New to planes

[Alex Silva]

Hi all,

I would like to add some planes to my arsenal as a part time woodworker. It's not that I don't like my power tools but the more I respect them, the more I fear them and I would like to keep all my fingers. Besides that since my shop is in my 2 car garage and our 1st child was born less than 2 weeks ago, I would like to keep noise level to a minimum.

Now I have a bandsaw I use for ripping and also a Festool track saw. I do not own a tablesaw and I have no plan for this in the future.

I have a Hammer combo planer/jointer. I would like to be able to face plane my rough boards then add perfect 90o edge using planes. What should I buy ? I'm canadian so I'm partial to LV and budget is not limited. Also sharpening is for me very mystical.. where should I start ?

Thank you all !

Alex

[Gene DiNardo]

Take a look at the LV Low Angle Jack. With a couple of spare blades ground at different angles. Attractively priced.
Long enough to joint most boards for cabinet work, great as a shooting plane,
makes for a good large smoother and you can get a magnetic fence to help with the 90 degree edge till you develop your skills.
Of course, you'll need a decent block plane to go with it.

[Alex Silva]

A2 or O1 steel ? Since I'm a newbie in terms of sharpening, maybe A2 would be better ?

Thank you

ALex

[David Gendron]

As for planes, i would go for a #6 plane, That's the plane I use the most in my shop(hand tools only). It would do a great jod at preping rought lumbers, do a decent job at jointing edges. LV have a #6, I never used one of them but have many of ther other plane and like them a lot. As for A2 or O1, I preffer O1 my self, but that is just a mather of preffeneces! A2 takes a litle more work to get ready out of the box than O1 but keep an edge a little longer... That said, I don't see much of a difference in the edge retention of the one I have!

[Alex Silva]

Now for sharpening, I was looking at MKII honing guide. What stones should I buy with it ?

Thank you

Alex

[Jim Koepke]

For stones, you want to make sure they are wide enough for your widest blade.

For water stones, if you are just maintaining an edge on a newer blade, you may be able get by with a 4000/8000 combo stone. I have been using a 1000 & 8000 set of stones lately for touch up work. With a guide it can go pretty fast once you get the angle dialed in. If you can afford separate stones, you will like that more in the long run.

If you work wood with knots you may want to go to a 1000 grit stone. If you work clean wood that doesn't eat blades, then the 4000 stone may coarse enough to be a good place to start.

Of course, this is just my opinion and doesn't mean it is the only way to sharpen. Many others have their own preferences for other methods that work better for them.

jim

[David Gendron]

Like Jim here, the 1000/ 8000 is a good choice. I like the Northon water stone, they are "cheep", they cut fast, and they are wide anought for the wide iron of my #8.
The MkII is a great tool. I realy like mine! Get a tick float glass(1/2") or granit plate and some psa sand paper to remove nicks and stuff, and you are set to go!
And like Jim, this is only my $0.02 worth!

[Don Dorn]

If I had to start over, I'd heavily consider the three BU planes from Veritas and be done with it - except for a block. You would have all the bases covered from jointer to smoother and with additional blades, you can get specific with almost any task. I say that as the owner of four LNs and even though I love them, I have too many bench planes and they take too much room for what those three could do.

I agree that conquering sharpening is vital. Until then, handtools can be very frustrating. I opt for the 1000/8000 too, but I have an 800 for lapping the back and then I polish it up to 8000. There are several ways to skin a cat, but I've done away with the ruler trick to save time over the long run. If you buy LV, Hock or LN blades, they come flat and only need that initial investment time to polish. After that, getting a burr on the 1000, then polishing the sharpening bevel on the 8000 takes just a minute. Then, just wipe the burr off on the 8000 with no ruler trick and you're back to work. I'm sure you can get somewhat sharper, but I'm able to slice nearly all the way through receipt paper in one swipe using this method and that's good enough for me. BTW - I also have the Mk II and really like it.

[Joe Cunningham]

I'd get a used Stanley #5 for roughing and the Lee Valley BU jointer for edge jointing.

Actually that is what I use, with the jointer doing double duty for jointing faces.

For real rough stuff or initial thickness planing, I'll use a LN scrub or my Stanley #6 with a more cambered iron going either across the grain or diagonal.

[Tri Hoang]

Before you buy anything, I would suggest two videos: Rob Cosman's Rough to Ready and Christopher Schwarz's Coarse, Medium, Fine. I found the videos are well worth the money and will save you even more in the long run. Having a local mentor is another alternative.

In any case, the key to unlock hand tool performance is sharpening skill and system. It's no magic but it takes some practice.

[Alex Silva]

MKII, 1000/8000 and LV BU planes it will be ... now where's my wallet again...

Thank you !

Alex

[Brian Kent]

MKII, 1000/8000 and LV BU planes it will be ... now where's my wallet again...

Thank you !

Alex

Looks like a key to happiness to me!

[Eric Brown]

I also agree that your choices will enable you to do fine work without hassles and you can focus on using them.

One thing extra you might consider, I have found the toothed blade works great and can remove wood fast without tearout.

Oh, and wax your plane bottoms too, makes the work easier.

Eric

[Russell Sansom]

Have a look at the "which jointer" thread above.

I would run, not walk to the nearest #8 jointer. It'll face anything and give you a nearly finished finish. With a shooting board you can joint an edge with 2 or three swipes. For this part ( jointing ) a jointer is almost a requirement.
If budget isn't a large impediment, you might consider a Tormek grinder or one of its clones. Add a couple recommended water stones (perhaps with an eclipse honing guide) for touch ups and you just about have a system.

[Chuck Tringo]

I agree, the LV Bevel up planes will serve you well, I went this route myself and ordered a couple of extra blades including one toothed blade. I sharpen with the Worksharp 3000 and haven't had any problems, but I have been considering a move to water stones and stropping with veritas green rouge on MDF. One thing that may allow me to make the switch is the great deal ($30 :eek:) I got on a MK II on the bay that also came with a 1000/4000 stone...unfortunately the stone is only 2 inches wide and too narrow for the bevel up blades.

[Caspar Hauser]

...unfortunately the stone is only 2 inches wide and too narrow for the bevel up blades.

If you stand at a right angle to the stone, hold the blade freehand, find the bevel and sharpen in a figure of eight (think infinity sign) you'll be able to sharpen a blade/chisel quite a lot wider than your stone. It's also much easier to hold your angle, just let the stone cut, be firm not forceful.

Now, I've never used a waterstone, so a little empiricism may be in order regarding that media but on oilstones and diamond stones it works a treat.

CH

P.s.... and Alex, if your budget is "not limited" then buy them all, you know you want to.... :-)

[Rick Erickson]

Before you buy anything, I would suggest two videos: Rob Cosman's Rough to Ready and Christopher Schwarz's Coarse, Medium, Fine.

I second what Tri says here. Keep in mind that Cosman has since switched to Shapton stones (1000 and 16000) for hand planes (I think he may have even jumped to 32000 from what I remember). The Nortons are nice stones - the Shaptons just take it to the next level. His video demonstrates on the the Nortons but the technique is the same with the Shaptons. The video will take the mystery out of sharpening. He does everything freehand but there is no shame in a jig (just a tad bit slower in setup).

[george wilson]

Find my evaluations on my LN,LV,and Stanley block planes. I liked my LN plane the best,though I really like the design of the new LV block plane I was also testing. I realize you are looking for a jointer,of course,but I think the LN's are my choice in general.

[Patrick J McCauley]

I really like the MK2 for sharpening. I use it with progressive grits of sandpaper on a granite slab. I do everything wet using silicon carbide papers then progressing to the micron polishing sheets you can purchase at rockler. I get to about 12000 grit with those.

I have also purchased the worksharp 3000 but haven't tried, maybe this is "against" the neanderthal creed, I am not sure. I just like to get things sharp easily and quickly...and well. I will post my thoughts on it once I get it set up and rolling.

Patrick

[Alex Silva]

Now I can see that LN is selling to canadians and that they take care of brokerage fees. I'm still a little bit puzzled about the difference between the LN Low Angle Jointer (350$) and the regular LN jointer #7 (425$) ?
Also why would you want a number 8 instead of a number 7 ?

Cheers,

Alex

[Alex Silva]

Also, correct me if I'm wrong but won't a LN Low Angle Jack plane be a good choice for a start plane in order to be able to plane and edge joint boards up to 4-6' long ? LV and LN low angle jack planes are roughly the same price..

[Randal Stevenson]

Also why would you want a number 8 instead of a number 7 ?

Cheers,

Alex


Feel. Some people prefer a number 3, and some prefer a number 4. Hand size, height, etc. all play a part in the ergonomics of it.

[Jim Koepke]

Now I can see that LN is selling to canadians and that they take care of brokerage fees. I'm still a little bit puzzled about the difference between the LN Low Angle Jointer (350$) and the regular LN jointer #7 (425$) ?
Also why would you want a number 8 instead of a number 7 ?

Cheers,

Alex

The #7 has a frog separate from the body and the Low Angle Jointer doesn't. So there is more metal, machining and parts on the #7.

The #8 has a bit more mass and is a bit wider. This is handy when flattening panels. It is handy to have both.

jim

[Rick Erickson]

Also, correct me if I'm wrong but won't a LN Low Angle Jack plane be a good choice for a start plane in order to be able to plane and edge joint boards up to 4-6' long ? LV and LN low angle jack planes are roughly the same price..

Alex, from what I've read and heard you can accurately flatten a board twice the length of the plane. Thus, the LA jack is going to give you a 28" length while the #8 is coming in at 48". I'm not saying the LA jack is not a good starter plane. It is a great starter plane. Just don't expect to edge joint or flatten a 6' board with it. I own the LN 8 and absolutely love it. Some feel it is too heavy/long. Others have said it is a matter of preference and they are dead on. There is no 'correct' answer when it comes to planes. There are some 'safe bets' out there (the jack plane being one of them). It sounds like you won't be doing your initial dimensioning with planes so I would recommend a block plane, something in the 4 area for smoothing, a jack plane (LA, 5, 5 1/2) and a jointer plane (7 or 8). Any add-on planes after that will come with experience and the type of projects you build.