Stanley Block Plane Mod. 220

[Gil Knowles]

Hi
I bought an old 220 at a flea market, it is in pretty good shape.
From what I have read these are not the greatest block planes.
I was wondering if it would be worthwhile getting a new LV or Hock blade for it or should I break down and buy a new LV block plane.

Many thanks

[Joel Goodman]

I believe that the 220 has a fixed mouth and a wide one at that. I would sharpen it and use it but not waste money on a premium blade.

[Mark Berenbrok]

With a sharp blade and its wide mouth, the 220 makes a great plane for cleaning up glue lines on panels.

[Michael Faurot]

Hi
I bought an old 220 at a flea market, it is in pretty good shape.
From what I have read these are not the greatest block planes.


I keep a 220 in my tool belt and it comes in handy for general carpentry. The 220 isn't quite so useful for fine woodworking though.



I was wondering if it would be worthwhile getting a new LV or Hock blade for it or should I break down and buy a new LV block plane.


As others have suggested, it's probably not worth getting a different blade for the 220. Get the Lee Valley block plane and you'll be in good shape.

[Jim Koepke]

For me, the low angle block planes are a great tool to add to the arsenal. My work has not yet been able to find a real need that is filled by a standard angle block plane.

ymmv

jim

[Matt Evans]

+1 on the glue line use, but you will have to sharpen it really often.

I find uses for a standard angle block plane all the time. Something that I have never seen anyone else admit to doing is taking a standard angle block plane and turning it into a small scrub plane. A Stanley 220 is prefect for this, and once you convert the plane you find all kinds of uses for it. . .

-Reduce small edges lickity-split
-carry it in your tool belt while roughing in framing or cabinets. Those studs will be perfect for drywall, and your cabinets will go up quicker than you'd believe. . .
-That end on the board you are ripping into multiple pieces always breaks the last 1/4", so the block plane takes the bit that is left that prevent it from riding the fence properly off.
-hitting knots in boards. They always are a high spot, so having a plane you don't mind using hard to get them darn near perfect saves your smoothers blade.
-puts a unique chamfer/cove hybrid on edges to liven them up.
-keep one by your lathe, as well as a drawknife. No more angle cuts on the bandsaw or table saw to get things closer to round. You can do it all at the lathe.
-tons more applications, and new ones pop up almost daily.

[Jim Koepke]

+1 on the glue line use, but you will have to sharpen it really often.

I find uses for a standard angle block plane all the time. Something that I have never seen anyone else admit to doing is taking a standard angle block plane and turning it into a small scrub plane. A Stanley 220 is prefect for this, and once you convert the plane you find all kinds of uses for it. . .

-Reduce small edges lickity-split
-carry it in your tool belt while roughing in framing or cabinets. Those studs will be perfect for drywall, and your cabinets will go up quicker than you'd believe. . .
-That end on the board you are ripping into multiple pieces always breaks the last 1/4", so the block plane takes the bit that is left that prevent it from riding the fence properly off.
-hitting knots in boards. They always are a high spot, so having a plane you don't mind using hard to get them darn near perfect saves your smoothers blade.
-puts a unique chamfer/cove hybrid on edges to liven them up.
-keep one by your lathe, as well as a drawknife. No more angle cuts on the bandsaw or table saw to get things closer to round. You can do it all at the lathe.
-tons more applications, and new ones pop up almost daily.

Most of this I do with a low angle block plane or one of the many smoothers in the shop. I do not use a table saw. With a band saw things do not seem to break at the end when ripping. Usually when ripping a piece it is long enough for one of the longer bench planes to do a better job at straightening the edges.

Of course, ymmv.

jim

[jerry nazard]

+1 on Matt's post. I have a few 50 cent blocks from a flea market that just float around the shop. Think of them as a pocketknife on steroids...

[Matt Edwards]

Personally, I wouldn't dump a bunch of money into a low end plane. That being said, I've never been afraid to dump an inordinate amount of time in to one :). In my case workshop time is fun and relaxing and free of the time lines and demands of the mon-fri 40+, so I don't mind tuning and fettling and sharpening a lesser Stanley just to see how well or not I can get it. I seem to recall Derek Cohen doing a tune up on a real low end block a few yrs ago with better than expected results.

Regardless, let us know what if anything you do with it.

Regards,
Matt

[Gil Knowles]

Many thanks all for the advice.
I think what I will do is tune the 220 as best I can and will purchase a LV LA block plane.

Gil

[Joel Goodman]

If you get an older Stanley with an adjustable mouth they can benefit from a thick aftermarket iron. Both LV and LN have 1/8th" replacement irons for block planes.

[James Scheffler]

If you get an older Stanley with an adjustable mouth they can benefit from a thick aftermarket iron. Both LV and LN have 1/8th" replacement irons for block planes.

The thicker blade is a big upgrade. I messed around quite a bit with my 1960s 9-1/2, but it was mediocre until I got the LV blade. Probably some others here are better at tuning them up and getting the most out of them, but to me the new blade was what it took to turn it into a decent tool. The LV blades are very reasonable in price, IMO.

Jim

[bridger berdel]

Personally, I wouldn't dump a bunch of money into a low end plane. That being said, I've never been afraid to dump an inordinate amount of time in to one :). In my case workshop time is fun and relaxing and free of the time lines and demands of the mon-fri 40+, so I don't mind tuning and fettling and sharpening a lesser Stanley just to see how well or not I can get it. I seem to recall Derek Cohen doing a tune up on a real low end block a few yrs ago with better than expected results.

Regardless, let us know what if anything you do with it.

Regards,
Matt

heh. here it is:
<http://www.inthewoodshop.com/ToolReviews/The%20Orange%20Block%20Plane.html>