# Need some Advice of some of you professional's if you have the time please.



## mike.smith.27 (Jul 11, 2012)

Hello there I'm mike.smith.27 and i'm new to wood working i had a talent for it in school and now i'm 22 and i'm wanting to get a career started as a stream of dead end jobs had me hating my job. This i love and need to aquire some lost skills. 

These are some of the issue's i'm having at the moment i'm hoping someone could help me with.

Getting a wood cut straight.
Getting an even Plane surface
knowing how to sharpen Chisels and Plane blades 
any useful jigs i could make to help me do these said jobs

The only tools i own at the minute are an old hand plane my grandfather gave me, a Tenon saw, a power drill, wood vice and 3 chisels. is there anything i can do do get a straight edge as i can't make any projects a reality until I've at the very least mastered this skill. any help would be greatly appreciated.

mike.smith.27


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*search here for "build" threads*

They usually show step by step the process used to make a project.
You Tube is your best source of "How to Videos" some sites are better than others. Our member thintz has a good site. There are hundreds, maybe thousands of videos.
http://www.youtube.com/user/thintz12?feature=results_main

To make a straight cut and then a square edge on a board just requires, some practice, a decent handsaw, a plane in sharp condition, an accurate line and a reference straight edge like a 4 ft long aluminum bubble level. A carpenters square 6" or sliding T bevel square is needed to check for a square edge. 

Power tools are a whole 'nother subject and it's too long of a discussion for here. Check back in after you've watched about 100 YT videos..... :laughing:


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

If you go through some of the threads here, there are many with specific details and pictures of what is used and how to do it. When you get to a project that you want to start, members here can help you through the procedure.













 








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## Dave Paine (May 30, 2012)

+1 for what Woodnthings said.

Also search on this site for jigs, tips, etc. Helps if you know a specific jig.

For sharpening, this could be a forum by itself. For some this is almost a religion.

Do a search for "Scary sharp".

It helps to have a flat reference surface. Some people use a thick piece of glass. Others use a granite slab. Adding this link so you know what to look for. I do not know who will sell such an item in the UK.
http://www.grizzly.com/search/search.aspx?q=granite surface plate&cachebuster=1530640451563486.5

You can also purchase water stones and sharpen on these.
Another link for reference.
http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=51868&cat=1,43072,43078,51868

I use a granite slab with wet and dry paper of different grits and the Lee Valley honing guide.

Hand cutting a straight saw line will take practice. One trick I read in a magazine which helps me to cut on my bandsaw is to draw TWO lines. Something about our brains, it is easier to follow a track between two lines than it is to keep just to one side of a single line. After reading this I tried it and for me, it made it easier to get a better cut on the bandsaw.

I have tenon and small cross cut saws. I only use these for cross cuts on small pieces, too small for the table saw.

Getting a flat surface with a hand plane will also take practice. Lots of videos are available. You do not state the size of the plane. If the plane is small/short and the piece is long, it will be more difficult to get the piece consistently flat.

When it comes to planing the edge of a board, I can get the edge flat and straight, but I still struggle to get it to be orthogonal (90 deg to wide surface). I ended up getting this aid. This was an improvement, but I normally just make the cut on my table saw.
http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=41716&cat=1,41182

Take a look at the Hand Tools forum on this and other sites. There are a number of hand tool experts around.

I love my hand planes, note the plural, but I am happy to also have my power tools.

Many threads on various sites about which "single" hand plane. I think one on this site. For me, I could not imagine having only 1 hand plane, since certain tasks like cleaning up the bottom of a dado require a specific plane design.


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## JBSmall (Jul 6, 2012)

Assuming Grandpa's plane is like most out there:
Take the plane apart. 
Look for rust pitting on the blade and on the chip-breaker. The initial sharpening of the chip-breaker is as important as that of the blade. If it does not seat perfectly against the back of the blade, this is the first order of business...and it might require getting a new blade, because if the back of the blade is pitted, and this surface is actually the cutting edge, then the chip-breaker can not touch it along its entire edge, and wood-chips will jam in there. 
If there is one reason why many won't touch a handplane, this is it.

And most importantly,
Congratulations on beginning the pursuit of a job within your gifts! 
If you are working within your gifts, you will often say, wow! They will pay me to do this, which I would do for free! No-one should hate his job!


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## Phaedrus (Jan 18, 2012)

I am also pretty new to this. I have two used planes from an estate sale that were in alright shape, but the irons look to have been sharpened with an angle grinder as though they were lawn mower blades. I set up a "scary sharp" sharpening station. Instead of glass or granite, I picked up two 12" marble tiles. I used 100, 220, 320, 600, 800, 1000, & 2000 grit wet dry paper attached with 3M Super 77. I spent a great deal of time with the coarse papers. I wish that I had taken 'before' photos to illustrate how ugly it really was. By the time that I had honed the back and got to 600 grit, I was able to easily shave hair off my hand. Once I had finished, it made easy shavings in page page pine and even pulled thin ribbons from Maple. This a night and day difference for this little block plane.
I used an inexpensive honing guide that I bought on Amazon. It was alright as long as it is tightened very very tight. After using a cheap guide, I think I could rationalize a more expensive one. That is my 2¢.


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## woodbutcher360 (Jul 1, 2012)

Phaedrus said:


> I am also pretty new to this. I have two used planes from an estate sale that were in alright shape, but the irons look to have been sharpened with an angle grinder as though they were lawn mower blades. I set up a "scary sharp" sharpening station. Instead of glass or granite, I picked up two 12" marble tiles. I used 100, 220, 320, 600, 800, 1000, & 2000 grit wet dry paper attached with 3M Super 77. I spent a great deal of time with the coarse papers. I wish that I had taken 'before' photos to illustrate how ugly it really was. By the time that I had honed the back and got to 600 grit, I was able to easily shave hair off my hand. Once I had finished, it made easy shavings in page page pine and even pulled thin ribbons from Maple. This a night and day difference for this little block plane.
> I used an inexpensive honing guide that I bought on Amazon. It was alright as long as it is tightened very very tight. After using a cheap guide, I think I could rationalize a more expensive one. That is my 2¢.
> 
> View attachment 47717
> ...


Instead of adhesive, have you tried to just wet the paper and put it on the marble? It should stay put on the marble and when it dries it will lift off with no residue left behind. I use it on a piece of granite that is my go to surface for honing. I just got tired of cleaning the gunk up after using adhesive on my plate glass surface I have.


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## woodbutcher360 (Jul 1, 2012)

mike.smith.27 said:


> Hello there I'm mike.smith.27 and i'm new to wood working i had a talent for it in school and now i'm 22 and i'm wanting to get a career started as a stream of dead end jobs had me hating my job. This i love and need to aquire some lost skills.
> 
> 
> These are some of the issue's i'm having at the moment i'm hoping someone could help me with.
> ...


You don't say if you have hand saws other then that tenon saw. So if you're are going to use hand tools you will need at least 2 good handsaws. Rip and a crosscut. The better the saw, the straighter the cut. Once you get them, take them to a pro and have them sharpened. Ask around and get recomendations as to the sharpening service. You say you have a wood vise, but is it attached to a bench suitable for your work?
If you are planing on buying a circular saw, buy a good one. It should have a heavy sole, easy adjustments. Stay away from the "handyman" junk it will only frustrate you. When you buy the saw, buy a couple of good blades (for the project you are working on). The blade that comes with the saw? take it off and hang it up to be used as a blade to cut MDF or other composit mat so you save your good blades.


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## mike.smith.27 (Jul 11, 2012)

All I have is a tenon saw at the moment I was in two minds to buy a band saw when I obtain a bit of cash. And its probably a good idea to get another plane the one my grandad gave me is over 50 years old and I can see where he's welded it together where it's snapped near where the blade sits. The table I'm using is an old pub table solid oak but it does kick out. When I'm planing it I was gonna bolt it to the floor but at the minute I have no shed to work in so I've jerry rigged an improvised tent to keep the rain out it's by no means perfect but its all I have


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## Dave Paine (May 30, 2012)

mike.smith.27 said:


> All I have is a tenon saw at the moment I was in two minds to buy a band saw when I obtain a bit of cash. And its probably a good idea to get another plane the one my grandad gave me is over 50 years old and I can see where he's welded it together where it's snapped near where the blade sits. The table I'm using is an old pub table solid oak but it does kick out. When I'm planing it I was gonna bolt it to the floor but at the minute I have no shed to work in so I've jerry rigged an improvised tent to keep the rain out it's by no means perfect but its all I have


I understand your situation. Takes me back to my childhood in the UK, although we did have a shed.

If the hand plane were "just" old, this would not be a problem. Many good hand planes have designs dating back 100 or more years. The weld is the unknown. This could impact how well the plane performs.

There are many car boot sales in the UK. Try looking for another plane.

What model is the present plane. If no model, what is the length of the sole plate?

Different hand planes are intended for different operations.

You need to think about what you want to build or what you want to do with the tools.

If you want to rip boards, you need a different saw than the present tenon. A crosscut saw can also be used for ripping. It will take practice to learn how to get a decent straight cut.

With the amount of rain we see the UK going through, I am surprised if you have been able to do anything outdoors, even with a make shift tent.


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