New cheap planes - Any good?

[Eric Brown]

I was out shopping for supplies and ran across these two planes. I was curious so I bought them. First up is a #3 sized plane with adjustable blade I bought at Harbor Freight. It cost $13.00
It's a Windsor #33 (cast iron, high carbon). What do you get for $15.00? Well it doesn't look too bad. The sides and bottom are nicely ground. So the first thing I noticed is that they did not ease the edges after grinding.
A sandpaper block quickly eased the edges. Next was the blade. Again, nicely ground and all edges sharp. Sandpaper again. The cutting edge was well done, square and pretty sharp. I left it alone.
Took completely apart and checked the bedding for the blade. As expected, they simply painted over the rough casting. Cleaned it up with a file. Put back together and tried it out. I was surprised because it actually cut and adjusted well.
Could make good thin shavings. One negative is the tote placement. I have small hands, but it was a tight fit between the tote and blade adjusters. I wouldn't trade my Stanley #3 for it but it might be an excellent plane for youngsters.

500737

500738

500739

Next I bought a Jorgensen 102 plane. It looked similar in size to a Stanley 100 squirrel tail. It only cost $15.00 at Lowes. It looked nice but has the same minor issues of the plane body edges being sharp. Sandpaper again. The blade had the same issues. The bed is nicely machined and holds the blade squarely. No side adjustment possible so make sure when sharpening to keep the edge square. The blade itself is thick, the lever cap is cast aluminum with a nicely turned knob. The blade was sharp out of the package. Trying it, it felt good in the hand, the adjustment was easy, and very thin shavings are possible. Forgot to mention it is low angle, bevel up.

500740

500741

Here is a comparison of the Jorgensen 102, Stanley 100 and Veritas pocket plane. Obviously the Veritas is the better plane but for the money I would get the Jorgensen before the Stanley.

500742

[Jim Koepke]

Good reviews Eric.

Maybe Jorgensen's quality has improved or it could be the luck of the draw.

Mine needed a bit more work than yours > https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?301757 < My post is a little ways down.

jtk

[Eric Brown]

Jim, perhaps they have improved. Mine had very good machining and other than knocking of the sharp edges it didn't need anything else. Paint job was good too. (Not really a color I prefer, but for the price.)
The Veritas is much heavier and feels better in the hand. Cuts better too. Mine is the limited edition and cost a lot more. The Stanley is a bevel down and is at a higher angle, so a direct comparison isn't reasonable.

[steven c newman]

I used that Windsor No. 33 as a Scrub Plane....ground a 3" radius on the iron....worked better than a Stanley #40..

The #101 I have is made of Aluminum for small items, it work very well...

Have 3 Low angle planes in use, now....#118....#60-1/2 ...and a #65...all vintage Stanleys, with the OEM irons still on-board...and working just fine...

[Richard Coers]

A plane that sells for $15 means someone is having children make them and selling them for $5 so they can get shipped and sold and everyone makes $5. Not for me thank-you.

[steven c newman]

Really? LOL...Oh well...to each their own...easy to say, when one how no idea HOW an item was made....

[Dave Fitzgerald]

Nick Engler did a deconstruction / remediation of a HF copy of a Stanley #4 a few months ago (video here (https://youtu.be/QSnLgE7fWCQ)). Plane had some good characteristics as manufactured, but it took a lot of work to turn it into a good tool.

[David Carroll]

I always wonder who those tools are really marketed to. A beginner, or very casual user (a couple of door shutters to trim) would, I think, find them really frustrating to use. A more advanced user would likely want something better. Most of the people the I know of personally who have them, bought them more out of curiosity that need or want. (like several of the posters here).

I look at the price tag and find it hard to believe that a plane can be made to sell at that price and make a profit for anyone along the production/distribution chain.

DC

[Frederick Skelly]

I always wonder who those tools are really marketed to.

Just some random thoughts here. Not picking at you.....
Like many HF tools, they are marketed to people who cant (or dont want to) spend more. It's easy to forget that sometimes, when I look at my stable of LV planes.

OTOH, there are people who are happy as heck with a cleaned up antique plane and do nice work. Mr. Newman is an example.

Also remember that a plane is really just a fixture to hold a blade. It doesnt have to be ultra precision ground to work. (I once turned a 2x4 into a plane for some coarse work.)

I love to see posts where people try these low cost tools! But then, I have 4 sets of Aldi chisels @ $7 a set, in addition to my expensive stuff. :)

[Mark Gibney]

I bought a Windsor 33 from HF years back, and I take it to installation jobs where I might have to trim back something that might have a nail or screw hidden in it.
I like the depth adjustment, it's like a spoke shave, and the plane works well in spite of not having a chipbreaker.

Richard, I think about what you wrote too. A friend of mine just bought two sets of Uni bits (stepped bits) straight from China at $4 per set of three. A set of three sells in Lowes for nearly $70 I think. That Lowes set is probably made in China too, maybe just a steep mark-up by Lowes?

[Eric Brown]

Just some random thoughts here. Not picking at you.....
Like many HF tools, they are marketed to people who cant (or dont want to) spend more. It's easy to forget that sometimes, when I look at my stable of LV planes.

OTOH, there are people who are happy as heck with a cleaned up antique plane and do nice work. Mr. Newman is an example.

Also remember that a plane is really just a fixture to hold a blade. It doesnt have to be ultra precision ground to work. (I once turned a 2x4 into a plane for some coarse work.)

I love to see posts where people try these low cost tools! But then, I have 4 sets of Aldi chisels @ $7 a set, in addition to my expensive stuff. :)

I usually buy more for curiosity than need. I have many planes from many different manufacturers and always consider "you get what you pay for" as just a rough guide. I will buy rusted tools and try to rehab them into more valuable tools.