on the softness/hardness of the wood. Even though it's designed for smaller delicate work I have noticed that being a bit more 'aggressive' with faster passes works good too. I primarily use this plane on edge work such as beginning my taper on masts and rabbets where the majority of the wood being planed is set more in the center of the blade rather than using the entire blade for a wider cuts. If that's the case, perhaps a slightly larger plane is in order. Hope that helps. 

 

Mike

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Thanx Mike. I’ll give your suggestions a try. If I had the right tools i’d try to open the throat by filing, etc. Thanx again.....Allan

Completed Builds:

Virginia Armed Sloop...Model Shipways

Ranger...Corel

Louise Steam Launch...Constructo

Hansa Kogge...Dusek

Yankee Hero...BlueJacket

Spray...BlueJacket

26’ Long Boat...Model Shipways

Under Construction:

Emma C. Berry...Model Shipways

 

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