# Miniature Wood Planes



## flyingtractors1 (Feb 23, 2013)

This isn't about engines, but it is about a craftsmanship diversion I recently took.  I built one, and that lead to others - not sure I'm done with this yet,   but engines keep creeping back to my mind.

Ralph

[ame]http://youtu.be/XujBf40POcY[/ame]


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## aarggh (Feb 23, 2013)

Beautiful! I have a love for old tools, and planes are just so easy to collect, but these are magnificent! My daughters now planning a workshop extension for her dolls house after seeing these.

cheers, Ian


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## hobby (Feb 23, 2013)

Beautiful workmanship.

That is superb engineering in that scale, and a really nice diversity of a non engine project.
It's nice to see craftsmanship of all model engineering projects, be it engines or nonengines.
Craftsmanship superb, in your video.


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## flyingtractors1 (Feb 23, 2013)

Thanks gents,  We are just keeping busy and still having fun. It is interesting how one skill or discipline can promote and blend with another.   Ralph


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## TorontoBuilder (Feb 23, 2013)

flyingtractors1 said:


> Thanks gents,  We are just keeping busy and still having fun. It is interesting how one skill or discipline can promote and blend with another.   Ralph



Hi Ralph, nice planes....

You are so right about how one skill can promote another. Since I dont yet have a metal shop set up I am planning an archtop bass ukulele build. One indispensable tool used for shaping the top and bottom plates of arched top instruments are arched sole "finger" planes. 

I made a couple with wood bodies but traditionally they are brass.


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## fabio_exata (Feb 23, 2013)

I really liked!! thanks for posting


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## flyingtractors1 (Feb 24, 2013)

Thanks again.  I built these planes to suppport my other interests and have found them so very handy and useful in my other hobbies - building model airplanes, miniature furniture, small wooden boxes & treaure chests, etc.  Just had to have proper tools for those endeavors. These planes really do the job.   Ralph


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## Omnimill (Feb 24, 2013)

Nice work. I saw a site somewhere where a guy was making full size metal wood planes dovetailing the base to the sides, amazing craftsmanship if you can find it.


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 7, 2013)

I've added a couple new models to the collection.  Ralph


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## hobby (Apr 7, 2013)

If it wasn't for that penny , I would have surely thought they were real sized planes, you get from woodcraft.

That shows excellent craftsmanship at that level of scale.


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## Tin Falcon (Apr 7, 2013)

It is probably one of those 3" pennys LOL
tin


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## RonGinger (Apr 7, 2013)

No, Ive seen a penny like that- its really about 4" diameter, and this is a joke photo


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## Tin Falcon (Apr 7, 2013)

And Ron who would have such a penny ???
Tin


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## larry1 (Apr 7, 2013)

flyingtractors1,  Great job and thank you very much for posting.     larry


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## RonGinger (Apr 8, 2013)

> And Ron who would have such a penny
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I saw one at a NEMES show, by a guy in a funny Tin hat.


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 8, 2013)

Thanks guys,  I was trying to showcase the huge penny.  The planes are just for size reference   .  Now I'm working on a nickel   .  I'll post it soon just for kicks.  Ralph


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 8, 2013)

Here we go.  That's some nickel, eh?  Not to mention the trap - we grow BIG rats down here.  Ralph


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 8, 2013)

Try again?


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## RonGinger (Apr 8, 2013)

That is a damn fine bit of work, and the most clever display I think I have ever seen! Great job.


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 9, 2013)

Thanks Ron.  Your thoughts are highly valued and appreciated.  Ralph


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 9, 2013)

Another piece from the miniature tool box.  Ralph


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## Swifty (Apr 9, 2013)

Just for us on the other side of the world, what's the diameter of the penny. They look just like full size planes, I think that making the wooden handles would give me nightmares.

Paul.


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 10, 2013)

Thanks Swifty.  I appreciate your observations.  The penny diameter is .75 inches  -  19mm.  The jack plane is 3 inches long (76 mm) and the smoothing plane is 2 inches (51 mm).  Yes, the wooden handles and knobs are challenging to build at this scale, probably more so than the metal parts.  And I am conscious of grain patterning in the hard as metal exotic woods I carve, but we do whatever it takes for a desirable end.  Ralph


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## Charles Lamont (Apr 10, 2013)

Omnimill said:


> Nice work. I saw a site somewhere where a guy was making full size metal wood planes dovetailing the base to the sides, amazing craftsmanship if you can find it.



You might be thinking of this, superb work:    http://www.holteyplanes.com/


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 10, 2013)

I found it - Thanks.  That is some incredible stuff.  I don't think that I'll ever grow that big but maybe some day?  Ralph


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 14, 2013)

Hi All, found some more pics of tools from my collection.  Ralph









URL=http://s1050.photobucket.com/user/flyingtractors1/media/miniaturetools1008_zps3e4721cc.jpg.html]
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




[/URL]


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 14, 2013)

oops.  Try again.


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## DPowell (Apr 14, 2013)

Great work!  I'd love to see a build thread on one of the mini planes.


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## flyingtractors1 (Apr 17, 2013)

Thanks DPowell.  I have employed two different processes to build my planes - the metal parts.  The wood parts are carved the same way for both.  Process 1 is the lost wax casting method in which a form of the plane is built of wax with investment (a plaster of Paris mix) surrounding wax model in a container. The wax is then melted out leaving a cavity in the shape of the wax model in the plaster mold which is then cured in high heat, and molten metal is poared into the cavity yielding a solid metal version of the original wax model which is then finely finished and polished and the handle and knob are bolted on.  In the other process the various pieces are cut from sheet stock then silver soldered together in their respective place.  then the piece is filed, sanded and polished, and the wood parts are attached.  Each process has its advantages and difficulties.  A Rubber mold can be made of either, and by injecting wax into the cavity, wax patterns can result allowing process 1 to be repeated for any number of copies.  Sorry this got so wordy.  I'll try to do a pictoral build documentation.  Ralph












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