The Superior Works: Wooden Planes - Terminology

Wooden Plane Terminology

The descriptive terminology the planemaker's themselves used for their planes was never standardized, so it follows that the terms we use today to describe them are varied. The definitions that follow are in fairly common use by collectors and users of the planes.

• Wedge - The piece of wood used to hold the Iron in place to prevent the Iron from slipping backward during use.
• Finial - The topmost portion of the Wedge and the portion that is struck by a mallet to drive the Wedge in place.
• Wedge Mortice - The opening in the Stock into which the Iron and Wedge fit.
• Iron - The chunk of metal that is sharpened to produce the desired cut on the wood.
• Stock - The largest portion of the plane, with its Sole shaped to perform some specific function.
• Toe - The frontmost area of the Sole; normally is the location of the maker's mark.
• Heel - The rearmost area of the Sole; normally whacked with a mallet to remove the Iron.
• Chamfer - the finish cut on the edges of the Stock to make for a more comfortable grip; said to be either flat or rounded.
• Sole - The underside portion of the Stock; the portion of the Stock that makes contact with the wood.
• Bed - That area of the Stock onto which the Iron rests.
• Mouth - The opening in the Sole through which the Iron protrudes.
• Throat - The angled opening that starts at the Mouth and widens toward the Wedge; allows passage of the shavings.
• Fence - The section of the Stock (normally on the left) that references off the wood to guide the plane as it's worked; not all planes have Fences.
• Stop - The section of the Stock (normally on the right) that stops the plane from cutting any deeper; not all planes have Stops.
• Step - The section of the Stock (normally on the right) that carries the Stop; characterized with a molded top, made to reduce the plane's mass.
• Tote - The grip found normally on bench planes; said either to be open (like a pistol grip) or closed (like a saw handle).
• Strike - an area on the Stock, forward of the iron, that is hit with a mallet in order to loosen the wedge; usually a hardwood or metal.
• Boxing - The wear strip of a harder substance, normally boxwood, let into the plane's sole in order to make the high points of the sole wear longer.
• Spring - the amount of lean, off the vertical, a plane is worked on the stock.

pal, April 20, 1998