STL179: Barry’s Insane For The Scrub Plane
Barry, Mike, and Ben discuss no-name handplanes, drawboring, scrub planes, and the best wood choice for a dining room table that is likely to travel the world
Question 1:
From Tony:
We hear so much talk about Lie Nielsen, Veritas, and Stanley hand planes but, I have a Millers Falls No. 8 that i picked up from an Antique store, that works really well. I don’t think I’ve ever heard the Millers Falls Name be mentioned on the Podcast, so I am wondering if they’re any good? They seem to have been in contention with Stanley and they are American made from New England no less, since 1868!
Question 2:
From Matt:
I have been wanting to do a project using drawbore mortise and tenon joints. Is it a bad idea to attempt this type of joint in a softer woods like cherry or walnut, rather than oak.
- Drawbored Tenons by Steve Latta #241–July/Aug 2014 Issue – http://bit.ly/2K9mFWz
- Video: Chris Gochnour – Drawboring and Gluing Up the Face Frame – http://bit.ly/2zKBHPw
- Floating-Top Table by Michael Pekovich #263-Sep/Oct 2017 Issue – http://bit.ly/2zKD2pw
Segment: Smooth Move
- Mike – Forgetting that someone commissioned something from him, not those he looks up to
- Barry – Making a mistake on a piece, remaking the piece, then accidentally using the mistake on the final piece
- Ben – Trying to get away with not making a proper sled and accidentally dropping a piece on the tablesaw blade
Question 3:
From Bob:
Can someone explain the difference between a scrub plane and a smooth plane? They seem similar in size and construction.
Question 4:
From Phillip:
I am looking to build a dining room table to a friend of mine, and am wondering what type of wood would be best to use. I have narrowed it down to White Oak, Cherry, and Walnut. The friend that I am making this for is a military man, and so gets stationed at different bases around the country every few years. My main concern is the table warping or splitting due to the drastic location and environmental changes that he will come across. Obviously, being a dining room table it also must be sturdy and not be too prone to scratches, dings, etc. White Oak is very wear resistant, but has a medium-high shrinkage value. Cherry is pretty stable once dried, but is softer and may get more dings. Walnut seems to be the middle road, being harder and less susceptible to scratches than Cherry but less likely to shrink/warp than White Oak.
What type of wood would you suggest that is going to be resistant to scratches and dings, yet won’t warp or split in drastic climate changes?
Recommendations:
Barry – Dedicated Shop Shoes
Ben – Chris Thile’s Thank You, New York”
Mike – Tom Waits’ album Swordfish Trombones
Every two weeks, a team of Fine Woodworking staffers answers questions from readers on Shop Talk Live, Fine Woodworking‘s biweekly podcast. Send your woodworking questions to [email protected] for consideration in the regular broadcast! Our continued existence relies upon listener support. So if you enjoy the show, be sure to leave us a five-star rating and maybe even a nice comment on our iTunes page.
Comments
Mike is a brilliant author and woodworker. Until Mike fessed up about his shop shoes, I'd thought him a gentleman of good taste too ...
Great show. Love the diversity of topics. How would you sharpen a spokeshave with a convex blade with a convex sole (Clifton)? Is it like sharpening a scrub plane blade? How would you repair an abused concave Brian Boggs Lie Nielsen spokeshave blade that has been blunted near the bottom of the concave curve? I have a round stone that fits the diameter, but the stone is too fine. Do I turn a dowl and mount 300 grit sand paper?
I just discovered that I’m not the only one who wears Crocks and slippers for “shop shoes.” Thanks Mike.
Another great show! Ben, your passion is evident and you’re doing a great job, despite only just having your shop wired ;) Mike made a good point about the FW team representing a diverse level of experience! Simpson’s quotes are an important part of woodworking, second only to shop shoes.
Crocks rule!
You guys are really starting to grow on me. I'm laughing out loud at some of the stupidest things that are just plain hilarious. I saw my doctor about it and he said there's no cure. Keep it up!
Miller Falls was a big name in woodworking tools when I was a young carpenter in the late 60's. I still have (but don't use) a M.F. hand saw and a miter box that I paid a hard earned $130 for. Other people I worked with had a variety of hand and some power tools made by Miller Falls.
Fess up you guys. You can't just mention having to uproot the FineWoodworking workshop, and then not reveal the hows & whys. Inquiring fans need to know!
(Natch, every two weeks I listen avidly.)
From my perspective as a user of mostly restored planes, the three Millers Falls planes in my collection are superb. I have an 8 inch (=Stanley #3), a 9 inch (#4) and a 21 inch (#7). I'm not sure what their vintage but the ones I have resemble their Stanley counterparts closely. They feel beefier to me and perform beautifully.
Ben: Similar experience, here with a jig for cutting the splines in the corner of a box. My version was a more complete jig so it held the box OK but... Unless you design the jig so it straddles the rip fence (not just rests against it), DO NOT, repeat DO NOT make a cut and then drag the jig back over the spinning blade. I hope I never experience a jig and box flying by my head at 105 mph again. Nice dent in the ceiling, too.
I feel it's important to include a link to the referenced episode of the Simpsons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-o-7MmhqNfA
Glad to know I am not the only person with a set of shop slippers.
In response to RWH's question
"How would you sharpen a spokeshave with a convex blade with a convex sole (Clifton)? Is it like sharpening a scrub plane blade?"
Yes. Lake a scrub plane blade, any convex blade can be worked on a flat stone -- it's all in the wrist action.
RWH also asked:
"How would you repair an abused concave Brian Boggs Lie Nielsen spokeshave blade that has been blunted near the bottom of the concave curve? I have a round stone that fits the diameter, but the stone is too fine. Do I turn a dowl and mount 300 grit sand paper?"
Because of the sharpening angle the required curve is elliptical rather than round. Rather than turning a dowel, the easiest way would be to draw the required profile on the end of a short block of hard maple and then use a regular bench or block plane to shape the profile.
Once you have the shape right and fractionally undersized, stick PSA backed sanding paper to the profile and sharpen the blade. Sharpening will be much like using a regular flat stone. As required change the paper to a finer grit.
You can use a honing compound on the maple block, or a fine round stone, or carver's slips, to polish the final edge. You could also use coarse carver's slips to restore the edge but keeping the profile while doing so is more difficult than using a custom shaped wood block.
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