VERITAS Small Plow Plane User manual

Small Plow Plane
U.S. Des. Pat. No. D591,579

Figure 2: Blade installation.
Blade
Blade
Adjustment
Knob
Blade
Guide Knob
Lever Cap
Lever Cap
Knob
Handle
Blade
Blade Adjustment
Knob
Depth Stop
Knob
Depth Stop
Fence Locking Knob
Blade
Guide Knob
Fence
Skate
Body
Lever Cap
Lever Cap Knob
Figure 1: Plane components.
2
The Veritas®Small Plow Plane is a joinery plane, perfect for cutting grooves,
such as used for drawer and box bottoms, cabinet backs, and frame-and-panel
construction. It is also capable of cutting small rabbets (grooves with one
open side).
The ductile cast iron body is accurately machined with a 45° blade bed.
The plane comes with a 1/4"wide lapped A2 tool steel blade. The fence
has been sculpted to fit the hand for comfort and proper registration of the
plane to the workpiece.
No tools are required for any of the settings – blade installation, fence or
depth stop. The large brass knobs (with locking collets) make setting the
fence fast and easy.
Blade Installation
Caution: Be aware that the blade is sharp; careless handling can
result in serious injury.
To install a blade, back off the lever cap
knob and the blade guide knob. Slide
the blade (bevel down) into position
on the machined bed such that the slot
at the top engages the disc on the blade
adjustment knob. Turn the blade guide
knob in until it just contacts the side
of the blade. (This will ensure that the
blade is positioned against the machined
bed side and properly aligned with the
skate.) Lightly clamp the blade with the
lever cap knob.

35° Bevel Angle
45° Cutting Angle
Figure 3: Blade geometry, as supplied.
A1/8"to 3/8"
BMax. 1/2"
CMax 13/8"
(with 1/4"blade)
C
A
B
Figure 4: Groove dimensions.
3
Blade Sharpening
The plow plane blades come with the face lapped and are ground with
a 35° bevel. Since the blade is installed bevel down, the cutting angle is
determined by the bed angle, in this case, 45°. Additional sharpening need
only involve honing a small micro-bevel.
Cutting Grooves
The small plow plane can control the width (A), depth (B) and position (C)
of a groove. Groove width is determined by the blade used; groove depth,
by the depth stop setting; and groove position, by the fence setting.
Depth of Cut
The depth of cut is the amount of material that is removed with each pass
of the plane, typically in the range from 0.005"to 0.020", depending on
the hardness of the wood being cut. Flip the plane upside down and sight
down the bottom of the skate to see how far the blade is protruding. Adjust
accordingly, tighten the lever cap knob, and take a test cut in a piece of
scrap wood to confirm setting.

Figure 7: Fence rabbeting pocket.
Pocket
Depth of Groove
Depth Stop
Depth Stop Knob
Figure 5: Depth of cut.
Fence Locking
Knob Groove Position
Figure 6: Setting the fence.
4
Setting the Depth Stop
The depth of the groove is determined by the depth stop setting. To set the
depth stop, loosen the depth stop knob, slide the depth stop to the desired
position, and retighten the knob. Maximum groove depth: 1/2".
When cutting a groove, continue making passes with the plane until
the depth stop contacts the workpiece and the blade is no longer
cutting material.
Setting the Fence
The position of the groove (i.e.,
the distance from the edge of
the workpiece to the groove) is
determined by the fence setting.
Loosen the two fence locking
knobs and slide the fence until
the distance from the face of the
fence to the outside edge of the
blade is equal to the required
groove position. Retighten the
fence knobs. Maximum distance
of 13/8"when using the 1/4"blade.
Cutting Small Rabbets
When using the small plow plane
for cutting small rabbets, the outer
edge of the blade is recessed in the
pocket in the face of the fence and
the width of the rabbet is determined
by the distance from the fence to the
inner edge of the blade. As such,
the resultant rabbet is narrower than
the width of the blade (e.g., the 1/4"
blade yields a rabbet approximately
7/32"wide). As with cutting grooves,
the depth is controlled by the depth
stop setting.

Figure 10: Auxiliary fence in use.
Figure 9: Attaching
auxiliary fence.
Blade
Figure 8: Cutting beads.
5
Auxiliary Fence
For cutting a groove in the edge of a wider board, you can add a larger
auxiliary fence to better register the plane to the workpiece. Simply make
a wooden fence, as plain or fancy as you wish, and attach it using wood
screws through the holes in the existing fence. Be sure to use screws that are
not so long that they break through the working face of the wooden fence.
Cutting Beads
Note: A 1/16" quirk is cut on either side of
each bead.
1. Install the beading blade in the plane as
you would a standard blade, with the depth
of cut determined by the blade projection
past the bottom edge of the skate.
2. Position the fence to locate the bead where
desired on the workpiece. For an edge
bead where you do not want the 1/16"quirk,
position the fence tangent to the bead.
3. Set the depth stop such that the top of the
resulting bead is just below the surface of
the workpiece, as shown in Figure 8.

6
Care and Maintenance
The body of this plane is ductile cast iron and comes treated with rust
preventative. Remove this using a rag dampened with mineral spirits. Clean
all machined surfaces.
We recommend that you initially, then periodically, apply a light coat of
silicone-free paste wax to seal out moisture and prevent rusting (as well as
act as a lubricant for smoother planing). Wipe off any wood dust from the
surfaces that you will be waxing, apply a light wax coating, let dry, then
buff with a clean soft cloth. At the same time, the solvents in the wax will
remove any harmful oils left from your fingers that can lead to corrosion.
Note: Since the face of the fence and the bottom of the depth stop will come
in contact with the workpiece, it is important to keep these parts coated
with paste wax to prevent marring the workpiece.
If storage conditions are damp or humid, the plane should, in addition to
the treatment outlined above, be wrapped in a cloth or stored in a plane
sack. This precaution will also guard against dings and scratches.

7

814 Proctor Avenue
Ogdensburg NY 13669-2205
United States
1090 Morrison Drive
Ottawa ON K2H 1C2
Canada
[email protected]
© Veritas Tools Inc. 2017 www.veritastools.com 747 INS-357 Rev. H
Accessories
05P51.02 1/8"A2 Blade, right*
05P51.03 3/16"A2 Blade, right*
05P51.04 1/4"A2 Blade, right
05P51.05 5/16"A2 Blade, right*
05P51.06 3/8"A2 Blade, right*
05P51.10 *Set of 4 Imperial A2 Blades, right
05P51.34 4mm A2 Blade, right
05P51.35 5mm A2 Blade, right
05P51.36 6mm A2 Blade, right
05P51.37 7mm A2 Blade, right
05P51.38 8mm A2 Blade, right
05P51.40 10mm A2 Blade, right
05P51.50 Set of 6 Metric A2 Blades, right
05P52.02 1/8"A2 Blade, left*
05P52.03 3/16"A2 Blade, left*
05P52.04 1/4"A2 Blade, left
05P52.05 5/16"A2 Blade, left*
05P52.06 3/8"A2 Blade, left*
05P52.10 *Set of 4 Imperial A2 Blades, left
05P52.34 4mm A2 Blade, left
05P52.35 5mm A2 Blade, left
05P52.36 6mm A2 Blade, left
05P52.37 7mm A2 Blade, left
05P52.38 8mm A2 Blade, left
05P52.40 10mm A2 Blade, left
05P52.50 Set of 6 Metric A2 Blades, left
05P51.60 Wide-Blade Conversion Kit, right
05P52.60 Wide-Blade Conversion Kit, left
05P52.72 1/8"PM-V11®Beading Blade, right
05P52.73 3/16"PM-V11®Beading Blade, right
05P52.74 1/4"PM-V11®Beading Blade, right
05P52.75 Set of 3 PM-V11®Beading Blades, right
05P52.76 1/8"PM-V11®Beading Blade, left
05P52.77 3/16"PM-V11®Beading Blade, left
05P52.78 1/4"PM-V11®Beading Blade, left
05P52.79 Set of 3 PM-V11®Beading Blades, left