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I gave me an Ibex plane for my birthday. Its cute and I'm sure its going to work like a dream, but I have a question.

How do you sharpen that itty-bitty blade? Free-hand?

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Aoibeann

Happy Birthday Lillian and Happy Esa Bunny,
Hope your Birthday was the best day of your year. And it really sounds like it was a good one since the one you love the most bought you a cute itty bitty Ibex plane.

What kind did you buy you? Flat or radiused bottom? I have four or five Ibex finger planes. Never sharpened them yet.

Hope this helps......lol

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"After forty-nine years of violin building, I have decided that the search for a varnish is similar to the fox hunt. The fun is in the hunt."
Jack Batts Maker and Repairer of Fine Violins

Todd, thank you! That's exactly what I need.

Thank you Chuck. I've down played my birthday for the past oh 20+ years. All plans seem to end up in a hand basket getting roasted. It is never anyone's fault, it just happens. This year was different. Friday came in went without any mishaps. Dinner was exactly what I wanted. The concert was great. Sweetie got me the present I picked out as well as the tickets. So who knows, things might be changing.

Pilgrams Projects sent me a very nice 12 mm flat bottomed plane. I like it a lot. I'm thinking that I might want to get the 18 mm as well. What do you think? Do you have a plane or two you seem to prefer?

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Aoibeann

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LILLIAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

An Ibex plane is a great B-day present and I am sure it will serve you well.

I sharpen mine by hand drawing the blade toward me on wet stones (Norton 1000 and a Norton combo 4,000 - 8,000).

Happy Bday Lillian

I have an Ibex flat bottom 10mm and love it for brace carving, nice and small to get right into the nooks and crannies and your 12mm will be just as good I'm sure. Have not had to sharpen the little sucker yet as it still cuts fine on spruce, but I have the lee valley thingamajig that Tod suggested and will use that before I start the next.

I used to sharpen everything by hand on a stone years ago but now use a Veritas mk2 jig and the scary sharp system (which I have been using long before I ever even heard of the "scary sharp system" ). The tools are not really any sharper than what I could achieve before on a stone but as the bevel is so accurately repeatably, I reckon I am conserving a little of that precious E. A. Berg steel and that is a good thing. After all, I want to be able to pass my tools onto my daughter in good usable condition once I'm cactus

Cheers

Kim

Thank you gentlemen for the well wishes and insight into your shop. Both are much appreciated.

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Aoibeann

Sorry Lillian, can't help you on the IBEX plane much. Sold mine in the last swap meet.............

But I'd make a holder for the tiny blade if I were trying to sharpen it. Good luck with your present and Happy Birthday!

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http://www.dickeyguitars.com

Freehand on sandpaper on surface block, then a hard felt wheel with compound. Pretty much the way I sharpen everything; the difference with the round bottom is rotating the blade a little through the stroke so you don't make it faceted, doing the blade in several overlapping sections. Not hard, you'll get the hang of it.

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Howard Klepper
http://www.klepperguitars.com

When all else fails, clean the shop.

Bruce, thanks for the wishes. Much appreciated.

Howard, I will keep your technique in mind when I have to sharpen a curved blade.

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Aoibeann

Hi Lillian, mandolin maker John Hamlett has some instructions on tuning an Ibex plane for better performance on his web site, check it out: http://www.hamlettinstruments.com/repair_detail.php?ID=9

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

Good link Arnt, thanks.

The throat clogging was bearable and just accepted as the down side of a little plane when working a few braces, but I could only imagine how frustrating it would be carving the top of a Mando.

It just makes good sense to make the cap iron fit correctly, after all that is a standard when you tune an old plane, but it just seems with these little guys one can just accept their limitations simply because they are small. It is obvious now it has been pointed out but with this tune up, these small Ibex planes WILL work as good as a larger tool.

Now the question needs to be ask why, when at 50 USA bucks a throw with no more metal than you would find in a couple of dollar coins, can't Ibex just do their job properly and make the cap Iron fit like they use to do years ago....Oh yeah, stupid me I forgot, it's OK these days to purposely drop part of the process which makes your product work properly for your customers as long as it allows you to sack a few people from their jobs and make a little more cash for yourself

Cheers all

Kim

Thanks Arnt. Great link. Looks like it won't take much work at all to get this new toy tuned up and ready to go.


Kim, you are right on the money, so to speak.

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Aoibeann

I guess it's a bit like with most standard new bench planes; you have to look at them as "kits", nothing is ready to use out of the box.

For what it's worth, my wooden shop made thumb planes work as well or better than my Ibex planes. I cut irons from old bench plan cutters and they are better quality than the Ibex irons; the one in the picture has a 18 mm iron iirc.

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin