Norris No. 21 Iron Smoothing Plane
as illustrated in the 1908 Norris Price List
Price (1908 Price List): 14/-
NOTES: The No. 21 Iron Smoothing Plane had disappeared from the range of planes offered by Norris by the 1914 Catalogue.
Made from a cast iron body shell and infilled with rosewood, which was secured by screws and rivets through the side of the plane. On many examples the rosewood on the rear infill is merely a capping glued to a mahogany base. As the mahogany is neatly hidden away by the capping and the cutting iron, it appears as if the entire rear infill is made from rosewood.
The cutting iron was held in place by a gunmetal bridge — usually of cupid’s bow design — and a rosewood wedge.
This plane has the look, and feel, of a very early infill plane. However it is difficult to determine just when it may have been added to the Norris lineup. The fact that it is model No. 21 suggests that the plane numbers prior to it were well established by the time this was made, however it is also possible that this plane may have had an earlier model number originally — only to have it re-designated at a later stage. This is, of course, pure speculation and more research needs to be conducted.
The Norris No. 21 is not a very common plane, but they do occasionally turn up on eBay and dealer sites.
