Trimming Doors Without Power Tools

[^woody^]

can we have an honest opinion - is the hinge mortice plane a really useful piece of kit you use regularly?.... or tool porn??

It looks like a right faff in the video's.

 

[^woody^]

Little bit better than the wee £25 Faithfull No.4 Smoothing Plane I just bought off Amazon.

It's the thing that attaches to the big brown handle that makes the difference, not the name stamped on the front.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

It's the thing that attaches to the big brown handle that makes the difference, not the name stamped on the front.

The old saying that you can't turn a sow's ear into a silk purse applies too low quality planes - a Lie-Nielsen plane won't turn Joe Average into James Krenov, but a crappy, poorly made, untuned DIY plane would have wrecked even Norm Abraham's best efforts

 

[albaPhenom]

To be fair, my handsaw and cheap wee plane did me proud... used a marking gauge to mark a line at 13mm and 15mm, hand sawn cut the 13mm line which was pretty rough as you'd imagine and then planed it down to the 15mm line. Finished fairly straight, square and smooth as far as I was concerned and not saying it was absolutely mm perfect but it'll certainly do the job.

I wouldn't fancy having to do 4-5 doors like that or to trim a door along it's length with hand tools tbh but I also wouldn't hesitate to trim another one if needed.

Cheers lads for the advice.

 

[^woody^]

My very first plane was made by Anant (Indian apparently), got it from the local discount homewares store not a tool shop because it was dead cheap - a few £'s, and I needed a plane and it's all I could afford.

Back in the day before the internet, and before all this malarkey that you need to fettle the thing, rub down the bed, check this, file that, align the other. All I did, and all I still do is sharpen the blade. Now this must surely be my top earning tool and cost literally a few pounds, and yet I still use it and it it produces results as good as anything.

I don't want to bring up any past debates, but things like this form by opinion that if a tool does what its meant to do, then it does not matter one bit what name is on the front. Keep that blade nice and sharp and hand planing is easy - I would even say therapeutically enjoyable - that sound, that feel and the smell. Lovely.

Looking at some of the Indian planes nowadays, they are probably better "Stanley" or "Record" planes than either of those companies have made for decades.

 

[albaPhenom]

Back in the day before the internet, and before all this malarkey that you need to fettle the thing, rub down the bed, check this, file that, align the other. All I did, and all I still do is sharpen the blade.

Yeah I watched all these videos and never did any of that stuff, I had a wee go of it to see how well it performed out of the box and it seemed to do a job although I know I'm meant to sharpen it before use.

I might take some time now I have that job out the way to sharpen it up and flatten the bed just to have a play around with it.

Complete agree about the therapeutic nature of planing some wood, it's just an innately enjoyable thing to do.

 

[Diver Fred]

Joking aside, we have a broken training system in this country. I say that because I'm an old school C&G sort and the current CITB scheme (where they incidentally don't recognise C&G qualifications) delivers qualifications called NVQs (National Vocational Qualifications) or "Not Very Qualifieds" as we call them. These are based on someone adjudicating the nominees' work, but the system is open to abuse and corruption (like assessors taking back handers), so to my mind an NVQ often isn't worth the paper it is written on.

I have grown weary of picking up stupid errors in work which should never have happened, of shoddy workmanship, and of botched jobs. If you do employ a carpenter and joiner in future might I suggest you pick someone over the age of 35 who can produce either C&G qualifications, or who can supply references. And watch his first efforts before letting him proceed

Can only agree about NVQ's (also known as 'Not Very Good's). In my trade I had some apprentices to monitor / train; they had to complete a 'modern apprenticeship', as par of that I also had to do a NVQ as a trainer.
Took a detailed look at the paperwork for the lads and decided to ignore most of it - but making sure they did sufficient to provide the 'evidence' needed to pass the qualifications. One lad complained the amount work I was having them do, keeping an apprentice notebook, writing reports for my myself and my manager. When it came time to provide my 'evidence' for my NVQ the assessor didn't know where to start openly admitting he'd never before seen the information presented in the manner I had - but I Passed (as well I should as I think I ended up assessing him as well).

The lad who did not complain about the extra work I set them thanked me some years afterwards as he knew considerably more about all aspects of the job rather just a narrow 'NVQ' focus.

I certainly think the old (indentured) apprenticeships are much better at producing tradesmen.