The Patsy 55A Combination Rebate Plane
There is little information out there to be found on Patsy Planes. I’m not sure when they started/stopped manufacturing. Or if Patsy was the maker or just a brand name. I bought a beautiful Chamfer plane from Chris Byrne recently, and described it a few times as my first chamfer plane. I realized that’s not quite true. I’ll be writing about Chris’s Plane (its wonderful) when I’ve had a proper chance to make friends with it, but for this week. Lets talk about the Patsy.
I’m a sucker for weird little planes. I learned these existed and had my eye out. The wonderful Paul Smithies knew I was on the hunt and spotted one that I swiftly pounced on.
Its not much to look at. It has aluminum body. It does an acceptable job as a rebate plane, but I’d rather use my record 778. I do not recommend the Patsy as a user. I’ve yet to find a way to hold the plane that is not hand torture. As a rebate plane, its small compact size is pretty much its only advantage over other rebate planes. Its roughly the same size as the record 043 plough plane.
The interesting part of the Patsy 55 comes when you look at the depth stop and fence. The Depth stop has an odd beveled side, and the fence has two sides. The purpose quickly becomes apparent when you flip them around. It transforms the Patsy into a chamfer plane.
You might wonder what do you do for a depth stop now? You don’t need one. The distance between the fence and depth stop sides determines the depth of the chamfer. Once the chamfer depth hits a point where they are in contact with the wood the plane stops cutting and the chamfer is complete.
Its a clever detail on this weird little plane, that I have never seen replicated on any other.
The Patsy in front of a Record 778 rebate plane.
The Underside, you can already see something is a little odd about the side of that depth stop.
Not a right angle on the side of the depth stop, and what’s with the little notch?
The sides of the fence are just as weird, and why two sides?
Flip them around, and presto, the other sides of the depth stop and fence turn this into a chamfer plane.
Patsy Logo
The Patsy and a record 043. Similar in size, but unlike the very comfortable record, I’ve never found a comfortable way to use the Patsy. Its not intolerable, but I would not want to use it for a long job. Anywhere I put my hands, something is sticking into them awkwardly.
The Patsy in use. The plane has just bottomed out here. As both fences are in contact with the wood, the iron cannot cut any further.
The Patsy beside the Chris Byrne plane. A world of difference in terms of comfort. The checkering on Chris’s plane gives it the most solid grip of any plane I have ever used.
The same depth stop effect. The plane can’t cut any further as the side walls have contacted the wood.