# Shopmade Krenov style hand plane



## tblrxdave (May 20, 2009)

I needed a small hand plane to shave off the edges from my spindle blanks. So I decided to make myself a Krenov style plane. I found an old article in woodcraft magazine [project # 65] to loosley follow. Off to the scrap pile I went. Some persimmon,red oak, walnut, and maple. For the blade I cut up an old 10 inch TS blade to 1 3/8" x 4'. I filed the blade to a 45 degree bevel and honed the edge. I cut shank of an old screwdriver to use for the pin. [3/16"D]. Yes, It makes shavings.
Here is my problem. The blade keeps slipping after one or two passes even though I've tapped the maple wedge in super tight.
Questions are; 1 Is the diameter of the pin too small to hold the blade in place?
2 Is the primary blade bevel too steep at 45 degrees? Bevel side is down.

Any insight will be appreciated.

Thanks, Dave


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## dkirtley (Mar 11, 2010)

The wedge may have too steep of an angle.

45 degrees is a good starting point.


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## donwilwol (May 16, 2011)

maybe post some pictures and we may be able to help.

I would think a 45 degree bevel on a bevel down plane would make it hard to plane. It should be between 25 and 35, but I don't believe it would make the wedge loosen.

I don't think the diameter of the pin would make much of a difference.


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## Iguana (Jun 22, 2011)

Dave,

I like the look of the ray flecks on the sides of that plane.

There are a few things that you could check:

1) The bevel angle on the iron, as Don W mentioned. If the bed of the plane is 45 degrees, the bevel on the iron needs to be somewhat less. You need about 10 degrees of relief to allow for wood springback, clearance for debris, etc, so if your bed is 45 degrees, the iron's bevel should be 35 degrees or less. If you don't have enough relief, the blade can bounce on the work a bit and get pushed back. Typically, bevel down plane irons are sharpened at 25 to 30 degrees, but as much as 35 degrees wouldn't cause an issue.

2) Wedge fit. The wedge needs to fit nearly perfectly from side to side. If it is only wedging firmly under the pin at high spots, a bit of vibration will knock it loose. To check the fit, drop the wedge in place without jamming it in, and see if it rocks easily on a high spot. You can use a bit of chalk dust on the top of the wedge to help identify non-even fits.

3) Pin location. Hard to tell from the pics, but the pin location might be a bit high. You can't fix it at this point, but ideally, you want it as low as possible while still allowing sufficient clearance for shavings and fingers. Too high can exacerbate chatter issues.

4) Pin strength and flat spot. A 3/16" shaft of a screwdriver is OK, if the steel is strong enough. It probably is, but it also helps if there is a flat spot. That gives more contact area for the wedge.

5) Iron thickness. Your blade might be a bit on the thin side, particularly for a single-iron plane (i.e., no chip breaker). Again, this goes to the quality of the steel used. If it can flex at all, it will chatter in use and that will tend to cause the wedge to back out.

I would regrind the iron to 25-30 degrees and re-sharpen, then try the plane again and see what happens. I'm guessing that will solve the problem, but if not, the wedge fit is the next most likely culprit.

Your wedge angle is fine. Looks to be about 8 degrees, maybe a bit less. Normally, you would make it a bit steeper, 10 to 12 degrees. Something as shallow as 8 degrees will tend to wedge in too tight.

I recommend David Finck's book, "Making and Mastering Wood Planes" if you really want to get into making wooden planes. It is an easy read, contains lots of good information, including how to troubleshoot, and has the benefit of being readily available.


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## tblrxdave (May 20, 2009)

David, Don, and Mark, thanks for your in-put. 
Progress report: I recut the blade bevel to around 30 degrees and honed the blade. Tried the blade this morning with good results. The blade didn't drift, it stayed locked in place. No chatter.
I'm going to make a new wedge that is a little wider, the original has about a 1/16" on each side. Another thing I may try to adjust is the mouth opening. A 1/4" gap between leading edge of the block to the blade point may be a little much. I'm thinking about building another plane already.
I'll look for "Making and Mastering Wood Planes" at my local library.
Dave


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## Loren (May 30, 2008)

I've found with wedged bench planes that shaping the
wedge is a trial and error thing. I still pound the wedge 
in pretty hard and break a wedge sometimes and have
to make a new one.


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## donwilwol (May 16, 2011)

You are correct. 1/4" wide mouth for a smoother is to wide. Glad you're making progress.


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