Help with new tool purchases

[Zach Dillinger]

So, I'm looking at spending some of my tax return on some new tools. My budget (per my wife) is about $400. I have always built medium scale projects (blanket chests, tall case clock, hand planes, etc.) but I would like to transition into box making and chair making. I have the full complement of planes (Bedrock jointer, at least 6 jack planes, smoothers with Hock irons, LN 60 1/2 R, LN 103, LV scrub, rabbet planes). I also have the full complement of power tools (band saw, table saw, jointer, planer, etc.). I also have the Lie Nielsen chisels and the blue handled Marples chisels, as well as a few spokeshaves that work ok (old Stanley metal shave, several no name wooden shaves, LV rosewood shave).

I'm making a list of what I want and it seems to come back to some combination of the LN or Veritas LA jack plane for shooting small parts (I currently use a Sargent VBM on the shooting board), LN or Veritas medium shoulder plane (one tool I don't have but that would be of questionable utility for boxes and chairs), LN carcass saw (have Grammercy and Veritas dovetail saws as well as homemade bow saws), LN Boggs spokeshave and the LN or Veritas router plane. I respect the Veritas tools, but I've been very happy with my LN 60 1/2 R and the small low angle block and will probably stay with LN.

What would you guys do if you were in my position? Are there other tools I should look for, given my rising interest in box and chair making?

Thanks!

Zach Dillinger

[Michael Faurot]

So, I'm looking at spending some of my tax return on some new tools. My budget (per my wife) is about $400.
[...]
I'm making a list of what I want and it seems to come back to some combination of the LN or Veritas LA jack plane for shooting small parts (I currently use a Sargent VBM on the shooting board)


I've got the Veritas LA jack, and with all the different blades that go with it (except the toothed blade) and really like it. This is the one I pull out when I have problems planning a piece of wood. It's nice to be able to switch between different angles by just switching out blades. You can do this with the Lie-Nielsen, but you either have to grind the blades yourself, or pay $10 extra per blade to have Lie-Nielsen do it for you.



...LN or Veritas medium shoulder plane (one tool I don't have but that would be of questionable utility for boxes and chairs),
I make a number of small boxes and I wound up getting the Lie-Nielsen small shoulder plane (LN-041). I use it more for making rabbets than anything. For some of the boxes I make, the shoulder plane gets used in making the tops and bottoms.



Are there other tools I should look for, given my rising interest in box and chair making?
Possibly the Veritas Small Plough. That's high on my list to get soon. I'll be using it for making grooves in the walls of boxes to hold a bottom, similar to the way a drawer is made.

[Jim Koepke]

So, I'm looking at spending some of my tax return on some new tools. My budget (per my wife) is about $400. I have always built medium scale projects (blanket chests, tall case clock, hand planes, etc.) but I would like to transition into box making and chair making. I have the full complement of planes (Bedrock jointer, at least 6 jack planes, smoothers with Hock irons, LN 60 1/2 R, LN 103, LV scrub, rabbet planes). I also have the full complement of power tools (band saw, table saw, jointer, planer, etc.). I also have the Lie Nielsen chisels and the blue handled Marples chisels, as well as a few spokeshaves that work ok (old Stanley metal shave, several no name wooden shaves, LV rosewood shave).

I'm making a list of what I want and it seems to come back to some combination of the LN or Veritas LA jack plane for shooting small parts (I currently use a Sargent VBM on the shooting board), LN or Veritas medium shoulder plane (one tool I don't have but that would be of questionable utility for boxes and chairs), LN carcass saw (have Grammercy and Veritas dovetail saws as well as homemade bow saws), LN Boggs spokeshave and the LN or Veritas router plane. I respect the Veritas tools, but I've been very happy with my LN 60 1/2 R and the small low angle block and will probably stay with LN.

What would you guys do if you were in my position? Are there other tools I should look for, given my rising interest in box and chair making?

Thanks!

Zach Dillinger

It would depend on the kinds of chairs you are interested in making. A few rasps may be in order if you plan on carved detail.

A beading shave may be useful for detailing parts also. These are not real hard to make your own though.

For boxes, it depends on the size, but a few items that may be useful are side rabbet planes for making a dado or rabbet just a hair wider. LN has these based on the Stanley 98 and 99. LV has a design putting both planes into one. This has advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are that it is just one tool and costs less. The disadvantage is only one side can be set at a time. It appears to switch sides, the depth stop has to be reset.

A router plane is handy for flattening the bottom of dados and such and comes in handy if you want to do inlay.

A plow plane is also a versatile tool. This is where an old Stanley 45 or 55 comes in for doing some decorative beads or moulding on the pieces being made.

It sounds as if you already have a lot of planes for doing the shooting work. The LA jack would likely come in handy for other uses also.

Limited money makes us all anguish over which tools get to come home with us and which stay on the retailer's shelf.

jim

[Ken Werner]

If you don't have one, a Bluespruce Marking knife is really sweet. Lee Valley makes a great 4" adj square that is also a good addition to the apron. The LV router plane is excellent. If you have no LA jack, then I think either LV or LN would be an early choice. Have you mastered card scrapers? If not, then a few of them and a burnisher is a good idea. Fun spending someone else's money.

[Rick Erickson]

LN has a plow in the works so if you are partial to them you might want to wait. That is going to be my next plane and I'm waiting to see what they come up with.

Also, did you mention a marking gauge. I love my Titemark.

[Zach Dillinger]

Guys, thanks for your advice so far.

Michael: I was looking at the LN medium shoulder plane, but then again I'm not going to be doing (never have) large scale work, so the 5/8" wide version might work just fine. A new addition to the list!

Jim: I'm interested in country and Shaker style chairs, so no carving necessary. A good thing too! I can't carve worth beans.

Ken: I use a chip carving knife for laying out joints. Would the Blue Spruce be that much better? I've wanted the LV router plane for quite a while, that is high on the list too.

Rick: I'd love to see what a Lie Nielsen plow would look like. Any idea on the ETA? I have and use several marking gauges, most of which were given to me by my Grandfather. I'd have a hard time straying from them.

At this point, I think I've narrowed it down to the following four choices, unless someone has better ideas:
- LN LA jack - $245
- LV large router plane - $149
- LN small shoulder - $165
- LV side rabbet - $135

Decisions, decisions....

Zach

[Mark Roderick]

I'd buy the LN low-angle jack, and the Veritas medium shoulder plane. You will love AND USE both tools. I was just using my low-angle jack as a shooting plane last night.

I'd also recommend a good dovetail saw. The LN is top-notch.

Finally, someone mentioned the Titemark marking gauge. I would have poo-poohed that suggestion a couple of months ago, knowing that Veritas makes a marking gauge that looks similar for a lot less money, except that I took a chance recently and replaced my Veritas with a Titemark and found the Titemark much better, meaning it delivers better results with less effort. How can the "results" of a marking gauge be that much different? You just have to try it, the same with handplanes.

Card scrapers are also cheap and good. I use the Veritas jig to sharpen mine.