Did Anyone Ever Offer ...?

[Droogs]

I'm off on holiday today, yay , so can't really contribute to this other than ask the question. I had a thought last night and wanted to put it out there before I forgot about it.

In my time I've seen lots of planes of nearly all types in both wood and metal and inbetween. but I have never seen a metal moulding plane - not counting rebate or shoulder planes as such. I also don't count my #405 or it's counterparts as one either (I know you can get hollow/round bases etc, never been able to get some for myself, unfortunately).

Does anyone know if any metal bodied moulding planes were ever produced at all? Over to Andy I think

 

[NazNomad]

I'm sure I've seen pics of a brass one... or did I imagine it?

 

[AndyT]

You rang?

Interesting question. In a significant way, the various combination and universal planes such as the 45 and 405 were moulding planes, and good enough for many users. The big difference is that they didn't have a sole of matching profile to the cutter. But that was ok, sort of - the thin skate works to limit the depth of cut, just like it does on any plough plane, provided that the wood is mild and the grain is favourable.
As you say, Record sold size-specific hollow and round bases for the 405, giving some of the flexibility of a set of wooden hollows and rounds, usable with or without the fence and depth stop. Judging by their rarity, few tradesmen bought them - but they may well have kept hold of a few old wooden planes, bought for pennies and kept just in case. The late father of a friend of mine certainly did.

However, plane designers always were an inventive lot and there were one or two designs where the sole could be adapted to resemble different cutters. Maybe the best known was Walker's Adjustable Face Plane. There's an excellent article about it in the Lee Valley Newsletter here:

http://www.leevalley.com/us/newsletters ... ection.htm

which is the source of this illustration - click through to the article for more.

A valuable rarity rather than a commercially successful design.

But I guess what you really mean is whether there was a range of metal planes with profiled bases. They would have cost a lot more than the well-established wooden moulding planes, and as metal hand planes came into prominence, there was a parallel growth in machine moulding of timber, first by steam and then by electric machinery.

I've found this picture of a single size beading plane from the Union company - who were bought out by Stanley in the 1920s

(from http://eaiainfo.org/blog/page/2/)

They were offered in three sizes - all very rare.

And here's another - American again - the Gocher bead plane

(see http://www.jimbodetools.com/Extra-Fine- ... 52696.html )

 

[AndyT]

Another dead end of tool history here - http://eaiainfo.org/2015/08/20/variatio ... odel-shop/ - explaining how the Stanley company were considering offering a range of metal-bodied corner rounding and beading planes, plus a pair of planes to make a table moulding. They made it to the prototype stage, so were preserved in the company archives, but didn't go into production.

 

[AndyT]

I'm sure I've seen pics of a brass one... or did I imagine it?

There was, briefly, this marmite offering from Bridge City Tools- is that what you were thinking of?

- sold with changeable bases and irons

 

[D_W]

I'm off on holiday today, yay , so can't really contribute to this other than ask the question. I had a thought last night and wanted to put it out there before I forgot about it.

In my time I've seen lots of planes of nearly all types in both wood and metal and inbetween. but I have never seen a metal moulding plane - not counting rebate or shoulder planes as such. I also don't count my #405 or it's counterparts as one either (I know you can get hollow/round bases etc, never been able to get some for myself, unfortunately).

Does anyone know if any metal bodied moulding planes were ever produced at all? Over to Andy I think

are you asking to find whether or not there's standard stuff like multiplanes, etc? Or are you asking looking for something more unusual, like hollows and rounds with metal soles?

The only thing I can add, and it's not much, is that stanley made an infill rabbet plane. I can't remember the number of it, and so can't find a reasonable picture.

 

[Cheshirechappie]

I wonder whether the answer lies deep in the 19th century development of metalworking. By the time the equipment to machine and finish shaped plane soles had been developed to a suitable commercial stage, the spindle moulder (or shaper in North America) had also been developed. Given that there were any number of makers of wooden moulding planes, whose capital investment extended only to some hand tools and a bench, the market for metal-bodied moulding planes was probably judged far too small to warrant the capital investment in machines and special tooling needed to make them.

Joinery and cabinet firms needing a lot of moulded components invested in machinery, general jobbers making a few mouldings here and there bought from the well-established wooden plane makers, some of whom lasted a surprisingly long time.

One specialised example of metal-bodied moulding planes that does come to mind is patternmakers' interchangeable sole rounds. Most of those seem to have had wooden sole pieces, though, even the metal-bodied ones. They also have a tendency to be craftsman-made rather than commercial products; possibly only patternmakers could have made them, being one of the few trades with access to both metal and wood working facilities.

 

[AndyT]

Another afterthought - here's a specialist metal moulding plane from my own collection. It's for working curves, where a plane body would be too long, so it's made like a spokeshave instead. When working a moulding on a curve, it's even more important to cut down the grain, so you need left and right handed versions of the moulding, conveniently made into a single tool.

These were offered in great variety by Preston, but featured in other companies' catalogues. This one isn't marked Preston, so it could have been made by them for someone else, or else it's a copy. Either way, it works, and if I ever need to make a nice 1930s door with an oval window in it, I'll be ready!

 

[Sheffield Tony]

Maybe the best known was Walker's Adjustable Face Plane. There's an excellent article about it in the Lee Valley Newsletter here:

http://www.leevalley.com/us/newsletters ... ection.htm

which is the source of this illustration - click through to the article for more.

A valuable rarity rather than a commercially successful design.

At first glance I thought that might be one of their excellent April Fools ! Fun to adjust, I reckon.