block plane advice

[Zahid Naqvi]

What's a good general purpose block plane to get for your first block. with assistance from other creekers I have gradually acquired some of the basic hand planes (jack, jointer and smoothing). I am working on a toy box these days and while trimming the protruding fingers of the box joints I thought how easy would it be if I had a block plane to do this. With advice from Dave Anderson and Marc Hills I have acquired a taste for buying old planes and restoring them to working condition, and I am all for saving money when I can.

Any advice as always is greately appreciated.

[Tony Zaffuto]

Vintage Stanley 60-1/2 low angle block can't be beat. Tune up it up a bit, sharpen the blade and have a go at it. When ready for a bit more out of it, put in a Hock or L-N blade.

If you got expendable funds, get a L-N or Veritas. I got an L-N which I like a lot, however, my goto is an old 60-1/2, not very pretty, but does exactly what I want it to do everytime (Hock blade).

[Mark Singer]

The Lie Neilsen 60 1/2 is a classic! I have many but that is hands down my favorite! If your going to spend less...the Lee Valley is very good!

[Dennis McDonaugh]

Its all a matter of your attitude toward tools and how much money you have to spend. A Stanely 60 1/2 can be had on e-bay for $20-30 in good condition. A Stanely 65 will set you back 50-75. You can get a new Lee Valley plane for $100 and a LN will set you back $150-200. My favorite is the Stanley 65 with a knuckle cap.

[Denny Lawson]

another in favor of the old Stanley 65 knuckle cap its a good LA Block. My other block is a stanley 9 1/2

If I were buying new...the LV or LN blocks are very nice

Denny

[Zahid Naqvi]

The Lie Neilsen 60 1/2 is a classic! I have many but that is hands down my favorite! If your going to spend less...the Lee Valley is very good!

I'm afraid the LN and LV are out of my budget range for now, or atleast more than I want to spend on tools. I am not skilled enough to justify getting tools like that. Besides with some guidance from Marc Hills I was able to restore an old rusty Stanley #5, which proved to be a great learning experience, I am planning on treading the same road again.
BTW, everynow and then I see an ad. for Mark Singer in the architectural digest, is that you or some namesake.

[Zahid Naqvi]

Vintage Stanley 60-1/2 low angle block can't be beat. Tune up it up a bit, sharpen the blade and have a go at it. When ready for a bit more out of it, put in a Hock or L-N blade.

If you got expendable funds, get a L-N or Veritas. I got an L-N which I like a lot, however, my goto is an old 60-1/2, not very pretty, but does exactly what I want it to do everytime (Hock blade).

Tony, Dennis, Denny,
I have started keeping a watchout for Stanley 60-1/2 and 65 on the bay. There are always some of these up for sale just a matter of getting lucky with one.

[Denny Lawson]

Zahid,
you can also look at Walt Quadrato's site at
http://oldplane.com/

I've purchased from him and he always has good tools at fair prices, none of the ebay hassles. If you call him he will also "hunt" rust for you ;)

I think Walt also posts here

Denny

[Marc Hills]

Zahid:

Everyone has given good advice regarding the Stanley 60 1/2 and the No. 65 knuckle joint. Be aware though that some good deals can be found if you look for the low angle blocks manufactured by Sargent. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then Sargent paid Stanley an enduring compliment with its copies of both of these models. They tend to go for lower prices because they lack the Stanley cache.

Cheapskate that I am, I acquired a couple of old Sears Craftsman versions of the No. 65 for next to nothing. If I understand correctly, these were actually made for the Craftsman label by Sargent. What I do know for sure is that they are very fine tools.

The suggestion about getting an aftermarket blade is also a good one. However, I've found that the performance of my own planes is continually improving as my sharpening skills get better. It still amazes me how I find myself readjusting my definition of "sharp" over time.

As a beginner, I feel like working on my sharpening technique is as yet a better way to increased plane performance than looking to a better blade. That may change in time.

Also, what about some pictures of your restored Stanley No. 5 and that toybox you're working on?

[Dennis McDonaugh]

Good luck on your hunt Zahid. I think finding a great deal on a tool is almost as nice as owning and using it.

[Jim Becker]

I bought the L-N low-angle adjustable mouth block plane at a show a couple years ago and it was a complete revelation to me about hand planes. Prior to that tool, I pretty much "never" used hand planes 'cause the ones I had were...pardon the expression...crap. Now, this tool gets used on almost every project and some others that I have also see wood. What I really like about the L-N is how it feels in my hand as well as how it cuts so precisely. For a largely non-Neander, that's even more important to me since I don't practice as much as some others do... I did try out some others at the shows and while they were nice, they didn't "fit" quite as well. That was before Lee Valley brought out some of their recent products which I would definitely look at if buying something "new" in the hand plane department.

[David Tang]

I bought a couple of Stanley 60-1/2 planes off ebay. They were pretty dirty and crusty, but I've gotten all the moving parts moving again. Now I'm in the process of making them shiny and sharp. I think maybe I'll buy one of those A2 irons...

[Zahid Naqvi]

Zahid:

Everyone has given good advice regarding the Stanley 60 1/2 and the No. 65 knuckle joint. Be aware though that some good deals can be found if you look for the low angle blocks manufactured by Sargent.

As a beginner, I feel like working on my sharpening technique is as yet a better way to increased plane performance than looking to a better blade. That may change in time.

Also, what about some pictures of your restored Stanley No. 5 and that toybox you're working on?

Marc, I am a big fan of sargent, I have a sargent jointer plane which I bought from a gentleman that goes by the name "rarebear" (I must have PM'd the pictures to you). I still don't have a digital camera so pictures are hard to come by, I'll try and get one from a friend and take some pictures.

[Steve Cox]

I have both an older 60 1/2 with a Hock blade and a Veritas LA block and the Veritas wins hands down for me. I have a fairly complete selection of Stanley bench planes with Hock irons and don't see much reason to buy new but the block plane is different. I understand the cost angle but this is a tool that you will be using for the rest of your life and very frequently at that. DON'T SCRIMP HERE! Also, by the time you buy an old plane and replace the blade, you are not that far off the price of a new one and the quality still won't be as good.

[Zahid Naqvi]

Is the stanley 9-1/2 any good. How does it compare with the 60-1/2 and 65.

[Michael Perata]

Zahid

I know you said the L-N 60 1/2 was beyond your budget, but why not get two planes for the price of one.

I have a L-N 60 1/2 "R". The "R" stands for rabbet and this block plane is always on my workbench. It is indispensable if you do any M&T work.

[Tony Zaffuto]

Every plane has its own feel. My old 60-1/2 with the original blade did great. I upgrade to a Hock and it does even better! Fits very well in my hands (small to medium) and the plane is light. In fairness, I got $25 in the blade and $20 in the used plane. The plane is not pretty and its used all the time.

My L-N low angle feels different, and I like it as much for the additional weight it has. Blade life (A2) seems a tad better than the Hock, but not much. I believe in honing more often than less. This plane was a present for father's day 2003. Would I have purchased this particular plane? Probably not since I already have a 60-1/2. I would have gone for the LN 140.

The Lee Valley with the "squirrel tail" and large knob really looks like something interesting--almost more like a small smoother. If I were buying, I would probably go for the Lee Valley because of the lower price and the optional knobs.

Again, though, every plane has a different feel to it, and no tool will do you any good if you don't take the time to learn it.

[Marc Hills]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but the Stanley 9 1/2 is a standard angle block plane, while both the 60 1/2 and the 65 are low angle block planes.

I have both styles. My standard angle is a Stanley 9 1/4, which lacks the adjustable mouth of the 9 1/2. I find the low angle block plane more useful than the standard angle ones.

[Denny Lawson]

Is the stanley 9-1/2 any good. How does it compare with the 60-1/2 and 65.
I like mine...I don't have a 60 1/2 soi i'm not able to comment there.

I think that the 60 1/2 compares to the 9 1/2 in size but the 60 1/2 is a LA block like the 65.

The 9 1/2 would be considered a high angle i suppose, but its still a bevel up plane.

I use my 9 1/2 a lot, probably more than my 65....maybe...

Denny

[Pam Niedermayer]

I really like the LN 140 skew block plane. It's good for many tasks, including tenon and some shoulder trimming. Also, now there's a left hand version.

Pam

[Bob Smalser]

Did somebody mention cheapskates?

As a teenager 4 decades ago I put together this 60 series from parts in the scrap bin of my uncle's boat shop...

http://pic3.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/2594266/48396786.jpg

....I had to make a new throat plate from mild steel stock and you can still see the silver braze I had to use as a shim to make it flush with the sole.

I use it regularly and it remains my only block plane.

[David Tang]

This is an excellent resource on the Stanley planes. http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/stan0.htm

[Marc Hills]

Did somebody mention cheapskates?

As a teenager 4 decades ago I put together this 60 series from parts in the scrap bin of my uncle's boat shop...




Bob, if you posted that you were born in a log cabin that you helped your father build, I think I would believe it.

That is so cool. What a sense of personal history. I love hearing about this sort of thing. Thanks for sharing that.