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Okay, I'm craazy!
Well, cheap. I build a lot of stuff, too much, actually. I really did it this time. Rather than going out and spending $30 on a Stanley Block plane, I made my own. It only took 6 or 7 hours.
Pardon the picture; I just set it on my scanner and hit [scan]!
I built the shoe with a piece of 2" mild steel channel.
The blade seat is a piece of 1/4" x 2" x 3" plate with two 1/4" UNC nuts welded to the back.
The blade is just a piece of an old circular saw blade--I'm still experimenting with temper.
The main handle is a piece of maple scrounged from an old pallet, and the front handle is a headed concrete anchor stud, brazed in place, and brazed all over for that nice brassy color!
I cut the slot in the shoe with a cutting torch (not real smooth) and the overall shape. I ground it as best I could to a "nice, eye-pleasing shape" and ground in the thumb recesses with an angle grinder. The wood handle and blade are held in place with two 1/4" x 1" machine screws.
It's not adjustable for blade angle, or micro-adjustable depth--maybe next one! I mounted the blade seat too high, so it's sitting at about a 30* angle--I need to cut it back off and get it down to the 22.5* angle most block planes have.
Not a bad start---at least I'm learning!
Shawn
This is an archived message from The Kayak Building Bulletin Board.
Guillemot Kayak - High
Performance Wooden Sea Kayak Designs
