Name that plane

[scholar]

I had to dip into a couple of the toolboxes today - lots of wooden planes and moulding planes to sort through and get sharpened up (lots to learn there).

I came across three infill planes that I thought someone may have some ideas about. I should say i am not an expert on old planes, but do aim one day to get these overhauled so far as is reasonable. Right now they are a bit of a rum bunch..

Plane 1
The blade and cap iron are missing from this jointer - it is 21 3/4" long and the blade is, or rather should be, 2 5/8" wide.
The sole is in pretty good shape with just a bit of surface rust on the sides (would it have been nickel plated or something?).
There do not appear to be any maker's markings at all to help me identify it.






Plane 2
The blade has a Norris stamp; the cap iron has a I Sorby stamp; the rest of the plane has no markings.
The rear infill appears to be relatively recent, although I may be wrong - it is certainly not properly finished at the back - I don't know whether it is a replacement or the original infill- if the latter then perhaps this is an unfinished kit? There is a threaded hole at the back of the bronze/brass upright that is clearly missing a screw/bolt. The front infill is missing, clearly.
The length is 7 3/8" and the blade is 2 1/4" wide.
The sole is steel and the sides bronze or brass. The sole is fairly pitted in one area, but I guess quite a bit of that could be lapped out.







Plane 3
This is fairly beat up at the back, presumably due to whacking with a steel hammer to free the wedge etc.
The plane has no apparent markings, but the iron has a E Preston stamp.
The width is slightly over 1/2" and the length is ".
The sides are dovetailed to the base and the infill and the (damaged) wedge is presumably rosewood.
It cuts rather nicely as it is.




Would be great to have any info and suggestions people have.

Cheers

 

[scholar]

Well, I thought there was something odd about Plane no 1. Having scraped around a bit, I found that the lateral adjustment lever has Stanley stamped on it. As far as I can tell, Stanley did not make such an infill plane - the frog is identical to that on my old Stankey No 8, but it has been filed away partly on the bottom to match the seating on this infill plane. Also the wood infill behind the frog has been cut away rather crudely to accommodate the adjustment wheel.

So it seems it is a bitser. Was it originally a kit plane or was it a proper plane that suffered some mishap with its frog?

 

[Vann]

I'm not an expert on infill planes, but I'd guess the first two are made by the owner, from kits. That's not to say they won't be damned good planes, although the adapted frog in the bigger plane is possibly a bodge.

Try them, see if they're any good.

Cheers, Vann.

 

[AndyT]

Infill planes are hard to date or attribute, since so many were user made, sometimes using commercially made castings and parts. Others will have been owned by people who just thought of them as old and of no value - so ripe for any sort of practical repair to make a working tool.


So I think no 1 has been a really good plane, but ruthlessly repaired to make it usable. That makes it less valuable to a collector looking for a tool in mint condition but some people (including me) enjoy seeing signs of a hard life. I'm no expert here, but that lever cap screw is a distinctive and attractive shape - Buck? Spiers? The front infill is beautifully shaped, as is the handle. If they are ebony, this was a top of the range plane.

I suspect Plane 2 is one where a user bought a casting and made a crude job of fitting the back infill. He either stopped there or did a worse job on the front, which fell out. If you were looking to sell it, the Norris iron could be worth more than the plane.

I think I have seen no 3 in the Preston and Mathieson catalogues.

An interesting group. You're a lucky chap!

 

[bugbear]

I had to dip into a couple of the toolboxes today...

I came across three infill planes...

Does this happen to you often?

:lol: :lol: :lol:

BugBear