One thing always seems to lead to another in woodworking (part of the fun of it). I began making a spice box earlier this year. My goal is to use hand tools for all the fine work and only use table saw, planer, etc., to rough out the stock. When I got to the molding that runs around the base I decided a snipe bill plane was needed to get the profile I'd drawn. These come in pairs. I first tried to find a set to purchase, but it's not a common plane and if you are fortunate to find a vintage pair the edge is usually too far gone.
Long story short, I decided to make a set. I ordered Larry Williams video from Lie-Nielsen, found a snipe bill design online, then pulled out some quarter-sawn cherry with persimmon for the boxing. I quickly realized all the other tools I would need to make a moulding plane. As with the planes I first looked to buy these tools. Floats are also not a common item, either. Lie-Nielsen sells them but they seem to have completely shut down due to COVID and are out of stock on many items, including floats. I made a set of six floats (see previous posts, here and here). I cut the irons from O1 tool steel and used a jig on my spindle sander to taper the them (post on making the irons here).
I started making the plane set in early July and finished tempering and sharping the irons today. Here's a few pictures I made along the way.
I used a hollow and round pair to shape the profile. You can see the persimmon boxing inset along the edge to take the extra wear this part receives. Persimmon is the only species native to North America that is a member of the same family as ebony. It's very durable but I found it to be easy to work. No problems getting a fine edge. I ran the grain on the boxing with the plane rather than on a bias, as is typical. I've seen snipe bills done both ways. Time will tell if this was an acceptable design choice.
The next photo shows the tempered irons. I first heated and quenched the steel in the little furnace I mention here. After this I put them in our oven at 400 degrees for an hour, then left them to cool. You can see the bronze/straw color of the tempered steel that indicates the target range. The deep purple/blue along the inside edge indicates it got a bit warmer there than I wanted (meaning the steel will be softer here). Fortunately, this part of the iron is rarely used in these planes. I was aiming for Rockwell hardness of 58-60 and am satisfied with the results.
Next picture is of the finished planes. I used a couple of coats of furniture oil followed by wax and buffing for protection. The contrast of the two woods shows clearly the boxing that is used along the edge to protect this part against wear.
There's a lot of different profiles you can make using these planes. Not what I will be doing on the spice box, but here's a sample of some parallel beading I did to test these planes. The final round over was done with a #4 hollow. To start the cut I used a marking gauge to score a line. The fine edge of plane easily follows the score. After a couple of light passes to deepen the valley, plane away!
Long story short, I decided to make a set. I ordered Larry Williams video from Lie-Nielsen, found a snipe bill design online, then pulled out some quarter-sawn cherry with persimmon for the boxing. I quickly realized all the other tools I would need to make a moulding plane. As with the planes I first looked to buy these tools. Floats are also not a common item, either. Lie-Nielsen sells them but they seem to have completely shut down due to COVID and are out of stock on many items, including floats. I made a set of six floats (see previous posts, here and here). I cut the irons from O1 tool steel and used a jig on my spindle sander to taper the them (post on making the irons here).
I started making the plane set in early July and finished tempering and sharping the irons today. Here's a few pictures I made along the way.
I used a hollow and round pair to shape the profile. You can see the persimmon boxing inset along the edge to take the extra wear this part receives. Persimmon is the only species native to North America that is a member of the same family as ebony. It's very durable but I found it to be easy to work. No problems getting a fine edge. I ran the grain on the boxing with the plane rather than on a bias, as is typical. I've seen snipe bills done both ways. Time will tell if this was an acceptable design choice.
The next photo shows the tempered irons. I first heated and quenched the steel in the little furnace I mention here. After this I put them in our oven at 400 degrees for an hour, then left them to cool. You can see the bronze/straw color of the tempered steel that indicates the target range. The deep purple/blue along the inside edge indicates it got a bit warmer there than I wanted (meaning the steel will be softer here). Fortunately, this part of the iron is rarely used in these planes. I was aiming for Rockwell hardness of 58-60 and am satisfied with the results.
Next picture is of the finished planes. I used a couple of coats of furniture oil followed by wax and buffing for protection. The contrast of the two woods shows clearly the boxing that is used along the edge to protect this part against wear.
There's a lot of different profiles you can make using these planes. Not what I will be doing on the spice box, but here's a sample of some parallel beading I did to test these planes. The final round over was done with a #4 hollow. To start the cut I used a marking gauge to score a line. The fine edge of plane easily follows the score. After a couple of light passes to deepen the valley, plane away!
