How To

Making a Coffin Smoothing Plane

By: Gary Mercer

April 2016

From a block of wood that was used to bind loads on a semi-trailer into a Coffin Smoother Plane.

My way of making this plane is loosely based on the design by Caleb James.

A free download of his design is available at his website:

http://kapeldesigns.blogspot.com/2013/04/wooden-smoothing-plane-plans.html
Make it Square

I began with a block of wood that measured about 3”x 3” x 14”.

I jointed two sides square, then sawed the other two sides square on a table saw using skim cuts, then
squared each end.
Start the Layout

I scored a line at the center of the length all the way around the outside using a square and a knife (the
length of my wood was 12-3/4” so the center is located @ 6-3/8”).

…Sorry about the bad photo.

I selected the bottom and the toe based on the wood grain and marked it on the wood.

I also marked a centerline on the end

I sawed the board in half down the length. If the two halves are not exactly the same width don’t
panic…They will be corrected later after they are glued back together.

I am using a Woodriver V3 no.3 bench plane blade from woodcraft, which is 1-3/4” wide, so I will make 2
angle cuts into each half 7/8” deep, to house the blade.
Cutting the Bed Angle (Left Side)

Set the table saw blade to 7/8” above the table (half the plane blade width).

To create a bed angle of 65 degrees for the plane iron the miter gauge is set at 35degrees.

To set up the miter gauge stop, I orient the first half (Left Side) so the bottom is facing the miter gauge
fence. With the toe facing the stop, Align the mark (Knife Line) as shown in the photo, then slide the
miter gauge to meet the wood and set the miter stop against the toe of the left side.

Now that the miter stop is set up, I can remove the wood, slide the miter back, and place the wood back
to make the first cut (as shown below).
Cutting the Abutment Angle (Left Side)

Set the table Saw Blade to 7/8” above the table (half the plane blade width)

This cut will define the wedge abutment angle of 55 degrees. To do this swing the miter gauge to 25
degrees. The miter stop is now moved to the right (about ½ of the blade thickness) so the blade will not
re-cut the bed line as the blade passes through the wood (see photo below).
Cutting the Bed Angle (Right Side)

Set the table saw blade 7/8” above the table.

Note: The photos on this page are taken from the outfeed side of the table saw for clarity. Also note the
top is against the miter fence.

To cut the bed angle swing the miter gauge to the opposite 35 degrees for this cut.

The setup is similar, but this time orient the top of the right side against the miter gauge fence and align
the knife mark as shown in the photo below.
Cutting the Abutment Angle (Right Side)

Note: The photos on this page are taken from the outfeed side of the table saw for clarity.

Set saw blade 7/8” above the table saw table.

This cut will define the wedge abutment angle of 55 degrees. To do this swing the miter gauge to 25
degrees. The miter stop is now moved to the left (about ½ of the blade thickness) so the blade will not
re-cut the bed line as the blade passes through the wood (see photo below).
Progress at this point in the build shown below.
Cleaning Out for the Wedge and Blade Iron

Mark a line 7/8” from the inside to define the area to be excavated on the top and bottom, between
both saw cuts. I use a homemade marking tool with a blade.

I removed the waste material using a chisel to about 1/8” from the mark. The rest was cleaned out
using a homemade router plane. By using the router plane I can remove shavings of .001” at a time
leaving an amazingly smooth and accurate depth (a tool worth making).

Note the shavings from the hand router

I must admit I made an error when making this plane. I was so wrapped up in describing and
photographing as I went along that I forgot a cardinal rule. MEASURE TWICE CUT ONCE! I actually cut,
chiseled and Hand routed to an exact depth of .750” (3/4”) instead of .875” (7/8”). Oh well, it was easily
corrected with the hand router and a chisel.
This is the final depth (7/8”)
Cutting the Wedge

This is the angle jig I use to cut 10 degree wedges for planes (my standard angle).

It’s basic and reliable. It’s basically a carrier board made of ½”mdf with an angle board for a fence. The
carrier board is made parallel by sawing on the table saw, then setting a digital protractor on it. I use hot
glue against the end to hold it at one end, then after the one end is set, I flex the other end and when I
am sure it is 10 degrees (using a digital protractor), I weld the other end with hot glue. The hold downs
are added after. Simple Huh!

Can’t resist a dry fit

In this photo we are looking at the right side with the toe
on toward the right. Set the protractor to 70 Degrees, and place it on the sole of the plane so the crotch
is at the rear of the mouth and make a knife line.

Continue the line down the top to a depth of ¾” and back to the abutment as shown below. Chisel it
out, and again using a hand router, clean it out to a depth of ¾” registering off the inside face. When
done, it should look like the third photo on this page.

…
Another Dry Fit

Drive in the wedge, in order to reveal in these five photos, the corrections that will have to be made.

Any flaws are correctable after the glue up, because the wedge will hold the two halves in perfect
alignment.

The escapement (first and second Photo) will need to be pared with a chisel.

The clamps are loosely fitted until the wedge is driven in, and then tightened to reveal the flaws.

The bottom and top will need to be squared after glue up.

Almost ready for glue up!

Clearance for the wood shaving must be provided so the shaving doesn’t clog the mouth when using the
plane.

In the photos below, the wear area is marked by setting a protractor to 70 degrees, and making a knife
line as shown.

Place a chisel into the knife line and carefully pare straight down only to the escapement wall (3/4”).

After completing this it should look like the photo below.

…
The Glue up

Tip: The glue will ooze…prepare for it. Use only just enough glue. The plane blade has a slot in it, so it can
be placed so the glue can ooze into that slot. Wax the wedge so the glue can’t stick.

I use Titebond II glue and it has worked out well on all the planes I have made.

I place the blade iron, and then drive in the wedge to provide alignment, and then pile on the clamps.

I clean off the excess ooze on the outside with a dedicated glue chisel immediately, then after about 20
minutes, I remove the wedge and blade to carefully clean the ooze from the cavity. Once the cavity is
cleaned out, I return the blade and wedge to the cavity and drive the wedge back in. Let it dry overnight.
The Flaws

I skim cut the top of the plane, then the bottom. I also re sawed the top to remove some flawed wood.

Flashback: When I originally sawed the board in half (on page3) the boards were not exactly the same
thickness? Here is how it is corrected.

I want the area between the wedge opening and the outer body to be ¼”. Set the square to extend ¼”
past the opening, and there is the measurement to re saw on the table saw.

…
Since this Coffin Smoothing Plane is somewhat based on Caleb James’s design I used his layout for the
curved shape and transferred his shape to the bottom, aligning the mouth line to the bottom and
sketching the shape and length. Although his design uses a different size blade iron the curve of the
body is about the same.

I then cut it to length and hand planed the curve onto the body.
The Wedge (Part 1 of 3)

The layout begins by deciding what it should look like. This is what I like, and I’ll cut this out after
forming the other end of the wedge (by leaving the wedge long it gives me something to clamp).

Next I mark the width onto the wedge for the next step.

…
The Wedge Continued (Part 2)

I clamped the wedge (top facing up) in the vice.

I marked pencil lines to guide me…45 degrees from the bottom of the wedge and about 1” from the
end. Cut as shown leaving the line to be cleaned up after chiseling.

In the second photo (above), I chiseled at 45 degrees taking off shavings until I arrived at the lines.

… … Note: The long wedge is clamped

In the two photo’s above, I’ve driven in the wedge with blade retracted and sawed the tips of the wedge
flush with the sole.
The Wedge Continued (Part 3)

Angle the tips

As an alternative to the method pictured below, if you have a 1/8” chisel you could shave the same angle
by piercing down through the mouth from the top of the plane, but I don’t have one so this is how I did it.

Using a file and a piece of milk bottle (to protect me from filing the mouth opening) I hold the file at an
angle to use just the edge of the file This allows me to angle the tips of the wedge to direct shavings
into the mouth as the plane is being used. I’m guessing it to be about 20 degrees to the side.

In the second photo (above) you can see the result after filing the wedge. By doing this it allows shavings
to go up the mouth while using the plane.
Finishing Up

I shaped the upper rear of the plane in a typical traditional look and feel by using a pencil compass to lay
out lines onto the body of the plane, and when it looked good I shaped it. I used a round file to define
the decorative grooves that separate the upper and lower area of the plane on the side (front and rear).
Then I used a chisel to bevel the area above those grooves. The next thing I did was to shape the bevel
along the upper sides using a spoke shave, working from one end of the plane to the other. I then used a
rasp to round the rear part of the plane. I then stamped G.MERCER (size 1/8”) onto the front by
clamping a block of wood to help maintain a straight line as I stamped.

…My Coffin Smoother Plane is now ready to finish!

I used the traditional finish…Boiled linseed oil thinned with turpentine and a little bees wax. It was
generously slopped all over the wood, then after about a half hour, it’s wiped down. In about a week I
will coat it with shellac.

These are the two Coffin Smoother Planes that I have made using the methods in this guide. The plane
on the left was used in the very first photo (next to the block of wood) of this guide.

The Coffin Smoother Plane (right photo), is the one used in all the other photos in this guide.
Testing

I could have shown the plane being used on clear perfect lumber, but that might not be a fair
representation of how good this plane actually works. I chose to use a 20+ year old piece of plywood
that was originally a piece of sheathing (un-sanded) left over when I built my garage in 1976. It would be
difficult for any plane to smooth this kind of wood…as you see in the photos below the Coffin Smoother
Plane had no difficulty smoothing it.

… …

… The first photo (left) shows a

Thanks for reading,

Gary Mercer.
Tools I Used To Make This Plane

Table Saw with Diablo Combination Blade, with an accurate Miter Gauge

Jointer

Miter Saw

Homemade Hand Router and Marking Gauge

Homemade Taper Jig, and Hot Glue Gun

Digital Protractor and Standard Protractor

6” Combination Square

Utility Knife, Compass and Pencil

Chisels

Flush Cut Hand Saw

F-Clamps (6), Bench and Vise

Digital Caliper 6”

Block Plane

Spoke Shave

File