Making a Plane Tote
Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2022 1:08 pm
Three of the planes I've picked up require either fixing or replacing the totes. This is my first attempt at making one. I made it out of Russian elm but I should have looked for a piece with no sapwood. Too open grained in spots. Or I should have picked a closed grain wood. Still it turned out pretty good. Shaping was done with sanding drums, rasping, hand sanding, and a lot of paring with a chisel. Next time I'll try using a roundover bit to get the main shaft rounded over and see if that can be done without catching the grain.
I wanted to make it a little taller so it would be more comfortable to use. It could still be longer but it's better. The extra height required notching out the front top corner for the skew adjustment lever. The pattern came from Lee Valley PLN-045 but I am unable to find it on their site now and I don't remember when I printed it and the instructions off. I found a copy of the plan on the web but I haven't tried printing it yet so I don't know if it will print to scale. It's for #5s and up. There is also one for 3s and 4s which is a little different. I don't have it.
The plane is a Siegley SsS. SsS stands for "Stanley stamped Siegley" as Stanley made the plane for Siegley at their Roxton Pond, Quebec facility between around 1900 to 1927 I think. The rest of the plane is original. I still have to decide how I'll finish the tote.
I wanted to make it a little taller so it would be more comfortable to use. It could still be longer but it's better. The extra height required notching out the front top corner for the skew adjustment lever. The pattern came from Lee Valley PLN-045 but I am unable to find it on their site now and I don't remember when I printed it and the instructions off. I found a copy of the plan on the web but I haven't tried printing it yet so I don't know if it will print to scale. It's for #5s and up. There is also one for 3s and 4s which is a little different. I don't have it.
The plane is a Siegley SsS. SsS stands for "Stanley stamped Siegley" as Stanley made the plane for Siegley at their Roxton Pond, Quebec facility between around 1900 to 1927 I think. The rest of the plane is original. I still have to decide how I'll finish the tote.