I have an intriguing ‘made in Germany’ plane that would appear to go by several different makers names.
It seems that the plane was actually made by the German company Tillmanns & Maier who hold the brand “Tum”.
According to the internet – identical versions of this plane have turned up with 4 different names on them. But all are marked as DRPa. Germany. From what little information I can find, it seems that a US importer (Jordan) had their own id cast on planes they imported. The marking on the “Metro” planes is the same format as the “Jordan” planes (name inside a diamond). These were quite likely bought into the US by Jordan but for sale by someone else. The “Tum” and “Solar” markings are like each other (cursive script)
It’s known that these planes were imported into the US & Canada – but my one (with the “TUM” branding) somehow found it’s way to Australia – probably direct from Germany.
So why any interest in these planes?
The plane has the model designation ‘No.3’ – it is the same width as a Stanley No.3, but the same length as a No.4.
The real point of interest in these planes is because of the adjustment mechanism. It has a simple thumb screw operated lever cap on top. Between it and the blade is a 3 piece depth adjusting mechanism (see photos) that connects to the blade via a stepped/toothed slot in the blade. Finally, there is a lateral adjustment lever that comes through the slot in the blade and sits in front of the blade.
The most complete information on this plane can be found on Wolfgang Jordan’s German website (https://www.holzwerken.de/museum). I’ve linked directly to his page on the Tum/Jordan plane but the rest of his site is worth looking at – but you will need to use Google Translate.