Classic Boat – August 2019

(^92) CLASSIC BOAT AUGUST 2019
CRAFTSMANSHIP
Boatbuilder’s Notes
PRACTICAL ADVICE
Making a
glass mate
ROBIN GATES
ROBIN GATES
BY ROBIN GATES
The glass plate from old bathroom scales, typically
tough enough to bear 180kg, makes a first class
support for flattening and sharpening with abrasive
papers. It’s a good size, flat enough for the job, safely
rounded at the corners and you can find one in a
charity shop for just a pound or two – a purpose-made
surface plate can be an expensive item. Sharpening
this way requires more care than using oil stones or
diamond plates, since there’s a danger of tearing the
paper, but results are good and it’s a handy technique
to keep in reserve.
Strip away the feet and electrical gubbins using an
old chisel (1), and you’re ready for work. Examples of
its several uses are flattening the soles of worn wooden
planes using bog-standard glasspaper (2), straightening
the uneven ends of backing irons on emery cloth (3), and
refreshing dull cutting edges on fine wet and dry silicon
carbide paper (4). For the latter, I’m using Starcke
Matador: two sheets each of 240, 600, 1000, 1500 and
2000 grit for around £8 at Amazon may appear pricey
but it’s quality stu˜.
Sliding bevel as
a visual guide
for honing
Sliding bevel for
honing by eye
BY ROBIN GATES
An old carpenter’s sliding bevel, typically with ebony or
rosewood stock, brass tips and locking screw for the steel
blade, is great for transferring angles but also handy as a
visual reference while honing. Keep one near the whetstone,
locked at your preferred bevel angle, perhaps 30 degrees,
and stand it on the bench while refreshing the edge of a plane
iron or chisel. It’s more convenient than the fiddly business
of locking the tool itself into a honing guide, and ultimately
trains the eye and hand for honing independently.
1 Remove feet and display with a chisel
2 Flattening a con smoother
3 Levelling a backing iron
4 Sharpening a plane blade
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