THE SHOULDER PLANE

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THE SHOULDER PLANE

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The shoulder plane is a narrow, specialised woodworking plane. It is used to clean up the shoulders of hand cut tenons, to ensure that they fit the mortise accurately. This plane is useful when refining grooves / recesses cut into a surface (e.g. Housing joints). It is the ideal tool for planing inside corners and producing shoulders / rebates, because the blade extends across the entire width of the sole.
The mouth can be adjusted by turning the adjusting screw. This allows very fine shavings to be cut / planed.

The shoulder plane is normally held in one hand (as shown below), with the second hand adding slight downwards pressure at the front, keeping the sole of the plane in constant contact with the surface being planed. The blade depth adjustment screw can be turned to increase or decrease the depth of the cut / shaving.

The shoulder plane is often used on its side (as shown opposite). It is as comfortable to use in this position as it is in its regular position.

GENERAL USE OF A SHOULDER PLANE - STAGE BY STAGE

1. SET THE DEPTH OF CUT AND TEST BY PLANING A SCRAP PIECE OF WOOD. ALTER THE DEPTH OF CUT, IF NECESSARY.

2. POSITION THE SHOULDER PLANE, WITH THE FRONT PART OF THE SOLE, RESTING ON THE SURFACE TO BE PLANED.

3. PUSH THE PLANE FORWARD, WITH ONE HAND. AT THE SAME TIME, YOUR SECOND HAND APPLIES SLIGHT DOWNWARD PRESSURE, ENSURING THE SOLE MAINTAINS CONTACT WITH THE SURFACE BEING PLANED. THE BLADE SHOULD START TO PRODUCE A SHAVING(S).

4. PUSH THE PLANE ALONG THE SURFACE, IF POSSIBLE IN ONE MOVEMENT, PLANING THE SURFACE.

5. LIFT THE SHOULDER PLANE UP AND PLACE IT BACK AT THE STARTING POINT. DO NOT DRAG THE PLANE BACK ALONG THE SURFACE. IT IS BAD PRACTICE TO DRAG IT BACK!

6. START AGAIN - PLACE THE SHOULDER PLANE WITH THE FRONT PART OF THE SOLE RESTING ON THE SURFACE TO BE PLANED.

ORTHOGRAPHIC DRAWING OF A TYPICAL SHOULDER PLANE

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