#5 to Scrub Plane

[Downwindtracker2]

Yesterday I goofed. As I get older this happens more frequently. I turned a #5 jack into a scrub plane. It was rough customer, it made a Stanley Handyman look like a Norris infill. On the blade it said Wadsworth Tool, Allemagne .I think Allemagne is Germany in French, but it been a long time  since high school and I was very,very, poor French student. The frog beds and seats were cast at angles, those four angles had no relation to each other, so I milled them to produce a standard 45 degrees.  Yesterday it was it's turn, so I looked up scrub plane blade radius, 3", and then found a 3" diameter lid. Now I have a sharp blade with 1 1/2" radius.

 I guess I'll continue down this path. Since some cap irons and frogs are a matching pair , these were. Now I'm wondering about the cap-iron. If I leave the cap-iron at the corners I have a huge projection. To grind a similar  radius I would have to grind away the hump then the cap iron would be too short. Does this mean I have to make or modify a cap iron?

BTW, while digging in the parts bin , a crude Footprint #5 jack, think a step below Stanley Handyman, generously volunteered to become another scrub plane. It doesn't have any wood, I made 3 into 2 jacks for my sons, and it was parts. 

The only problem about being retired is you get old and stupid, at least you have time to do things twice.

[DFJarvie]

Don't worry about the cap iron. You only need a little of the blade to come throw so you can set the cap back. I only use about 1/2 inch of the blade. Any more you'll kill yourself trying to use it.

All you really want is to just take off the high stuff. If not you'll be planning forever to get rid of the marks.

I made one out of a 5 and it works well.

[JimReed@Tallahassee]

Like everything else, it depends. If you make shallow cuts in soft woods, the #5 with a radiused blade makes an OK scrub. I would just raise the chipbreaker to the edge of the radius. It will help stiffen the blade.

This advice does not in any way constitute an endorsement. I use my scrub plane a lot because I like rough lumber and do not have a planer. One big chore is making boards flat, where the scrub does a great job taking down the high spots. I keep scrubbing and flipping the board until it is flat on the bench. During a flattening session, I use the scrub like a hatchet with handles. There is no way a #5 with Bailey adjuster could keep up unless the wood was soft cedar or fir.

But maybe you have a different task in mind. Good luck with you new (to you) tool. Sounds like you found a way to save it and put it back to work.