Harbor Freight Mini Wood Planes

[gjdale]

A plane is a fast and efficient way of tapering, converting square stock to octagonal prior to final shaping (eg masts), or creating a bevel on one edge. As Mike notes above, one of the additional advantages is that a plane creates shavings rather than saw dust, which is both easier to clean up and less of a health hazard. Miniature planes simply allow you to use these advantages on smaller pieces of stock.

 

And as Bob Blarney notes above, I too have become a devotee of Paul Sellers' YouTube videos. If you haven't already checked them out, do yourself a favour.....

[Bob Blarney]

When I think of how much time and occasionally disappointing results that I got with sandpaper and other implements, versus the efficiency of a handplane followed by touch-up sanding, then... 

 

Hmm, if you shave your face with a sharp or a dull razor, then you'll imagine something about the usefulness of a handplane.  It's about the sharpness, and the weight, stability, and speed of the stroke with the hand.  

 

That said, there is another part about using a plane.  It can not be used 'in midair' - a stable bench and fixture(s) that holds the material firmly, is required.

[fish]

Would you say you use a plane more on scratch builds than on kits?

[Bob Blarney]

Kits or scratch? Use it as needed.  

 

Some kits are very nearly finished pieces, and others are rough blocks of wood.  And some times it's necessary to shape a part from scratch to replace a ruined piece or add a feature.

[Bob Cleek]

Yes, dust vacuums do have their place and if you are extensively using power tools they become something of a necessity unless you can work outdoors or have fans that will circulate the air, and thus the micro-dust, out of your shop.  That said, the problem of dust is hugely reduced in direct proportion to the reduction in power tool use.  A sander is not really a shaper, but most use them for this purpose.  On the other hand, for example, a plane takes a shaving that doesn't add a bit of dust to the air.  A knife or a chisel doesn't add dust to the air, either.  On the other hand, a router, table saw, wood lathe and so on make a real mess!  It's a bit of a trade off, I suppose.

[Mike Y]

Update: got the honing guide from Richard Kell, it is amazing! Can handle my tiiiiiny chisels without any issues

[Richard Griffith]

This is a great discussion; one that will benefit all of us.

 

For me, both hand honing and power grinding are essential.  Hand honing is a skill that needs practice and very little money. Power grinding needs a, hmm, machine.  The very best machine IMO is the Tormek from Sweden.  It is pricey but worth every penny.  One wheel rotates in water so the steel never overheats, the other is leather and rouge.

 

For example, I decided to remove the double bevel from a Swiss 1/4" chisel and regrind a single bevel.  The water wheel removed about 3/8" of steel in 5 minutes while making the single bevel, then the leather wheel dressed it to a very sharp edge.  Beautiful - a paring chisel that is more useful for me~!  Hand honing this would have taken about 6 hours. 

 

Dust is a serious hazard and must be managed.  Even a small amount of dust from hand sanding can harm some people.  All wood dust can harm you if you become sensitized to the species (one of my brothers became sensitized to mahogany so he either avoids it or must take great precautions).  Nearly every one can be harmed by wood that is toxic.  Remember, you can be sensitized to any wood if exposed too long and some woods are just plain nasty.  

 

There is more information on this subject elsewhere on MSW.  If you have a chuck of wood and want to know its toxicity, ask.  It would be very helpful if you know the species, as wood identification is complicated.

 

Keep building and above all, have fun.                                 Duff

[mischief]

Bob B. I have around 2 dozen + copies of the plans from the old Popular Science mags. Steam ship,Tankers,Civil War Ships ,HMS Bounty,Scooners, etc. Several of the  plans by Capt. E Armitage McCann. I would classify them as BARE Bone plans. When I got them I was hoping for Liberty Ship plans, however, no luck

[Bob Blarney]

Bob B. I have around 2 dozen + copies of the plans from the old Popular Science mags. Steam ship,Tankers,Civil War Ships ,HMS Bounty,Scooners, etc. Several of the  plans by Capt. E Armitage McCann. I would classify them as BARE Bone plans. When I got them I was hoping for Liberty Ship plans, however, no luck

Time was, that one could buy the plans from the PM/PS publishers, and I believe the plans were more detailed.  I inquired, but it's no longer possible to buy the plans.  Are yours the original mail-ordered publishers' plans?  

 

Like many other PM/PS projects that I've  reviewed and collected, I think that 'back when' ,that workmen, homeowners, and modelers were expected to have a higher degree of manual skills, ingenuity, and basic 'know-how' than most people have nowadays.  That I said, I've noticed that sometime in the late '60s, these magazines became mostly vehicles for product advertisement, rather than learning/project oriented publications. 

Edited January 14, 2016 by Bob Blarney

[grsjax]

RE: Popular Science plans.  Try this website, http://www.popsci.com/archives.  I believe they have all the back issues with plans.  No charge to download them.

[tkay11]

Great resource! Thanks for posting from Hawaii!

 

Tony

[Bob Blarney]

Shorter-cuts 4U:

 

Popular Mechanics:

 

https://books.google.com/books/about/Popular_Mechanics.html?id=RdMDAAAAMBAJ

 

Popular Science:

 

https://books.google.com/books?id=wzsEAAAAMBAJ&as_pt=MAGAZINES&ei=QVtqTfSyLIf6zAThl82MBg&source=gbs_other_issues