"alex" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi,

I have a few questions about adjusting a Stanley plane.

1: I notice that the frog can move back behind the rear of the mouth.
Why is that? If you move the frog back behinid the mouth and then add
the blade and chip cutter then there is no support for the bottom of
the blade. Also, it looks like if you do that and then try to set the
depth of the knife, it will run into the metal behind the mouth.

That is correct, but given manufacturing tolerances it is better that you
have some adjustment. It also allows you to widen the mouth if you put in a
thicker iron.


2: Is it correct that if you want a thick cutting then the frog has to
line up right with the rear of the mouth so when the blade is in and
the depth is set the blade will be fully supported by the frog and
will be positioned right at the rear of the mouth.

Generally, yes.

3: If you want a thin shaving then you move the frog closer to the
front so that the blade is near the front of the mouth. It can't be
right near the mouth because once you set the depth too deep the chip
cutter will run into the front of the mouth. So the frog tends to ends
up being somewhere near the center of the mouth.

Maybe. Depends on the plane condition and the iron.

4: I was trying to prep some 5/4 wood which was wider then my 6"
jointer. So I thought I'd run it through the planner instead. The
pieces were about 8" x 20". The wood was not flat so I tried to use my
hand planes to flatten one side. I was not getting satisfactory
results with my Stanely 4 or 5. I don't have a scrub plane but would
that have been the correct one to use in this situation?

Probably. Depends how "unflat" the boards were.

Give up on those old metal planes and get a newfangled wooden one:
http://zo-d.com/stuff//stanley-vs-st...he-planes.html

-Jack