Popular Woodworking 2003-02 № 132, страница 47

Photo by Al Parrish

With the help of a high-tech kit, almost anyone can now make a British-style infill smoothing plane -long regarded as the best plane design ever.

sk almost any handplane enthusiast what they consider to be the best plane ever built and you'll usually get one answer: British infill smoothing planes.

These well-made traditional tools do a great job on almost any wood regardless of its figure, species or even grain direction and leave a glassy surface that's ready to receive a finish.

So why doesn't every woodworker in the world own one? There are several reasons. These planes haven't been mass-produced for about 50 years, the

good examples can fetch thousands of dollars in the collectors' market and the less-than-good ones aren't worth owning for the most part.

But now there's a quickly growing group of plane-makers who are reviving this once-heralded plane pattern and producing new versions for sale. For a fraction of what you'd pay for a real-deal vintage Norris or Spiers smoothing plane you can own a brand new copy that's ready to go to work.

Perhaps even more enticing (or frightening) is to build your own infill plane from a kit. For less

by Christopher Schwarz

Comments or questions? Contact Chris at 513-531-2690 ext. 1407 or chris.schwarz@fwpubs.com. For more photos, go to popularwoodworking.com/features/mag.html.

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