57 - A Shop-Built Pin Router, страница 17
A Laminated Blade. You can see the two distinct laminations of steel on the bevel of this Japanese blade. Lie-Nielsen Clifton $30.00 $49.99 .095" thick .117" thick Hook Samurai $25.95 $41.95 .095" thick .082" thick on the tendency of the plane to chatter. Instead, the blade slices smoothly through the wood. Steel - But there's more to these plane irons than just the fact that they're thick. They also use a better grade of tool steel that you won't find in most other blades. The Clifton, Lie-Nielsen, and Hock irons all use a high-carbon tool steel that's designed to take and hold an edge longer than the tungsten-vanadium steel blades that are standard issue with most new planes. Japanese Iron - Hie Samurai iron is a little different than the other three. First, it's not as thick. In fact, it's about the same thickness as a standard blade. Instead of thickness, this iron relies on the quality of it's steel and an unusual production method for its strength. Like many traditional Japanese woodworking tools, this iron is laminated out of two types of steel. It's forged from a piece of high carbon white steel (the cutting edge) backed by softer, low carbon steel. The lamination makes the blade stiffer, which helps to eliminate chatter. Sizes - All of the irons mentioned above are available in several widths to fit Stanley and Record-style bench planes ranging in size from #3 to #7. (Although you may have to adjust the frog on your plane to accommo date the new, thicker iron.) In addition, there are replacement blades available for block planes as well. Price - Depending on the size and make of iron you choose, the price ranges from about $25.00 to $50.00. That may seem steep, but the added performance is really worth the cost. And if you use hand planes a lot, you may even want to consider adding a replacement cap iron, see box below. One last thing. Keep in mind that as good as these plane irons are, there's nothing magical about them. You'll still need to flatten the back and keep the edge sharp to get the best results out of your plane. & Two-Piece Cap Iron Any one of the replacement irons mentioned above will be a big improvement over most standard irons. But if you're looking for an even bigger boost in performance, you might also want to try replacing the standard cap iron (sometimes referred to as the chipbreaker) with a two-piece cap iron made by Clifton, see photo and drawing on opposite page. (Cost is approximately $25.00) As you can see in the comparison photo at left, the Clifton cap iron (top) is substantially thicker and flatter than the standard cap iron. As with the thicker blades, the heavier cap iron gives the blade more mass and stability. Flat and Stable - But more importantly, the edge of the cap iron is wide and flat, so it supports the blade much better than the thin, springy cap irons that are supplied with most planes. And since the cap iron rests flat against the blade, you don't have to worry about it bowing the blade, which is often a problem with cheaper cap irons. The Clifton cap iron comes in two interlocking pieces. The main section screws directly to the blade like a conventional cap iron. The second section simply rests in a groove in the main section and is held in place by the lever cap, see detail drawing on opposite page. This allows you to lift off just the front part of the cap iron when you need to hone the blade, see photo above. No. 57 ShopNotes 17 |
