Victor Planes - Worth Buying?

[David Weaver]

I've noticed that a lot of the victor planes, 1104s and such, go cheaply compared to the baileys, and I've seen several guidelines that say that they're between the original handyman grade stuff and the bailey planes.

If one is willing to spend some time tuning them up to be users, are they worth looking at (i.e., are they missing any of the functionality of the bailey planes?). I don't care if they're ugly or if they have enamel on some of the castings, instead of japanning.

[Clint Jones]

I would go ahead and fork out a little extra and get the Stanley or Bailey models. The Victor line lacks a frog adjustment and the machined parts arent that great. If you really are looking to get a cheaper plane try Sargent, Millers Falls, or Ward Master. They all make good user planes.

[David Weaver]

Thanks - the frog adjustability is what I was wondering about with my reference to the baileys. I will stick to bailey and better.

The reason for trying to "cheap out" is that eventually, all of my planing needs are filled by LN planes, just not all at once.

[Clint Jones]

Well if you pay a little extra for a good older Stanley or Millers Falls plane you will most likely be able to sell it for a good price once you decide to upgrade to LN. I cant say the same for Victor or the cheaper lines of planes. If you need any older Stanley Millers Falls or Sargent planes pm me I should have some good ones around.