Shavings tell how you're scraping by

Examine the wood and your plane shavings to diagnose problems. If the blade cuts too deeply, as shown top left, loosen the lever cap knob and reduce the blade depth. If a freshly sharpened blade still leaves just tiny curls and sawdust, as shown center left, adjust the pitch of the frog until the burr bites into the wood surface. If a worn blade goes from making curls to making sawdust, resharpen the blade and restore the burr. Aim for long, wide, and thin shavings, like the one shown bottom left.