A visit to a retired shop teacher/avid boatbuilder locally yielded a look at this plane. I knew from across the room that there was something special about it. I recognized that it was likely a boatbuilder’s plane being the razee style—and that the short wide body was optimized for dubbing planks–all of which turned out to be true. I also suspected it was hand made as the body was not beech. Turned out the wood was live oak from New England; the tote handle Osage Orange, and to my delight, I learned that the maker of the plane was the late, great John Gardner himself! It was a gift given to the current owner’s best friend in the early 80’s when John visited Seattle. Likely one of the last things John made. If you don’t know of John Gardner, and if you have the slightest interest whatsoever in traditional small wooden boats…do a google search on his name and be prepared to be amazed!