Bought some new to me old hand planes today, please educate me

[Bill Brush]

To make a complicated story short, I heard about an antique (aka junk) store that had some old hand planes, including some "molding" planes so I had to go check it out. I came home with some but if someone can educate me in the ways of old planes I will know whether I got a deal or got taken to the cleaners.

First up, a Stanley Handyman #4 smoother. Also shown with a Hercules #4 for scale and design. They're essentially identical.
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Next up is a (what looks like to me) a shoulder plane. It says A.C. Bartlett on one end.

http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab242/theunpaidbill/Tools/IMG_0455sm.jpeg


A tongue&groove plane, this one is not something I've actually handled before. It says Lyon McKinnell & Co Cincinatti Ohio on one end.

http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab242/theunpaidbill/Tools/IMG_0458sm.jpeg

A cove molding plane (maybe?). It says A. Howland & Co. NY.

http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab242/theunpaidbill/Tools/IMG_0462.jpg
http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab242/theunpaidbill/Tools/IMG_0464.jpg

And finally a 5/16 beading plane. It says something -CTO Works on one end.

http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab242/theunpaidbill/Tools/IMG_0470.jpg

http://i868.photobucket.com/albums/ab242/theunpaidbill/Tools/IMG_0469sm.jpeg

More pictures can be seen here: http://s868.beta.photobucket.com/user/theunpaidbill/library/Tools

As far as cost, I spent about $100 for all 5 of them. Hopefully I got a deal rather than fleeced. :-)

[Jim Koepke]

That isn't a real bad price.

The cove plane looks like it needs a wedge. They aren't too difficult to make.

The "shoulder" plane is what is also called a skew rabbet plane. I have one that looks just like it except yours may be in a little better condition were the side meets the sole. Mine gets used a lot for making lap joints and large rabbets. The blade should be slightly wider than the body. When using mine, the side that will be against the edge of the rabbet is pressed on a piece of hardwood or my bench to align the edge of the blade with the edge of the plane's body.

A tongue and groove plane is a nice find you can get it to work it is very useful.

If my brain is working your beading plane is actually what is known as a side beading plane. It puts a bead along a board and the flat part with out a blade works as a depth gauge.

Hope this helps a little. Surely someone else will chime in if I missed something or was mistaken.

jtk

[David Keller NC]

Jim - You're dead on with one (possible) exception. There's a possibility that Bill has 1/2 of a rule-joint pair of planes. Hollows and Rounds work on 1/6th of an arc of a circle. The "round" part of a rule-joint pair will cut nearly 1/2 of a circle.

[greg Forster]

Is there a number stamped on the heel of the "cove" plane?

[Greg Wease]

My memory is a bit fuzzy on this but I believe your last plane is by "Scioto Works", one of Ohio Tool's brands.

[Bill Brush]

Is there a number stamped on the heel of the "cove" plane?

There are actually 2 numbers. There is a "12" but there's also a "No. 18".

[Bill Brush]

Thanks for the information everyone.

I've done a little research on my own and have been surprised at somethings that I've found. The A. Howland company shut down in 1874 so that plane is closing in on 150 years old.

I bought these to use, because in my opinion there's nothing sadder than a tool that doesn't get used. To borrow a car term I don't understand "trailer queens." However, I also don't want to deface the tool equivalent to the Mona Lisa.

So that being said, am I going to cause anyone a heart attack if I sharpen these up, clean off the dust, and put them to use? I don't have the money to buy the new equivalent of these planes, which is why I look for bargains like these.

[Jim Koepke]

So that being said, am I going to cause anyone a heart attack if I sharpen these up, clean off the dust, and put them to use? I don't have the money to buy the new equivalent of these planes, which is why I look for bargains like these.

I think most of us would do exactly the same. Most of us will be happy to see you document your efforts and show us the results, including the way the "test" pieces of wood come out.

There are few things more satisfying than using an old tool that you have brought back from being lost in time.

jtk

[Adam Cruea]

Thanks for the information everyone.

I've done a little research on my own and have been surprised at somethings that I've found. The A. Howland company shut down in 1874 so that plane is closing in on 150 years old.

I bought these to use, because in my opinion there's nothing sadder than a tool that doesn't get used. To borrow a car term I don't understand "trailer queens." However, I also don't want to deface the tool equivalent to the Mona Lisa.

So that being said, am I going to cause anyone a heart attack if I sharpen these up, clean off the dust, and put them to use? I don't have the money to buy the new equivalent of these planes, which is why I look for bargains like these.

Nope, I'm like you. "Trailer queen" cars or "garage queen" motorcycles annoy me and confound me.

So sharpen 'em up, put 'em to use, and see how they work. :)

Silly question, but what do most of the irons look like? Decently clean?

[Bill Brush]

Nope, I'm like you. "Trailer queen" cars or "garage queen" motorcycles annoy me and confound me.

So sharpen 'em up, put 'em to use, and see how they work. :)

Silly question, but what do most of the irons look like? Decently clean?

Actually yes, the irons are all pretty serviceable. The Stanley is almost like new. From what I've seen none of them have any major pitting. The biggest issue in the bunch is the missing wedge on the cove plane.

[Bill Brush]

Well after a marathon session with the sharpening equipment I have 3 of the 5 sharpened and fettled. The Stanley smoother was a little bit of a surprise because it had never been sharpened from what I could tell. The iron had very obvious grind marks on the bevel and the grind marks on the back had never been touched. Plus it was still flat and square on the edge with no camber. With a lot of work it is now in good shape. I just need to finish flattening the sole.

The skew rabbet plane iron had been abused with a grinder at some point so I had to do a lot of work with it, but it's back in operation. An interesting observation on that one is that the edge is not the same steel as the rest of the iron. There's a very clear demarcation line once it was polished, and the shaft of the iron is not hardened steel (workable with a file). The line might just be the hardening line.

And finally the tongue and groove plane is sharpened. I won't say it's ready to use as it's going to take a lot of tweaking to get it in a fine fettle. I did find out that the company that made it closed down in 1846, so that one has a lot of history behind it.