Franklin H. Gottshall - Making Antique Furniture Reproductions: Instructions and Measured Drawings for 40 Classic Projects

It has been the authors experience that the essential first step in teaching woodwork to beginners is to teach them how to cut, square, and plane lumber to predetermined sizes, using hand tools only. Insistence at the beginning on the use of hand tools only is important because if handwork in wood is properly mastered by beginners, they will have relatively little difficulty in mastering the essentials of working with laborsaving electric-powered machinery later on. It is not necessary to use large pieces of wood to practice these essential operations. Small pieces of wood have some advantages over larger pieces in the beginning, such as greater ease of manipulation, less surface to cover, and consequently less effort required to accomplish the ends sought.

Start with a piece of yellow poplar, mahogany, red gum, or some other wood similar to these in texture, which is neither too soft nor too hard. Generally speaking, soft-textured cabinet woods, like the ones we have mentioned, require sharp tools to work them, but are not so hard or tough that they will make the job needlessly difficult for the beginner. Practice blocks should be free of knots. While learning to deal with knots is something every beginner will have to cope with later, forcing him to deal with this additional handicap at this time would only slow the learning process and might impede progress rather than help it.

Choose a piece of unplaned stock measuring roughly 1 inch thick, 3 inches wide, and 7 inches long. As a first step number the sides, using an ordinary lead pencil. The better wide side or face is #1; the better edge is #2; the better end is #3. The opposite side of 3 is 4; the opposite of 2 is 5; the opposite of 1 is 6. Note: the sum of opposite pairs of sides always equals seven. (See .)

Before starting work on the block, be sure the plane is sharp and properly set. The best plane to use for the purpose in hand is a jack plane. To sharpen a plane or chisel proceed as follows: grind the plane iron by holding the blade as shown in , with the bevel on a grindstone or emery wheel. The bevel should be considerably wider than the thickness of the blade, straight, and at right angles to the side of the blade. Move the blade sideways, back and forth over the stone, until a smooth, slightly concave bevel has been formed. Keep from burning the cutting edge by dipping the blade into water frequently or by using light pressure when holding it on the stone.

. Grinding the plane blade. Note carefully how the blade is held.

After a plane blade has been ground to shape on an emery wheel or grindstone, it must be whetted to make it sharp. To do this, hold it as shown in , with the bevel flat on the oilstone. Use machine oil thinned with kerosene on the oilstone as a lubricant and to keep the surface of the stone from glazing. Whet the plane iron by moving it over the entire surface of the oilstone with a circular motion. Exert considerable downward pressure on the blade while whetting. Remove the wire edge formed by whetting by reversing the blade and laying it flat on the stone with the bevel on top and then moving it back and forth over the stone several times. Repeat these processes as often as necessary until the wire edge has been entirely eliminated and the edge is keen and sharp.

. Whetting the plane blade. Note the angle of the blade resting with bevel flat upon oilstone. Whet blade with a circular motion covering entire stone to keep stone as flat as possible.

Decide the direction to plane by determining which way the grain of the wood runs. Grain lines on the edge of a board are in most cases clearly enough defined to show which way the grain runs on top or bottom, though this is not true in every case. If they are, plane side #1 in the direction the grain lines on the edge of the block go uphill. (.) If the grain lines are not clearly defined, then try planing in both directions to find which way the grain runs. In almost every instance, the grain on the opposite side of the block, or piece of wood, will run in the opposite direction.