Which frog pitch?

[Jeff Ranck]

I've been thinking about purchasing a Lie-Nielson #4 and maybe a #7. But the question is which frog pitch? The #4 comes with the traditional 45 deg., but also has the 50 and 55 deg. frog. The #7 looks to have the same options.

My initial impression is the 50 or 55 for the smoother (not sure which one), but I have no idea about the #7.

A search of the past threads shows a lot of discussion of BU vs. BD and angles, but I couldn't find anything that seemed to answer the question I'm thinking about.

Jeff.

[James Owen]

Which pitch you choose depends, in large part, on what kinds of woods you will be planing. If run-of-the-mill, plane-friendly hardwoods and softwoods, then the 45˚ will work fine. If you're going to be using (highly) figured woods, then either the 50˚ or 55˚ would be a better choice, depending on the amount and difficulty of the figure; generally speaking, the more figure, and the more interlocking grain present, the higher the frog angle you want. In an ideal world, you would have all three frogs to use, as necessary, for a particular project, but most of the time, real life and tool-budget economics intrude.....

I would also consider a #4-1/2 rather than a #4..... If you go with the #4-1/2 in one frog angle, you could get the #7 in a different frog angle -- say 45˚ in one and 55˚ in the other, as an example -- and have most of your bases covered, as they are both 2-3/8" irons/frogs, and are interchangeable.....you could then purchase, some time later, the remaining frog (50˚, in this example) if/when you needed it.

Another consideration: the #4-1/2 frog (and iron/chip breaker) will fit in the #4-1/2, #5-1/2, #6, and #7, giving you a lot of flexibility in several very useful plane sizes.....

(Keep in mind that the higher the frog angle, the more difficult it is, generally speaking, to push the plane....)

[Joel Goodman]

I have a #4 with a 50 degree frog and it seems a good compromise. I have tried a 4 1/2 with 55 and it's a beast -- the added width with the higher angle is very tiring. For some unknown reason the 4 with the 50 is harder to push than a 62 low angle jack sharpened to to 38 which make 50 degrees included angle -- I am not sure why. So for me 50 or even the 45 degree frog for the 4. You can always add a back bevel to increase the angle if you want to. For the #7 I would get the regular 45 degree frog.

[Tony Shea]

I would agree about just going with the normal 45* frog for the #7, is not a smoothing plane. The plane has some good heft to it and the added increase in pitch will just make this plane harder to push through the wood. I love my LN #7 and is probably the most used plane in my arsenal.

As for the smoother (#4) I would opt for the 55* frog if you're concerned about working with difficult grain. The 50* frog really does not offer that much of a difference between the 45* frog. If you want an increase in pitch I would def go with the 55*. Keep in mind that the 45* attack angle is going to produce a much nicer surface than any of these angles therefore should be used until it isn't producing respectable results. Something about the lower angle actually produces a much more polished surface.