Thanks. I'll have to find a picture of the bench your describing. Is
it attached to the wall on one end or just leaning on it?

My idea may be bad, like most of my other ideas....but in this case it
will be easy to experiment. I'll just get a few boards, lay them
across some concrete blocks, clamp a board to be planed to the boards
and try planing it. I'll post my results later....


"Bob" wrote in message oups.com...
A japanese planing beam is not knee high, nor do they sit on it. It
has a sawhorse-like brace on one end called a trestle (waist high) and
the other end is braced against the wall (knee high). It is used with a
pull motion plane, moving from the higher end to the lower end. The
worker is standing or leaning during the planing motion.

I think your idea of a knee high bench and planing while sitting is not
a good idea. I've seen pictures of Japanese man sitting on the floor
and planing but its with a very small hand plane doing some trim work.
He is using a pull style plane.

Bob