I started to

[lowell holmes]

I started to respond to George Sanders string, but realized that I was hijacking his thread.

What I was commenting on was about the use of a #6 plane.

I have one that never gets used for some reason. It is a war years vintage with a rubber adjusting knob, a substantial plane. However, I gravitate towards my 5 1/2 Bailey or my #7 Bedrock. I do not really know why, because the no. 6 is really a nice plane and it does a great job producing fine translucent shavings.

It would be interesting to hear if others have similar experiences.

[steven c newman]

Just recently used the T-10 No.6c I have..
It will do a nice job. Have been getting used to the NEW No.7c as well. Just depends on how long of a board I am working on.

I also use a T-17, No. 5-1/2 when I need something a bit lighter.

All work nicely.

[Frederick Skelly]

I have a nice #6 whose only job is shooting plane. It's square, flat and heavy - great for that application. But I use my 5 and 7 like you do, rather than reaching for the 6.

If what you and I experience with the 6 is common, maybe that's why Patrick Leach "disses" the 6?

Look forward to others' experiences.
Fred

[Jim Koepke]

Funny, my #6s get regular use and my #5-1/2 is the one that lays idle.
My #4-1/2 doesn't get as much use as my #3.

Lately other projects have come to the top and I haven't been out to the shop in almost a week.

Maybe today.

jtk

[lowell holmes]

My #3 is my favorite plane and it gets used more than the others. It almost feels like a block plane in my hands. Mine was a school plane in a previous life.

[David Eisenhauer]

Same here - the 6 doesn't get picked up much and the 3 is the one that I reach for when things aren't working right. The 3 is the "comfort food" of my collection. I probably don't grab the 6 as much due to still using a lot of machine-planed thickness wood as opposed to thickness planning by hand.

[Reinis Kanders]

Very old No.6 is one of my favorites. I put heavy camber on 5 1/2 and slight camber on No.6.
No.6 is sort of like a try plane for shorter stuff, drawer parts, etc.

[Warren Mickley]

I think some make a mistake that each of the Bailey bench planes has or had a specific purpose. Rather the various size planes are just options for the craftsman. In literature from a century ago, the #6 plane is billed as a short jointer, an alternative to the #7, not that someone would buy both. Today's collector is more likely to wish for a complete set than yesterday's craftsman. It is hard to imagine that anyone would need # 6, 7 and 8.

I have a nice pair of pruning shears with long hickory handles that I have used for 30 years. The company that makes them makes at least fifteen different shears, different length handles and different weight cutting heads, and each comes in both hickory and aluminum handles. I can't see wanting or needing a complete set.

[Frederick Skelly]

I think some make a mistake that each of the Bailey bench planes has or had a specific purpose. Rather the various size planes are just options for the craftsman. In literature from a century ago, the #6 plane is billed as a short jointer, an alternative to the #7, not that someone would buy both. Today's collector is more likely to wish for a complete set than yesterday's craftsman. It is hard to imagine that anyone would need # 6, 7 and 8.

I have a nice pair of pruning shears with long hickory handles that I have used for 30 years. The company that makes them makes at least fifteen different shears, different length handles and different weight cutting heads, and each comes in both hickory and aluminum handles. I can't see wanting or needing a complete set.

Well, now that you explain it Warren, all I can do is slap my head and go "DOH!" You're obviously right and I never thought about it until now.

[Jim Koepke]

It is hard to imagine that anyone would need # 6, 7 and 8.

Is there a need for the modern day craftsman/woodworker to have all three? No.

Is it warm and fuzzy to the soul while making time in the shop that much more enjoyable having a choice of which one gets used today? Of course! So much so that one might even be able to convince their significant other, some of them need to have duplicates.

jtk

[Stew Denton]

Hi Lowell,

I use a jack plane more than any other. I do have a couple of #5 1/2 plane that I haven't finished restoring, also consider them jack planes in the same class with the #5, but haven't finished restoring them so haven't used em yet.

Next on my list of actual planes that I use most frequently probably would be a block plane.

Stew

[steven c newman]

Mine are chosen according to what the size I'm working on is..
325276
Sometimes, it is nice to have a choice. From a #7c down to a #3.....Jacks run from 5-1/2 to a 5-1/4 ( Millers Falls No. 11.) a couple #4s and #3s, and a few block planes. Depends on both how long a plank I am working on is, how much weight I want to push around, somedays..it depends on what is sharpest in the till. All have been tuned up and ready to go. .....Just in case, right?

[Roy Lindberry]

Funny, my #6s get regular use and my #5-1/2 is the one that lays idle.
My #4-1/2 doesn't get as much use as my #3.

Lately other projects have come to the top and I haven't been out to the shop in almost a week.

Maybe today.

jtk

Well, I might as well weigh in...Along with Jim, my 6 is a real workhorse. It is my primary try plane. My 5 1/2 hasn't seen any use in quite a while.

But unlike Jim, my 4 1/2 is one of the most used planes in my shop, while the 3s sit idle all day long.

[Bill White]

Kinda like "whatever fits" in my shop. I use #3, #4c, #5 1/2c, #7, and 60 1/2. I'm not counting the woodies and others as needs might be. There's a #110 just for s**ts and giggles, and a #71 router as well.
Bill

[Bill Houghton]

I'm just backwards: I bought a 5-1/2 at a yard sale, but sold it on when I realized it was redundant to my No. 6.

[Roy Lindberry]

I think some make a mistake that each of the Bailey bench planes has or had a specific purpose. Rather the various size planes are just options for the craftsman. In literature from a century ago, the #6 plane is billed as a short jointer, an alternative to the #7, not that someone would buy both. Today's collector is more likely to wish for a complete set than yesterday's craftsman. It is hard to imagine that anyone would need # 6, 7 and 8.

I have a nice pair of pruning shears with long hickory handles that I have used for 30 years. The company that makes them makes at least fifteen different shears, different length handles and different weight cutting heads, and each comes in both hickory and aluminum handles. I can't see wanting or needing a complete set.

You are absolutely right about this, Warren. This is why it is so hard to answer the all-to-common question of, "What are the best sizes of planes to get?" It depends on the work and the preference of the user. If somebody needs a fore plane, it might be a #5, #5 1/4, #5 1/2, or even a #6. Some might prefer an actual scrub. Same for try planes, smoothers and jointers.

[Trevor Goodwin]

What is the Jack in Jack plane? Is it "Jack of all trades" or something else, I'm not sure how long that phrase has been around and how it translates. I know a lot of people think the Jack plane is just for rough work, with a heavy camber, but I've always thought of them as an all-rounder, so Jack of all trades makes sense but sometimes these nicknames are coincidental. I did some work the other day with a lightly crowned blade in my #5 and found it great for roughing across grain with a heavy cut, flattening with grain, and then smoothing. I finished with a finely set #3 so that I didn't need to adjust the mouth. If I was working on a longer piece I'd happily consider a #6 for the job - that is: dimensioning, flattening, "rough" smoothing.

I've found with my #5 jack planes (one Stanley and one Falcon), if there is an 8" camber on the blade there is barely room for the chips in the mouth when taking a full-width shaving (because the mouth is too small), so if they didn't come from the factory ready for heaving roughing cuts why do a lot of people say that's their intended use?

[Mike Cherry]

What is the Jack in Jack plane? Is it "Jack of all trades" or something else, I'm not sure how long that phrase has been around and how it translates. I know a lot of people think the Jack plane is just for rough work, with a heavy camber, but I've always thought of them as an all-rounder, so Jack of all trades makes sense but sometimes these nicknames are coincidental. I did some work the other day with a lightly crowned blade in my #5 and found it great for roughing across grain with a heavy cut, flattening with grain, and then smoothing. I finished with a finely set #3 so that I didn't need to adjust the mouth. If I was working on a longer piece I'd happily consider a #6 for the job - that is: dimensioning, flattening, "rough" smoothing.

I've found with my #5 jack planes (one Stanley and one Falcon), if there is an 8" camber on the blade there is barely room for the chips in the mouth when taking a full-width shaving (because the mouth is too small), so if they didn't come from the factory ready for heaving roughing cuts why do a lot of people say that's their intended use?
Trevor,
You are correct that "Jack of all trades" is the relation to the term "jack" that we so commonly use. At least, that is my understanding. I think a heavily cambered blade for these planes was really made popular by Chris Schwarz,etc. A grind like that does well when traversing the board, as you have found. In. My experience, I rarely traverse a board unless it is a wide panel that I need to flatten after glue up. Even in those case, I found a 8" radius was too heavy a cut for me. I would try for a light cut and only get a 1/2" wide shaving because so little blade was extended. I then decided to stop measuring the curve and go with what felt right. As a result, I have no idea what the curve is on my #5 but it does what I need.

I think at a certain point, we have to take what other woodworkers do with a grain of salt(another old saying haha). I have a weak shoulder and therefore have to be smarter about how thick of shavings I can take. I have to be careful about the prep I do from the jack, so that when/if I switch to a jointer, I have very little work to do.

[lowell holmes]

I know what camber is, but what is 8" camber?

Also, what is meant by "traverse a board"?

Help an old dummy out.:)

My understanding of the use of a radius on a blade is to allow squaring an edge that is out of square simply by moving the plane's center over a high edge.
I've done that many times.

[Kees Heiden]

My Stanley #6 is only used on a shooting board. It is the ideal size for that purpose. A 7 is too long, a 5 a bit too light. So I have the edge sharpened straight, which makes it less then ideal for jointing and face planing.

I use the 4, 5 and 7 way more then the 6, but still it is nice to have them all.

[lowell holmes]

My shooting plane is a Lee Valley bevel up smoother. I have used a #5 Bailey, but the mass of the smoother is better. My 5 1/2 Bailey would probably do well shooting. I'm sure the #6 would also, I'll try it.

[steven c newman]

8" Camber refers to the radius of the curve of the camber. Measure out 8" from a pivot point, and make an arc.

To "Traverse" a board, means you go at 90 degrees ( or so..) to the grain of the board. Mainly to "scrub " a rough sawn board down to almost flat. Then one goes at a diagonal to the grain, going along the board in one direction, switch to the oppisite diagonal and go back up the board. Then one can use a Try Plane to get the scallops out, and get the board nice and flat. A Smooth plane can then go along and clean things up.

Per :J. Moxxon and C. Schwarz.....

[Mel Fulks]

In the Oxford Dictionary there are many uses of "Jack" as something useful but not particularly refined or skilled (my description of their many examples). They show Jack plane term used as early as 1763 to be a long heavy plane suitable for rough work.

[Mike Cherry]

In the Oxford Dictionary there are many uses of "Jack" as something useful but not particularly refined or skilled (my description of their many examples). They show Jack plane term used as early as 1763 to be a long heavy plane suitable for rough work.
Well said, Mel. Although I think most of us could argue that the Jack can be made to do "refined or skilled" work. David Charlesworth comes to mind. I think this is why it has gotten this name, with the change of the grind (or better yet, a change of the blade altogether) you can go from rough cutting to trying, to smoothing.

But lets be realistic, were Neanders here. Why have two or three blades for your Jack when you can just have two or three ( or more lol) jacks!��

[Jim Koepke]

But lets be realistic, were Neanders here. Why have two or three blades for your Jack when you can just have two or three ( or more lol) jacks!��

+1 on this.

Currently there are two #5-1/4 (Jack Jr.?) planes in my shop. One is set with a heavy camber for use as a scrub, the other has a straight blade for use as small joiner or smoother.

There are four #5 planes. I would say that is too many. I would likely do fine with only two. Due to an old shoulder injury, the smaller #5-1/4 is preferred for the rough work. Oops, almost forgot my low angle bevel up Jack.

Then there are two #6 planes that are used like a Jack plane (jumbo Jacks) and a #5-1/2 that doesn't get used a lot.

Looks like a total of ten Jack planes in my shop. Are they all needed? No. Are they all keepers, well maybe not a couple of the #5s. One of them has problems with stripped threads for the tote, the other is a WW II model that is a bit obstinate when it is time to adjust the lateral setting. They are both good users, just a few warts with which to deal.

jtk

[Jeffrey Martel]

I use my #6 as a mini-jointer. Just picked up and mostly rehabbed a #8 for when the #6 isn't big enough. Works well for me. I've got a 5 1/4 that will be set up as a less aggressive scrub.

[lowell holmes]

I thought your responses are the case, but I never saw them or used them. I camber a blade by honing it until it looks proper. The edges will be down between 1/16 and 1/8. Interesting point is that the 8" camber is less than 1/16".

I have traversed a board when planing a board to thickness. It typically takes place on a scrub plane. Incidentally, my scrub plane is a 1/1/2" wide iron in my #3 bailey.

[steven c newman]

I have a couple Jacks with a cambered iron. One is a dedicated scrub, the other is as much. Scrub jack is a measured 8" radius. The Stanley #5c mainly the outside corners are releaved a bit, kind of a gentle, shallow curve.

I have a H-F Windsor #33 as the regular scrub, about the same size as a #3. It has a bit of a thick single iron, and has a 3" radius curve. Have had to resharpen it once in three years, or so...

There is a Millers Falls No.14 Jack plane in the till, except the edge on it's iron is straight across. It will shave see-through shavings any time I want them.

[Chuck Hart]

The first plane I grab is my 6. I use it almost exclusively until I need a smaller plane and then I go to my no. 4. I like the heft and the width. I have a dedicated shooting plane. I sold all three of my sevens this past summer because I never use them. I have a 8 I use when I need to flatten something big. I am not a big guy, I started with the 6 and it is the most comfortable plane for me.

[George Sanders]

Chuck just said why I used the six. I like the size and heft as I am 5'9" and 120 lbs. For me it's ideal for squaring things up. I have a 7 and 8 but I prefer the six for getting things close and then go to the seven. Like Jim Koepke said earlier, light fluffy shavings. I use my Keen Kutter 5c to hog off wood when I have to as it just goes through it like a house on fire. Long tight shavings 8 or 9 inches long. It's basically what one is comfortable using and whether or not the plane is matched to the user and the job.