On Sunday, June 12, 2016 at 4:36:44 PM UTC-7, wrote:
On Sunday, June 12, 2016 at 7:16:38 PM UTC-4, wrote:

I have already made a vice for the core. Any recommendations on the size, price, brand, or angle of the plane?

The intended function of a low-angle block plane is to cut endgrain; it should be good
for the intended task. If you use sacrificial wood jaws, a tight-mouth smooth plane (#4) ought
also to work, if you hold the iron at a slight diagonal to the cut. The bed of the plane ought
to ride on something other than the work, but that's what the wood surround is good for.