British Planemakers Archives - Page 2 of 2

DID YOU KNOW…

Thomas Norris is famous for his highly crafted and beautifully made infill planes. E. Guymer reminisces about a time when he was first introduced to Mr. & Mrs. Norris and how he would eventually became a part of the family.

Norris 1928 Catalog

This is the second Norris catalog addition to the site and is a reproduction of the 1928 catalog. The main difference you will note is that most of the images of the bench planes feature the Norris adjuster, whereas in the 1914 catalog the adjuster…

Miller “Rhino Horn” Gunmetal Infill Shoulder Plane

I’ve always found the gentle sweep of a Miller shoulder plane wedge to be one of the most attractive wedges I’ve ever seen. While many of them become “injured” and “deformed” over the years a good quality Miller wedge is always nice to find. George…

Norris 1914 Catalog

The scans below are from the Thomas Norris & Son catalog of 1914. The catalog features the entire range of Norris hand planes, from dovetailed smoothers, panel planes and jointers right down to tiny violin makers planes cast in bronze. Mitre planes, shoulder planes and…

Badger Cast Bronze Bullnose Plane

Charles Badger was a London-based tool maker and dealer who is noted in W. L. Goodman’s “British Planemakers From 1700” as being in business from 1852 (as Badger & Galpin) to 1867. Not much else is really known about him, other than the planes bearing…

Spiers Dovetailed Smoothing Plane (Early)

This is an early model Spiers dovetailed infill hand plane, possibly even a custom order. It has the trademark early features – low two-piece front bun and two-piece rear infill, screwed side plates (to fix the infills), tongue and groove joint for the sole plate…

Spiers No. 11 Dovetailed Bullnose Plane

This is a dovetailed version of a Spiers bullnose plane and, therefore, is a bit more scarce than the cast versions. It’s difficult to put an exact date on this plane but it is generally believed that the dovetailed versions came a little after the…

Norris No. 13 Smoothing Plane

I’ve been busy scanning, cleaning up and uploading a whole bunch of stuff in order to kick off a new section on the site which, in particular, may be of interest to makers and would-be makers of infill planes – dovetailed or otherwise. I thought…

Henley Optical Company – Best English Mitre Plane

Thoroughbred: A Best English Mitre Plane from the Henley Optical Co. By Antony Talbot In a quiet Oxfordshire town comes exciting news of a venture that will delight all woodworkers. Once again planes, English planes made to the highest standards of quality workmanship and finish,…

Remembering Thomas Norris & His Planes

I have been greatly interested to read over past months and years items referring to Norris tools, together with one of that firm’s logos reproduced. It is possible that a few reminiscences from one who knew Tom Norris well may be of interest to some…

Through Much Tribulation

Through Much Tribulation: Stewart Spiers and the Planemakers of Ayr To call this book the definitive story of Stewart Spiers is somewhat of an understatement. Sure, by definition, the scope of information which resides within this 132 page work by author and longtime collector Nigel…