Miniature Tools

[Art Rafael]

Working on a 1/4 scale Frog and plane now, and find it a real challenge to make the pieces fit well and work.  Don't know yet how I'll build the blade and chip breaker nor the lever cap - not sure I can, but still trying.   Ralph

[scottg]

The classic Stanley #4, the all time production champion of any plane ever made, is the hardest to make a miniature of.  No one ever pulled it off very successfully.
  A guy made some "Bedrock" #1 sized planes for Pat Leach for a little while. Those were 5" long. I have seen a number of ill fitting tries at smaller tools. Nothing outstanding though.
 
    Paul Hamler did a Stanley #35 transitional, another really tough mini to pull off. I think it was his greatest achievement but nobody else agrees with me, heh.   
 
 You won't have a lot of trouble with the lever cap, don't worry about that part Partner.
   Accurately carving the tote will be tougher.
     Go Ralph Go!!
          yours Scott
       

[Art Rafael]

Thanks Scott.  You are so Right - on several counts.  That's just like you. 

I may have suspected way in the back of my mind that the wood work
would be the Greatest challenge, but it didn't come to lite till you mentioned it.

But I'll start trying to wrap my brain around it.

I have just had a lesson on how to better appreciate a "simple" Lever Cap
with the proper, working mechanism - lever.  Just build one 1/4 scale with a cam and a lever which work together  to make the part functional (actually, I suspect that
you already have).

 
THE # 4!  That's how it started, but I've had to change some dimensions to make the mechanisms work.
Ya know, the Reynolds Numbers got me again - every time That I push the limit.

I started out to show my "it was a real trick to make" lever cap.  That was a learning experience.

Ralph

[oldtools]

what do you use for the mini cutting blades?

[Art Rafael]

Hi.  Sometimes I use commercial X-acto blades modified as needed.  And I like to use steel banding strap - cut shaped and sharpened.  I'm always looking for better stuff to.  Any ideas?    Ralph

[scottg]

 Way to go on the lever cap Ralph!!
 In full size they are not very hard to make, but the smaller it gets...............

I'm always looking for better stuff.  Any ideas?    Ralph

 Xacto blades are great. Ditto utility knife blades.
Xacto razor saw blades are thin and perfect for saws and scrapers.

  For thicker blades, well circular saws are meant for, wait for it, cutting wood! The hardness and temper of a circular saw blade is just about ideal.
So the thinnest circular saw blades could be very nice.  Some of the small 4 and 6" diameter blades are pretty thin. Maybe the gauge is right.
 They make smaller thinner blades, sold in the machinist section as slitting saws, but they aren't really free.
 
    Metal cutting band saw blades!! Are ideal when they are "hardback" saws. These come in lots of widths and thicknesses. The hardback is very cheap (compared to bi-metal which won't work for you anyway). Sometimes you can get a 10 foot blade, 2" wide, for 5 bucks!
   Ordinary hacksaw blades would be good for the smallest blades. Again the cheap ones would be better than bi-metal, which is high speed steel edge welded to a soft metal backing.
   The cheapo ones are uniform all through.   

   Floor scraper "insert" blades are almost thin enough, and hard as the gates of hades. In a small blade, grinding thinner won't be so difficult.
 Disk sanders work, and so do belt grinders.
 
 I use neo magnets to hold steel I need to grind, that is hard to hold.   
     yours Scott       
 

[oldtools]

Great ideas!! I have some spring steel stock, (2" X 4" X ~30 gage) I use for scrapers. they last & work great when properly burnished..

[Art Rafael]

Great ideas, Scott.  I knew that you had been down that road and would know the best options.  And yes, oldtools.  I do believe that spring steel would work well.  I'll have to broaden my resource bank now that my awareness has increased -- It's called growth, and I keep growing with every endeavor.  Thanks

Compared to the "frog", the lever cap was a cake walk.  Oh my goodness!!!  the number of operations performed on such a small piece(1/4 scale) is mind blowing - holes drilled and shoulder recessed in precise dimension, square hole cut, oval recession, threaded holes at various angles.  And in their tight proximity and precision.

[Art Rafael]

The lever cap cleaned up nicely.   Ralph

[Art Rafael]

Well guys,  I got on a roll and had to stay up and finish the #4.  I believe that it turned out just fine.  Putting a perfect edge on the blade was tough, but that worked out very well too.  The lever cap locks in right, and the blade adjustment knurled nut worked out fine too.  I do have a couple concerns before I attempt to build another, if I ever do, and would like some input from someone who has done this before or, for that matter, from anyone who knows anything about these mechanisms.  I do feel that I've earned  a break after this build.   Ralph





click here to see it in action


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuU4fPxAnJs&feature=share&list=UU-GXI1Wp8qMJcEsSWF5Eu5A

[Lewill2]

Art, you hit it out of the park again, another nice example of your great craftsmanship.

[scottg]

 Way to go!  Terrifically challenging project Ralph!  Making the frog had to be the worst part.
  Leonard Bailey's frog design stands as the pinnacle of plane manufacture these past 150 years.   But making a new one from scratch, especially in a diminutive size, has always challenged even the most adventurous toolmaker. 
   The cap iron, as well as the lever cap, will also throw miniature makers for a loop most times.
  Classic, this is a classic
      yours Scott
 
   
 
 

[Art Rafael]

Thanks, Gents.  I appreciate your thoughts.  The #4 was indeed a challenging project, and I learned much in the process.  I'm designing a "new" frog and just might try a whole new plane.  We'll see how it goes.   Ralph

[Art Rafael]

I am going to try to cast a copy of the #4. This is quite a complicated and lengthy process. It starts by creating master patters of each individual component and arranging and mounting the parts so that they can be suspended in a frame to create a rubber mold.   Ralph

[Art Rafael]

Master Patterns are works of art in their own right.  Here are the masters for the pipe wrench and the monkey wrench.  This is how the parts were arranged to create the molds that resulted in my finished tools.   I suppose that full scale tools may have been pressed (pounded) on giant machines, but I employed the methods available to me.   Ralph