Record T5?

[Ttrees]

I find it hard to believe that your skills are not up to it, as I've seen that lovely box you made
You want to try the finer blade you say....Is it intended for crosscutting or general purpose?
Did you try striking a line with a marking knife and planing to the line?
Make sure you put a chamfer down to the line on the end of the piece first, as you would end up blowing out the edge of the timber at the
end of the pass. See Rob Cosman.
As long as you can get the plane iron sharp enough to shave with, your good to go.
Sharp enough means not tugging on your arm hair, it means whooao sharp, that takes no effort to cut whatsoever.
Look at 0:32 into this video .......
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jix5SDsfS5I
Have fun
Tom

 

[Chris152]

That's kind of you, Tom. She loved it, which is what really matters. I collected the 60 tooth blade today and it definitely makes a better job than the 24 that came with it - and took far less sanding to get a good surface on the cut face.

That said, I want to try planing the end grain as you say. I can put it in a shooting board flat on the bench but it is rather wide now and would find it easier if it's upright, planing horizontally - and the bench vice can only grip one end. I could clamp it to the side of the bench, maybe?

 

[Chris152]

To answer my own question:

I got the blade as sharp as I could and the plane passed fine over the end grain. But, there is some tear out on the softer layers of the pine - is the blade still not sharp enough or is this what's to be expected?

It'd take hardly any sanding to sort it.

Thanks for persisting, Tom.

edit - maybe it's clearer in this one. My lens won't get any closer!

 

[Ttrees]

Can't say how good you can get it, as I have not planed much end grain.
I only use hardwoods, But if I remember correctly that end grain shavings in softwood is one way to test a chisel for truly sharp.
I thought that video shown a thing which is not often seen, hairs actually flicking up into the air.
If you can get it this sharp, you know its good enough.
You should be able to produce shavings

I wonder if the cap iron has the same effect in end grain as long grain ?
There is folks that use a low angle plane for this, but in reality there is not much difference in the angle of attack when you add it all up.

Sorry I can't be more help
Tom

 

[ED65]

But, there is some tear out on the softer layers of the pine - is the blade still not sharp enough or is this what's to be expected?

Generally, if your edges are very very sharp indeed you will get little, or no, tearing like this with a suitably light cut. But some wood just doesn't want to cooperate. If small zones of the earlywood are particularly soft almost everyone would struggle to get a truly perfect surface when planing it.

Anyway, your results look great to me. You can always fill the tiniest traces, fills like this can be nearly invisible even with close inspection by someone who knows what they're looking for. You might not even be able to spot where the filler is a few weeks later when you've forgotten where it is!

You must also remember that nobody will scrutinise the end grain the way you're doing, except a fellow woodworker.

 

[custard]

You can always fill the tiniest traces, fills like this can be nearly invisible even with close inspection by someone who knows what they're looking for. You might not even be able to spot where the filler is a few weeks later when you've forgotten where it is!

End grain changes colour dramatically as it drinks up the finish, that will make the filler stand out like a fish in a tree.

End grain planing was discussed here,

which-vintage-blockplane-to-get-t106952.html

If you're not happy with the end grain surface you get from a bench plane then either sharpen your iron and try again, or set to with a sanding block. Don't bother with filler.

Incidentally, some makers aim for paler end grain surfaces, and the way they're achieving that is by sanding to much much higher grits than you'd usually use. The traditional explanation for why end grain finishes darker is that the cut ends of the fibres absorbs the finish. However, a number of makers now claim this is only a relatively small contributor, the bigger part comes from micro tear out on end grain, and if you sand through the grits right up into wet and dry levels you'll produce end grain that finishes only slightly darker than long grain. Hands up, I've never finished a serious piece of furniture like this, but I've seen the work these guys are producing and the reality of their work is persuasive.

 

[custard]

Thinking about it I did actually go the high grit route on end grain a few years ago.

This is one of my pieces, and I've made a couple of other items like it. The end grain surface of the leg forms part of the desk's top surface, I sanded through the grits right up to something in the thousands. As you can see the end grain finish is fairly close to the long grain, even with an oil based finish (Osmo).

The end grain on the matching chairs gets the same insane high grit treatment.

 

[Chip shop]

That chair is lovely.

 

[Chris152]

That chair is lovely.

I'm pretty determined to learn to make simple furniture of a decent quality, and reckon if I work hard enough I can do it. But I look at a chair like that and my mind boggles, I can't even begin to think how it was made let alone imagine making anything like it myself.