hand made « From the Workshop

February 22, 2020

workshop blog no 29 – No 984s

Filed under: No 984 — Tags: classic hand tools, hand made, Holtey — admin @ 7:50 pm

Unlike the No 984, with its in situ dowels, I have chosen to screw the No 984s planes. Both systems have their good points.

tapping on the mill with a tapping head never seems to be enough so I have to go over these again by hand. It is important for the fixing bolts to run free. I have to assemble and dis-assemble dry quite a few times. When it comes to the final assembly it is essential that there are no problems as the bolts will be going in with torque control and permanent locking compound.

With all the milling, grinding, forming, drilling and tapping done I am half way with the bottoms. These will now be set aside until I have completed the sides – next job.

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February 12, 2020

Workshop blog no 27

Filed under: No 985 — Tags: Classic, hand made, Holtey, precision hand plane — admin @ 6:57 pm

Another plane which will be a future rarity. Just a one off as all future projects will be.

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November 14, 2019

Workshop Blog no 24 – No 985

Filed under: No 985,Window to my workshop — Tags: hand made, No 985, precision hand plane, precision stainless steel smoother — admin @ 6:32 pm

Stainless steel bolts for the No 985. 250 of them. All handmade. Never want to see one again. I would be embarrassed to say how long they took. It is important that they were made to a high precision, but will be hidden when the work is finished.

There are only a small number of these planes unsold

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April 8, 2019

Workshop blog no 22 – No 985

Filed under: No 985,Window to my workshop — Tags: hand made, hand planes, precision hand plane, precision stainless steel smoother — admin @ 11:57 am

I wish this stainless stuff would cut as easy as the plastic. The plastic is very useful for setting up.

This is quite a heavy cut for my machine and ~~she~~ it is getting quite old. So it always nice to put these jobs behind me.

With the recesses now cut I am still not out of the woods as the drilling for the custom made screws makes me worried about tool breakage – set up is critical. The drilling stage is three different tools.

The tapping is the most dangerous part of this stage and I always take a sigh of relief if I finish without incident. One tap breakage means I am minus a plane – that is a lot of work gone down the toilet! It is not like a production line and every plane is relied on to show a profit.

Every stage of this work has to be a well planned operation to avoid any casualties.

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March 27, 2019

Workshop blog no 20 – No 985

Filed under: No 985,Window to my workshop — Tags: hand made, handplanes, precision smoother, traditional — admin @ 10:30 am

I was hoping to get my handles underway this week, but decided to complete the chassis first as the handles will need tweaking when I have an assembled plane.

The start of the front bun, drilling, tapping and counter bore ready to go on to the turning abor. This is the same fit as the fixing bush. Which is another hidden job.

This operation is usually done on the manual mill as the thread cutting is best done by hand for better sensitivity and ensuring sharp and clean threads. More on this later.

With reluctance I have put the wood working on hold and moved the chassis forward. Here is the holding fixture awaiting programming and tooling.

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March 18, 2019

Workshop Blog no 17 – No 985

Filed under: No 985,Window to my workshop — Tags: hand made, hand planes, Hand tools, handplanes — admin @ 2:57 pm

After a lot of deliberation I have made a decision to screw the front bun directly to the sole which allows me to achieve the design aspect I was looking for.

You will notice that the profile has been cut showing recesses for the handle tenons. Still a lot of work here as everything is complex just to achieve a simple line. The handle will be secured by one 6mm screw. All my dimensions are critical so precision is the key word. I am longing to get this bottom finished and get on with the rest of the plane. On all my planes the bottom is the mainstay of my work.

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March 1, 2019

Workshop blog no 14 – No 985

Filed under: No 985,Window to my workshop — Tags: hand made, precision hand plane, precision hand tools, stainless steel — admin @ 12:33 pm

I was hoping to get a little bit further than this but too many interruptions. I have finally made the decision to cut up my 416 bar for the bottoms – scary, can’t go back now. But I have been procrastinating for long enough. Especially since the bar cost £1100. Like most of my materials it is a rolled bar which needs to be planed just as you would with a piece of wood but harder work in stainless steel.

This is reducing the bar down to its finished size. I am looking forward to the rest of the work.

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February 23, 2019

Workshop blog 12 – No 985

Filed under: No 985,Window to my workshop — Tags: classic hand tools, hand made, hand planes, precision, stainless steel — admin @ 12:36 pm

The last side of the No 985 plane. The fixture screws (custom made of course) are also going to be used in the fabrication of the plane. They will be bedded in a locking compound.

I have flitted backwards and forwards between this system and the in-situ riveting – they both have their plus points. Same quantity of work with either system. But working with this system puts less stress in the construction.

As you can see from these jig screws they have a precision shank for true alignment.

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February 22, 2019

Workshop blog 11 – No 985

Filed under: No 985,Window to my workshop — Tags: bespoke, hand made, stainless steel, traditional — admin @ 2:17 pm

This is the making of the milling fixture to profile the No 985 sides. When I bought this machine the salesman said it had screw cutting but I never ever found it. It is important to do the screw cutting whilst everything is still in the machine; I have to move into each hole co-ordinate and cut the threads by hand.

10 years later ……

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February 20, 2019

Workshop blog 10 – No 985

Filed under: No 985,Window to my workshop — Tags: Classic, hand made, Karl Holtey Designs, stainless steel, tooling — admin @ 9:48 am

Work commences on the stainless sides … you didn’t really think I was going to make it out of green plastic?

After a milling operation is finished everything has to be broken down and set up again for the next stage. This usually means making new fixtures and writing another programme. Always a lot of understated work on every new design.

It is always sad breaking down the machine just when everything seems to be working nicely. I have to be extra careful I haven’t missed out a side (done it before!).

One of the things that makes me different is that this is not just a craft job, this work is precision and takes a lot of planning.

I have decided to try and keep everyone informed as to the detailed work that goes into these planes. A well known manufacturer once said that I always manage to keep my work hidden.

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