Laminated plane body.

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swagman

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Hi all. I have started work on a new 9 inch coffin shaped toothing plane. I want to put a clear natural finish on this plane, so to add an extra highlight to its look I have added a Bubinga sole to the PNG Rosewood upper body. Its a visually pleasing match using 2 different wood species.

Both inside surfaces to be glued were worked with a toothing iron to maximise the bonding achieved with the Gorilla Glue adhesive.

I have no plans to make this post a long winded tutorial from start to finish so you can all rest easy.

The following photo's show the basic form of the plane body after its been marked out ready to be mortised.

Stewie;


Side view.


Top view.


Bottom view with the guide holes drilled.


Front view showing a close up of the glued joint.


The plane body has been taped up to protect the 90 * corners of the plane body while its been held in the bench vise during mortising out.
 
Hi Stewie..

Looking forward to this as usual mate but I have one question...

Why Gorilla Glue....?

I tried this once...and I can honestly say that the hype surrounding its marketing far exceeded its ability to bond. It was like working with an out-of-control Golden Syrup which spread everywhere..remained gunky and then failed on the joint completely. It stuck quite well in the bin though! :mrgreen:

But it seems like one of these "Marmite" products...you either love it...or you hate it.

I'd be interested to hear your views on why you use it.

Jimi
 
Virtually any glue is suitable for gluing the sole on a wooden Plane. It's not as though the gluing surface is small, quite the opposite. I used Hide but that's because I like it's properties.
 
phil.p":2jnhoy81 said:
Wouldn't it be slightly easier to cut (95% of) the mortice before two parts are joined?

That's a fair comment phi.p. If the intention was to reduce the amount of worked involved with mortising out the traditional method, I would have went for a 2 or 3 piece vertical lamination over a single horizontal sole. But that's not the direction I wish to deal with my plane making work. I favour using the traditional techniques of construction for my own self satisfaction, and do what I can to encourage others to do likewise to prevent this early skill from becoming just a lost memory. I do value your comments.

regards; Stewie.
 
jimi43":23crij0w said:
Hi Stewie..

Looking forward to this as usual mate but I have one question...

Why Gorilla Glue....?

I tried this once...and I can honestly say that the hype surrounding its marketing far exceeded its ability to bond. It was like working with an out-of-control Golden Syrup which spread everywhere..remained gunky and then failed on the joint completely. It stuck quite well in the bin though! :mrgreen:

But it seems like one of these "Marmite" products...you either love it...or you hate it.

I'd be interested to hear your views on why you use it.

Jimi

Hi Jimi. For this application Gorilla Glue is an ideal adhesive to use.

I can't comment on why your experience turned out badly. All I can do is supply you with the steps I followed.

1. Insure that both face surfaces to be glued are perfectly flat. I planed the 2 surfaces first, then checked the surfaces on a flat glass surface using 150g sanding paper.

2. Roughen the 2 sanded surfaces with a high tpi toothing plane.

3. Spread the Gorilla Glue out very thinly on 1 only surface using a scraper blade. (Gorilla Glue will expand to 4 times it volume when in contact with moisture.

4. Using a small paint brush, lightly dampen the other surface that's going to be bonded.

5. Press both surfaces together. Clamp down securely over a flat bench or surface.

6. Remove most of the squeeze out with a scraper blade while the glue is still soft enough to do so.

7. Leave clamped in position for at least 2 to 3 hours.

8. Unclamp, and remove remaining squeeze out with a scraper blade or sharp chisel.

9. Lightly sand over a flat glass surface with 150g to complete final the clean up of the glued joint.

I hope this may be of some help to you Jimi, if you choose to give Gorilla Glue a 2nd try.

regards; Stewie.
 
MIGNAL":1t002w19 said:
Virtually any glue is suitable for gluing the sole on a wooden Plane. It's not as though the gluing surface is small, quite the opposite. I used Hide but that's because I like it's properties.

Hi Mignal. I would certainly not recommend Gorilla Glue for certain jobs. Veneer work is one in particular that comes to mind, but there are others, where Hide Glue would be a preferable adhesive to use.

Stewie;
 
phil.p":31jo4poz said:
I'm with Jimi on the polyurethane. I've used it on outdoor structural work where its gap filling abilities were useful, but I certainly wouldn't use it for this purpose.

Makes good sense phil.p

Stewie;
 
I guess it's like everything else Stewie...if you try something and it doesn't work then you stay well clear of it from then on.

I tried the poly Titebond...because I have never been let down by Titebond Original and apart from coming in a lovely coloured bottle...didn't like it.

The shelf life is not that good either on polys I understand.

My experience with Titebond Original is completely the opposite. I used it to fix a mahogany guitar neck which had broken twice before (stupid design) and I tried a joint on similar mahogany scrap first...let it set up for a few days and then hit it with a hammer. The wood broke. The joint stayed together. Enough for me.

But it doesn't work outside.

I would have used it for this job myself but glues are such a personal choice and availability plays an important part.

Jim
 
jimi43":m5t5ntex said:
I guess it's like everything else Stewie...if you try something and it doesn't work then you stay well clear of it from then on.

I tried the poly Titebond...because I have never been let down by Titebond Original and apart from coming in a lovely coloured bottle...didn't like it.

The shelf life is not that good either on polys I understand.

My experience with Titebond Original is completely the opposite. I used it to fix a mahogany guitar neck which had broken twice before (stupid design) and I tried a joint on similar mahogany scrap first...let it set up for a few days and then hit it with a hammer. The wood broke. The joint stayed together. Enough for me.

But it doesn't work outside.

I would have used it for this job myself but glues are such a personal choice and availability plays an important part.

Jim

That's true Jimi. I should have mentioned that Gorilla Glue should be also be suitable on clear or stained wood surfaces.

The other types of adhesive glues I like to use is 2 part epoxy. Its a very good choice to make if you want to also mix in a colouring agent to match the wood.

CA glue is also very good. It comes in 3 different viscosities; thin, medium, & thick; dries clear and wont stain the timber,(I have an idea it you can also buy it also in black); and you have a choice of curing times that start as low as 5 min. Its not really suited for large surface gluing because of its high purchase cost.

Stewie;
 
Making steady progress with the coffin shaped toothing plane. The iron has been nicely bedded at 87*. The throat and escarpment have also been completed. And the abutments have been fine tuned to correctly seat the wedge.

Next will be to shape the body of the plane to a coffin shape. That will be followed by marking and cutting the tines on the wedge, as well as refine its overall shape.

Lots of work in making these woodie's to a high level of perfection.

Stewie;



 
Forming a clean straight line in front of the mouth area with the required clearance tolerance between it and the cutting edge is not as difficult to do. The method I have used in the past is to glue a sacrificial hardwood veneer over this area to be protected so it doesn't get chipped when using plane maker floats to shaping out the bed, throat, and escarpment area's.

As you would have noted with my Toothing Plane work I have a preference to installing a hardwood infill in front of the mouth opening. By installing a hardwood infill at 90* to the pre existing grain direction of the plane sole, IMO this important edge has a much greater chance of maintaining its clean line over an extended period of plane use.

The use of a mouth infill during the initial plane construction should be seen as it is. A personal preference with the direction my work, and is in no way intended to detract or question work done by other traditional plane makers of current or earlier times.

regards; Stewie.
 
Stewie...

This plane falls into the category of "tool porn"!!!

I think you have nailed the modern take on a traditional coffin design right there...

I am not a huge fan of the shape of coffin woodies...although I totally understand the aesthetics behind making that shape.

But with flare, design inspiration and class...you have turned a boring shape into a tool that is nothing short of sexy.

Bravo mate...your best yet!

=D> =D>

Jimi
 
swagman":1w7vkztn said:
Thank you for the compliments Jimi.

regards; Stewie.

And thank you for the plane Stewie!! :wink:

I shall hopefully be taming a particularly stubborn piece of partridge wood (Caesalpinia paraguariensis) with it in order to make a wooden mitre plane...

Not sure what this is called...one tool making another...but I am certainly looking forward to adding this one to my portfolio (note not collection!! :oops: ) of "serious woodies!!"

Cheers

Jimi
 
swagman":2ju1mq5p said:
For this application Gorilla Glue is an ideal adhesive to use.

I think his site is long gone, but IIRC Steve Knight also used Gorilla glue when
laminating his exotic wood planes together.

BugBear (re visiting toothing plane threads)
 
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