Silchester plane

[lanemaux]

Vulcan and Faunus would be well pleased I think . Looks great amigo , hope to see it at work soon.

 

[rxh]

Vulcan and Faunus would be well pleased I think . Looks great amigo , hope to see it at work soon.

Thanks Mike,

Some more progress: I've made the rivets and sole flush with the sole and sides respectively. I milled/ground down as far as I dared, then finished with scraper and files. I made a scraper from an old file by grinding the teeth off the the end of one side - it worked well. The next jobs are to make a nicer wedge and heat treat the blade.

One advantage of this style of plane is it should be possible to use various widths and thicknesses of blade so I intend to try several.

 

[AndyT]

That's looking absolutely fantastic!
What I really want to know is how it performs in practice, with its combination of unusual design features - the central mouth, the steep pitch, the hand grip and the heavy weight. But I do think you've done a great job of proving that the construction technique works.

 

[jimi43]

Indeed! It is fabulous!

Now...get ye down to the forum and show Shavius Minimus! :mrgreen:

Brilliant mate...

=D> =D> =D>

Jimi

 

[rxh]

Thanks Andy & Jimi,

It will be a few weeks before I get a "forge" up and running so I couldn't resist giving the plane a quick try this morning on a piece of sawn ash using a QS No.3 blade. At the height of my bench the most comfortable hold seemed to be having the rounded back end resting in the palm. Next I need to get the blade good and sharp then try on more demanding wood but I think it is a promising start.

 

[JIJ]

Cracking job. Great to see some shavings.

James

 

[JIJ]

Do you think the weight of the plane explains the rear handle? A sticky up one looks more comfortable to me. I don't imagine it would have been difficult to add one if it was wanted.

James

 

[lanemaux]

Hi James, I seem to recall that the height of Roman benches was fairly low and that the plane was almost leaned on if that is so. That handle design would then be very feasible.

 

[JIJ]

Ah, Makes more sense now. Thanks Mike

 

[Corneel]

Roman style workbench:

 

[rxh]

Cracking job. Great to see some shavings.

Thanks James and thanks for starting this thread in the first place - it has been an education

Hi James, I seem to recall that the height of Roman benches was fairly low and that the plane was almost leaned on if that is so. That handle design would then be very feasible.

Roman style workbench:

Thanks Mike and Corneel. Now we need to find or make a Roman bench ....

Tonight I went ahead and hardened the blade and did the same to the blade for my infill mitre plane too. Tempering will be the next task.

 

[jimi43]

Nice bit of hardening and great photos!!

Now all you have to do is have a Roman Sunday lunch and you're back in temper! :mrgreen:

I think that since you have gone this far you need to make a facsimile of that bench.

I did a double take on the iron picture...thinking there was a guy called Norrisus Adjusticus but then I read your post properly!! DOH! (homer)

Once you've done the bench...I think it only fitting that you wear a Toga and treat us to a re enactment...what d'ya think? :shock: :mrgreen:

Wonderful stuff...the stuff that kids need to be shown so that they can not only see a static image but how it was possibly made.

Very impressed....think I will just get on with my mitre infill now! :wink:

Cheers for the update

Jimi

 

[JimB]

A great thread.

 

[rxh]

Thanks Jimi and JimB,

Gaudeamus fratres! Runcina perfecta est. Habemus ramenta! *

* Let us rejoice brothers! The plane is complete. We have shavings.
I can't vouch for the grammatical accuracy - it's more than 45 years since Latin was beaten into me

I tempered the blade in the oven (only slight domestic displeasure incurred), sharpened it and fitted it. I couldn't find any more yew to make a wedge so made one from ash, which was presumably a type of wood found here in Roman times. I don't have a Roman bench or a toga but I have been practicing planing leaning over the plane using an "overhand" grip and it seems to work quite well. Ready for a test drive by an independent expert.

 

[jimi43]

Exsultemus, et fratres Mei; Planum est perfecta . Habemus fomite

....I think! :mrgreen:

Don't know what the logistics are but I could probably find time to test with ALFIUS! 8)

Surely though there is someone within chariot distance?

I do have some more yew if you want to complete the plane in keeping with the rest.

Thanks for sharing and awaiting the testing...

Jimi

p.s. Si non habuerit toga uti linteo

 

[G S Haydon]

Smashing stuff! I was so interested to see how this one worked the wood! Now if we could do a passaround on this one :lol:

 

[AndyT]

Well, that's definitely another addition to the list of things the Romans did for us - designing effective and practical woodworking tools!

And thanks again RXH for a really fascinating and enlightening build.

 

[JIJ]

Brilliant,. Thanks for taking the time to post and with so many great photos.
I hope it becomes a regular user for you.

James

 

[condeesteso]

(sorry been absent a while, busy n all that)
Happened to need to drop a thing off to RX this afternoon, so got to try this plane out (we should have done some pics)
I really like the build, the look and feel of it. It's hefty of course, but feels quite petite. I'd expect the handle to pose challenges on a Western style bench (around 32").
On a first look I felt the cut was a bit much, so did a quick adjustment - pleasingly fast to set up for thin ribbons off the central 2/3rds of iron (v slight camber).
Richard had some oak, mahogany and maple to play with so I went straight to the reverse grain - surely what a plane of this pitch would relish.
It's a cracker - excellent finish on reverse grain anything. Use it's mass forward and let its own weight produce the cut. The ergonomics are fine and it holds nicely.
If you get the chance you need to try it (maybe at Mac 30 November). I was surprised how quick it was to set up and then 'learn' The steep pitch (around 65??) is far higher than anything I use and I expected it to be a bit of a struggle... not at all. Well done Richard!

[re the drop off thing... maybe more later :wink: ]

 

[bridger]

The high pitch, the horizontal handle, the low bench.... all point to planing practice involving leaning on the plane.