setting up a no.5 as virtual scrub

[Smudger]

I expect I was just being childish...

That's why I wrote "I have heard" which should indicate some degree of doubt.

 

[mr grimsdale]

I expect I was just being childish...

....

Well that's how it is over here. Discussion does seem to make people uneasy.

 

[Smudger]

You really don't get it, even now, do you?

 

[Alf]

I'm getting a horrible feeling of déjà vu... There are more than a few discussions on the 'truth' behind the scrub in the archive, if anyone's desirous of being about 1000% more confused. :lol:

 

[Digit]

On the subject of No 4s BSM I usually set them for different mouths and different cuts for different woods, that way you don't keep having to adjust.

Roy.

 

[mr grimsdale]

You really don't get it, even now, do you?

Clearly not.
Whats all this about then? Is 'scrub plane' on a list of things not to be discussed or something?
I thought my idea about 'scrubbing' bad surfaces was quite interesting.
So it's been gone over before, but so has everything else, 1000 times. The OP was new to the topic - so a new discussion breaks out! That's how it should be IMHO. You can't just tell him to trawl the archives and not to trouble us.

 

[Modernist]

I shall retire to my grinding shop :? :?

 

[Alf]

You can't just tell him to trawl the archives and not to trouble us.

Well I can, but I'm not. I was addressing the issue of historical use with a suggestion that there's discussion aplenty of pertinence in the archive which interested parties might like to have a look at - rather than bury the OP's original question.

 

[Smudger]

To get back to the OP's question - if he wants to flatten boards then a #5 might be too big - the two scrubs I have (1 a 'Bismarck' woody) are both small, and if Photobucket would come back online I'd show you the comparison pictures! (And, Alf, you could see my £24 05½).
If he wants to do edge work then I guess size doesn't matter®.

 

[big soft moose]

I'm getting a horrible feeling of déjà vu... There are more than a few discussions on the 'truth' behind the scrub in the archive, if anyone's desirous of being about 1000% more confused. :lol:

Thanks but i'm adequately confused already

modernists answer has answered my question (I think) tho i'd be interested to see the resulting grind

I may not actually use my spare 5 for this as I tend to use the performance power planer or the belt sander for stripping off nasty surface but all knowledge is useful

cheers to those all those who answered

 

[Digit]

If you habitually use both hardwoods and softwoods BSM why not set one No5 for each?
That way you pick up the plane knowing that the frog won't need adjustment.

Roy.

 

[Smudger]

This is what I meant about size. This is a Record 05½ and a Stanley #40:

Here there is a Record 03 for comparison:

The cutter on the #40 is 1¼", compared to 1¾" on the 03 and 2¼/2⅝ on the 05½. An 05 is 2", so that is a significant difference.

 

[mr grimsdale]

....
I may not actually use my spare 5 for this as I tend to use the performance power planer o... for stripping off nasty surface but all knowledge is useful

So if you do a deep cut the blades will last a bit longer, for reason explained above (depending on what the nasty surface consists of). Or similarly a 'scrub' will last better than a jack.

The old scrubber is a bit confusing as it was more or less obsolete but has been revived fairly recently. There are different opinions on it's use.

I'd suggest just having a go - put a steep camber on your no5. With just part of the blade out it is effectively narrower.

 

[Smudger]

If it comes to use - I've had 2 scrub planes for about 4 years and I've used one of them twice. The other is on a shelf...

 

[AHoman]

on a recent thread modernist wrote this
could he (or someone) explain what this means - bearing in mind my newness to hand toolage - and also how you do it and what the benefits are

If you are dimensioning wood with hand tools (as opposed to power jointer + thicknesser), then there are times when you want to remove thick chips instead of paper thin shavings. If you put a camber on the edge of the blade of a #5, and back up the frog to open the mouth, then this plane becomes effective for this task.
For what it's worth, I don't think of a #5 with a cambered blade as a "scrub," but rather, as a roughing jack. It still makes sense at times to have a #5 with a straight-edged blade, but not for the above-mentioned rough work. And a "scrub" plane is actually an altogether different beast.
-Andy

 

[davebray]

Hi all,
I use a old Rapier No.5 as, what I thought was called, a scrub plane.
As per AHoman comments - I really use it for taking boards down to reasonably close to finished thickness.
I tend to aim for the high bits first to get them down and then to get the board to some semblance of 'flatness' - in it's loosest sense of course and then switch over to my old Record 51/2 or Clifton 7 depending on board length for the final bit. You guessed it, I don't have a planer/thicknesser as yet.
I can see the point in Smudgers' posts about using a 400 size plane with 1&1/4" blade because it's hard graft using the old Rapier No.5. The board starts to warp with all the sweat that lands on it
I've got an old wooden 'coffin' smoother about 9" long with a nice blade in it that I can't really get the hang of adjusting it finely to feel comfortable with as a smoother. So when I get time I shall put a camber on that blade and give it whirl as per Smudger points.
A good discussion lads.
Cheers
Dave

 

[Mikey R]

Ive got a Stanley #26 transitional jack Ive been meaning to use for rough work, as soon as Ive got it back into good working order. Its about as heavy as my #4 but the extra length should keep the boards flat.

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/stan4.htm#num26

Great thread, loads of inspiration! Cheers

 

[Benchwayze]

Here you go

Thanks Smudger..
That's an interesting site. The guy is old-fashioned, so that one gets into my Bookmarks!

John

 

[big soft moose]

If you habitually use both hardwoods and softwoods BSM why not set one No5 for each?
That way you pick up the plane knowing that the frog won't need adjustment.

Roy.

its an idea but i rarely use softwood - virtually everything ive done thus far has been with oak , yew, or abw (or mdf and plywood )

I need to learn more about this setting up malarkey though as didnt know there were different settings for different timbers, i generally just twiddle the adjuster til it works right.

 

[Digit]

And it's not just for different timbers BSM. The mouth for a roughing cut would normally be wider than for a finishing cut to allow the thicker shaving through.

Roy.