A little while back, I finally found myself in a position to do a lot more woodworking. I had a few projects on hold from some time back. I’d get them started with good intentions but get sidetracked for a multitude of reasons I’m sure we can all relate to in one way or another. I’d spend an hour or two here and there working on a project and then not touch it for a couple weeks, or months…….. or years. Somewhere in there, I had to replace most of the window sash in my house so the machines became dedicated to that project. Along the way, the shop got over cluttered with stuff and going out there wasn’t fun anymore. It was kind of a shame, because it’s a nice little space that was originally designed to accommodate a small woodworking hobby. Well, the window project came to an end, I have time now, and I got motivated to get my shop back in order. Time to start enjoying woodworking again.
Many, many years ago, I made an island and stools for my kitchen. It was one of my first big woodworking projects that I started and finished in my shop. If you need a refresher, go back to page 8, reply 116. Recall that the island top and stool seats were made from walnut that I sourced from a single tree in Michigan. From that same tree came a large branch that had a curve to it. When the tree was being cut up, I asked for a section of that branch, right where the curve started heading upward. It’s basically a slab of walnut that I’ve been hanging onto for at least twenty years or so. I always saw it as a foyer bench or possibly a plant stand situated in a floor to ceiling bay window. With some ideas and design help from my wife, it looks like the slab will be incorporated into a coffee table in the living room. While that will be its primary function, it will also have the versatility to convert into the foyer bench or bay window plant stand if desired.
So how does this relate to hand planes? Well, the whole project involves hand planes. If you recall, back on page 67, reply 1001, we discussed using a bench hook to fit tenons with a rabbet throated block plane. Remember? The stretcher used in the bench hook demonstration was a part of this same coffee table project and will connect one set of legs. Another identical stretcher will connect another set of legs. But how to connect the two sets of legs to each other? Well, the simple answer is a center stretcher that will run the length of the table…… but remember, the walnut slab has a curve to it. That adds a dimension of interest to the finished piece and some extra complexity to the construction process. I ended up laminating four strips of wood together in a plywood press that mimicked the curve of the branch. (You can see the plywood press in the background.) While that doesn’t deal specifically with hand planes, detailing that stretcher, that is, easing the sharp edges does! Any time I can reasonably use a plane to do a job, I’ll use the plane. In this instance, I wanted to lightly break the edges of the three stretchers with a block plane. The short straight stretchers were simple with to do with any (preferably low angle) block plane. I went with my “go to” Lie-Nielsen #60 ½.
Tackling the curved stretcher presented a different challenge. On the convex side, the L-N #60 ½ was up to the task by simply canting the plane’s sole as I pushed it along to follow the curve while keeping the cutting iron in contact with the work piece. On the first try, I occasionally lost contact between the plane’s cutter and the wood. I’d pick up where I lost contact and finish the cut. By the fourth and final pass, I made good cutting contact from start to finish and ended up with a nice finished surface free of a sharp edge. Unfortunately, the concave arc was a bit too curved to allow me to use a flat-bottomed block plane like the L-N #60 ½. What I needed was a plane with a shorter sole that was also curved. Okay, is anyone thinking about the Stanley #100 ½ for this job? It was the perfect answer. (For more on the Stanley #100 ½ please refer back to page 19, reply 270.) By also canting the sole of the plane as I pushed it along the concave arc, I was able to slice off “dental floss” like shavings for a subtle break on the edge, again leaving it smooth to the touch.
Now, you might be thinking that I could have eased the edges of the stretchers with some fine grit sandpaper. Well, I could have and it might have been less involved and faster too. But I think sandpaper tends to dull the surface of wood, while a sharp plane iron leaves a crisp, bright finish. Sandpaper definitely has its place out in the shop, but any time I can reasonably use a hand plane……… you know what I’m saying.
Jim C.
