Vigo County Historical Society

Historical Treasure Article

Historic Treasure of the Week - February 24, 1985
By Roy Waldron
Vigo County Historical Society

Planing tools smoothed out variety of household chores

Today's treasure is a smoothing plane from the collection of early hand tools displayed in the Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley, 1411 S. Sixth St.

Planes have been with us since the days of the Romans. Of all the woodworking tools used from colonial times in America until World War I, the family of planes was by far the largest category.

An 18th century carpenter doing common work was required to have from 10 to 25 different planes. Master house builders and cabinet makers required many more.

There are planes to perform an endless variety of functions, from those that level and smooth a surface (rendering the surface a geometrical plane), to those that shape specific joints, make decorative moulding or the special planes for rounding and hollowing.

When George Washington ordered planes form England to equip his plantation shops before the Revolution, he ordered them in sets of 50.

Before the days of planing mills, carpenters used planes to smooth all the boards used in a house. A larger jack plane was used first for preliminary cleaning and squaring of the board as it came from the saw or broad ax.

The smooth plane acquired its name from the fact it was then used to smooth away irregularities left after using the jack plane. Its shorter length made it useful for smoothing joints and cleaning blemishes. It was perhaps the most used plane for "odd jobs" about the household.

The average length of smoothing planes is from 6 to 8 inches with a width of 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 inches. Our smoothing plane, with its boat shape, is a typical example.

You may find the initials or the name of the owner stamped on an old wooden plane. This plane has no marking to indicate its manufacturer or its owner.

It does have a double iron stamped with the name of the Ohio Tool Co. and the words "Cast Steel."

The blade of the plane is called the iron, even if it is made of steel. After the late 18th century, plane blades made in two parts were available. The regular blade supplemented by a chop breaker (also called the called the cap iron), which screwed onto the blade and broke the shaving as it emerged from the throat of the stock prevented the wood from breaking out ahead of the iron.

Unless you have attempted to use a plane, it is difficult to appreciate the time and skill required to sharpen the irons and the very delicate adjustment of the iron required to set up the plane for use. A multitude of woes plague the user if the plane is not properly set up.

Technique is everything when using a plane. You must start in the proper position, swing and put your body into it, then follow through. Planing is skilled labor and hard work.

With these thoughts in mind, is it any wonder houses and furniture that display the work of early craftsmen have become treasured legacies?

The museum is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday through Friday.