Skip to content
Fine Woodworking
Main Menu
Subscribe
GET THE MAGAZINE & MORE
Magazine Cover
  • Save 69% off the cover price
  • Or, get everything with UNLIMITED, including 40+ years of the online archive.
Subscribe Now!
Subscribe
  • Projects & Plans
  • How-To
  • Shop Tips
  • Tools & Materials
  • Videos
  • Magazine
  • Video Workshops
  • Members
  • Forum
  • Gallery
  • Blogs
  • More
    • Log In
    • Join
    Fine Woodworking Main Menu Subscribe
    Editors Mailbox

    Just Plane Trivia: Why Do They Call It a Frog?

    Author Headshot By Elizabeth Knapp Jun 02, 2011
    Article Image

    Just because this is FWW, we need a nice drawing so you can see exactly what the frog is.

    It’s safe to say that in the six-plus years I’ve been roaming the sawdusty halls of Fine Woodworking, I have read and copyedited dozens of articles about handplanes.

    But until last week, it never occurred to me to ask this question:

    Why the heck is that nifty doohickey that supports the blade assembly on a handplane called a “frog?” If you stare at it long enough, it kind of looks like a frog. Could this be why?

    I put it to my esteemed colleagues.

    At first, my question was met with deafening silence. This is unusual around here, especially with Matt Kenney in the room.

    Then the responses started to trickle in.

    “It keeps the blade from hopping around,” said Tom McKenna.

    The always helpful Ed Pirnik replied: (To be read in a “Cliff Claven” voice) “Well, ya see there, ahh, Liz, back in Roman times, they, ahh, used the oil secreted by the ahhh, acanthus frog to lubricate the simple plane irons they were usin’ back then. And, err, so  over time, it became, ahh, known as a ‘frog.'”

    “It’s because it’s in the throat of the plane,” Matt said.

    Obviously, it was time to go outside the office for answers.

    “I’ll bet [Chris] Gochnour will know. He is a huge Stanley buff,” said Asa Christiana. But the Goch said he didn’t know.

    Matt asked Deneb Puchalski of Lie-Nielsen, who said he thinks it harkens back to the definition of “frog” as a depression imprinted in the upper surface of a brick. “This describes in some ways the function of a frog in a plane,” he said. “There may be a connection. Anyway, we call the bedding point for the frog the ‘lily pad,’ just because.”

     “Because it vaguely resembles a crouched frog…..really….I’m  not kidding!” said Rollie Johnson. Since this is what I had originally thought, I was going to go with Rollie’s answer. It made sense, and it made me feel smart. Everybody wins.

    But then Mark Schofield chimed in, having consulted Ernie Conover. And here is what Ernie said:

    “I had somehow thought  that it was because a Bailey frog looks like a frog. I looked through a lot of books to get a definitive answer. The most exact, and convincing, reason is found in Rodger K. Smith’s Patented Transitional & Metallic planes in America 1827 -1927.” He sent along a copy of the page.

    I’m going to paraphrase the book because it does go on. It says the first inventor to use the term “frog” in reference to the handplane was Justus A. Traut, who worked for the Stanley Rule & Level Company in the late 1800s. Apparently Traut and his co-workers started calling the thing a frog because it is just behind the throat—and harkened back to the saying “I’ve got a frog in my throat.” Stanley didn’t start using the term publicly in their documents for many years.

    As much as I hate to admit it, that wiseacre Matt Kenney appears to have been right.

    Drat.

    Now on to my next question: Why do they call it a mill bastard file?

     

    Sign up for eletters today and get the latest techniques and how-to from Fine Woodworking, plus special offers.

    Sign Up

    Just because this is FWW, we need a nice drawing so you can see exactly what the frog is.

    It kind of does look like that thing on top of a handplane, doesn't it?

    It kind of does look like that thing in the pond, doesn't it?

    Get woodworking tips, expert advice and special offers in your inbox

    Sign Up
    ×
    X
    X

    New Feature

    Fine Woodworking Forums

    Ask questions, offer advice, and share your work

    Get It All!

    UNLIMITED Membership is like taking a master class in woodworking for less than $10 a month.

    Start Your Free Trial

    Subscribe to Fine Woodworking

    Save up to 56%

    Subscribe

    Comments

    1. User avater
      MKenney | Jun 02, 2011 06:38pm | #1

      Liz,

      I would object to how you've portrayed me in this blog if it weren't so accurate!

      Matt

    2. User avater
      Roland_Johnson | Jun 02, 2011 06:47pm | #2

      Lia, I still think we're right.......and there's something fishy about this Justus guy, I just can't quite put my finger on it.

      Rollie

    3. User avater
      flairwoodworks | Jun 02, 2011 07:18pm | #3

      Mill because it cuts; bastard because it's coarse; file because it's a file.

    4. User avater
      saschafer | Jun 02, 2011 07:42pm | #4

      I think Rollie's right. But your choice of frog photo isn't the best; a bullfrog is too heavy in the hindquarters. The resemblance is much better with one of the smaller species, like this wood frog:

      http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10370_12145_12201-60113--,00.html

      -Steve

    5. User avater
      Roland_Johnson | Jun 02, 2011 08:50pm | #5
    6. User avater
      elizk | Jun 03, 2011 10:03am | #6

      Steve, you have a point. Your frog is much more "fine."

    7. Rhino40 | Jun 09, 2011 03:50pm | #7

      In heraldry (Coats of Arms), a nobleman's legitimate children might have a diagonal charge (known as a bar, bend or baton) running from the upper left corner of the shield to the lower right ("dexter").

      His illegitimate offspring ("bastards"), on the other hand, would instead have their status reflected by arms bearing a charge that ran from upper right corner to lower left. This is known as a "bar sinister", "bend sinister", or "baton sinister".

      I believe that originally most files had a tooth direction which ran a certain way to accommodate right-handed users; files for shaping or sharpening metal--whose tooth pattern runs the opposite way--were therefore said to be "left-handed", "sinister" or "bastard" files.

      Of course, I could be wrong.

    Log in or create an account to post a comment.

    Sign up Log in

    More Editors Mailbox

    View All
    • Free plans for Unlimited members

    • From the editor: A shop to call home

    • Production in the time of Covid

    • Free Videos for Father's Day

    View All

    Up Next

    Featured Workshop

    Shaker candle stand with Christian Beckvoort

    He’s built dozens of round Shaker stands over four decades, so there is no one more qualified than Christian Becksvoort to demonstrate making this classic. In this seven-part video series,…

    Featured Projects & Plans

    Build a Contemporary Sideboard

    Chris Gochnour's sideboard combines usefulness, strength, and beauty in a contemporary case piece

    Related Stories

    • Make a wooden pull plane

    • Shoulder plane setup and use

    • Hand-tool buyer's guide

    • Tips and techniques for taming tearout

    Discussion Forum

    Recent Posts and Replies

    • |
    • |
    • |
    • |
    • |
    • |
    View More Create Post

    Member Exclusives

    More Member Exclusives
    • Simple dovetailed Box

      Milling Stock for a Dovetailed Box

      How to mill parts for a box that are straight, flat, and square.

    • wiping varnish finish

      How to brush on a varnish finish

      A wiping varnish goes on easily and creates a tough surface ready for rubbing out.

    • door and drawer pulls

      Continous grain, mitered door and drawer pulls

      Larissa Huff and Robert Spiece's smart construction techniques make fashioning their small parts safe and repeatable.

    • Arts and Crafts coffee table with story-book charm

      Arts and Crafts coffee table with story-book charm

      With an understated shelf, beveled through-tenons, and stretchers shaped at the ends to corbel-like curves, this coffee table evokes the traditional Arts and Crafts style without being too serious.

    Highlights

    • Shape Your Skills

      when you sign up for our emails

      Plus tips, advice, and special offers from Fine Woodworking.

      Sign Up
    • Shop Talk Live Podcast

      Shop Talk Live Podcast

      Our biweekly podcast allows editors, authors, and special guests to answer your woodworking questions and connect with the online woodworking community.

    • Woodpecker Sweepstakes

      Woodpeckers Shop Upgrade Giveaway

      Enter now for your chance to win more than $2,000 worth of woodworking equipment from Woodpeckers. Click for full details.

    • Staff Picks Blog

      Our favorite articles and videos

      We have created these special content collections organized to give you a deep dive into a range of topics that matter.

    From the Store

    View More
    • Complete Illustrated Guide to Woodworking USB

      Buy Now
    • The Why & How of Woodworking

      Buy Now
    • 52 Boxes in 52 Weeks

      Buy Now
    • 2020 Fine Woodworking Archive

      Buy Now
    View More

    Get the latest from Fine Woodworking Magazine

    • #289-May/June 2021

      • Arts and Crafts coffee table with story-book charm
      • Links from Fine Woodworking issue #289
      • Seven tasks for a block plane
    • #288-Mar/Apr 2021

      • Phil Lowe: A craftsman and gentleman
      • Online Extras from FWW Issue #288
      • Phil Lowe: craftsman, teacher, friend
    • #287-Jan/Feb 2021

      • Simple, handsome 17th-century box
      • Online extras from FWW issue #287
      • Editor's letter: Finding sanctuary in the shop
    • #286-Tools & Shops 2021

      • Shoulder plane setup and use
      • Online extras from FWW issue #286
      • From the editor: A shop to call home
    • #285-Nov/Dec 2020

      • Make a dovetailed desktop organizer
      • Online Extras from FWW Issue #285
      • Announcing FWW ambassadors

    UNLIMITED membership - Get access to it all

    Start Free Trial Upgrade Membership

    Fine WoodWorking

    Follow

    Newsletter

    Get woodworking tips, expert advice and special offers in your inbox

    Sign Up

    Membership & Magazine

    • Members
    • Digital Libraries
    • Join Unlimited
    • Magazine Subscription
    • Magazine Renewal
    • Gift a Subscription
    • Customer Support
    • Manage Preferences

    Taunton Network

    • Fine Homebuilding
    • Green Building Advisor
    • Fine Gardening
    • Threads
    • About
    • Contact
    • Advertise
    • Privacy Policy
    • Careers
    • Copyright
    • Terms of Use
    • Accessibility
    • California Privacy Rights

    © 2021 The Taunton Press, Inc. All rights reserved.

    Get instant access to over 100 digital plans available only to UNLIMITED members. Start your 14-day FREE trial - and get building!

      Main Menu

    • Projects and Plans
    • How-To
    • Shop Tips
    • Tools & Materials
    • Videos
    • Gallery
    • Magazine
    • Video Workshops
    • Members
    • Forum

      Popular Topics

    • Design
    • Small Projects
    • Beds
    • Chairs, Benches And Stools
    • Built-ins
    • Storage And Shelves
    • Cabinets
    • Carving
    • Casework
    • Desks
    • Tables
    • Shop Storage And Furniture
    • Woodturning Projects
    • Workbenches
    • Surface Prep

      More

    • TV
    • Forum
    • Blogs
    • Webinars
    • Podcasts
    • Customer Support

      Account

    • Log In
    • Join

      Magazine

    • Current Issue
    • Past Issues
    • Digital Libraries
    • Magazine Index
    • Subscribe

      Membership

    • Member Home
    • Start Free Trial
    • Gift Unlimited
    • Log In

      Shop the Store

    • Books
    • DVDs
    • Taunton Workshops

      Events

    • Fine Woodworking Live
    • Fine Woodworking HANDS ON

      Account

    • Log In
    • Sign Up

    Newsletter

    Get woodworking tips, offers, and expert advice in your inbox

    Sign Up

    Follow

    UNLIMITED

    Become an UNLIMITED member and get it all: searchable online archive of every issue, how-to videos, Complete Illustrated Guide to Woodworking digital series, print magazine, e-newsletter, and more.

    Start Your Free Trial

    Upgrade Membership