What size board for a #8

[Robert Hazelwood]

Is there another reason/justification for so many planes? I would think extra blades would be helpful rather than another plane. I was thinking I’df getting a extra blade for my 62 to use as a smoother.

Not really, besides having a fascination with tools (not that there's anything wrong with that...). You only need 3 or 4 bench planes, and possibly a couple extra for special situations. Jack, Try, Jointer, and Smoother basically. And the jointer and try plane can be the same. Keeping a dozen bench planes sharpened and ready to go would get old, I'd think. If you do everything by hand, you'll have enough on your plate keeping all the rabbet planes, routers, plow planes, fillisters, etc. in working order without having to deal with extraneous bench planes.

I'd extend that sentiment to having multiple blades for bench planes. It may be necessary for a low angle bevel up plane if you want to shoot end grain and smooth exotic woods with the same tool, but that's just a good reason to use bevel down planes with a cap iron. I want my bench planes to do as much as possible without having to change the setup.

As for the #8, I use one as my jointer plane. It is an old type 6, with a very thin casting, and so is not as heavy as you'd think. I like the size of it, and don't find it difficult to balance on an edge that's at least 1/2" wide. It is also nice for doing things like leveling the top of a drawer, box, or frame...the extra surface on the toe and heel help keep things level and avoid tipping, vs if you tried to do it with, say, a #4.

To answer the original question, I would use my #8 for anything longer than about a foot, probably. You can even use it on very short parts, but it makes more sense to just use the smoother. On a few occasions the extra long toe comes in handy, like when planing short thin pieces where a smoother would tend to bow and break the piece.

[Stewie Simpson]

imo; there is little justification for a metal bodied hand plane that exceeds the weight of a Stanley # 4 1/2 & # 5. (4 3/4 lbs)

[Patrick Chase]

In case it wasn't obvious, my post about 9 smoothers was mostly ironic [*], and Warren is certainly correct about the negative effects of not spending enough learning a small set of core tools.
[*] I'm ashamed to admit that I do in fact have 9 smoothers

[Jim Koepke]

In case it wasn't obvious, my post about 9 smoothers was mostly ironic [*], and Warren is certainly correct about the negative effects of not spending enough learning a small set of core tools.
[*] I'm ashamed to admit that I do in fact have 9 smoothers

There is no shame attributable to my 9 smoothers. A few of them could be put up for sale or given away if the occasion arises.

If you have too many planes you can't remember the whether a certain plane needs more camber or less, what the history is since the last sharpening, and you lose the familiarity that makes for good technique. Intimacy with the tool is also important for developing sharpening skill because you need to be able to discern small subtleties in order to improve sharpening technique.

At my age it warms my heart to feel my memory is doing so well. Actually my accumulation is of various types by date. It makes it easier to recall their individual quirks. Though two of my #3s and #4s are of the same type they have differences in the totes and knobs that make them easy to tell apart. Each one of my planes also has a memory of how they were found in the wild or off ebay. Ebay memories are not as fond as ones about finding them in the basement of an antique mall or under a bench at an estate sale. One of those was my type 6, #4-1/2 for $30 at Phog Bounders in Astoria, OR. Another was a type 11, #5 for $10 in the hills north of Berkeley, CA.

imo; there is little justification for a metal bodied hand plane that exceeds the weight of a Stanley # 4 1/2 & # 5. (4 3/4 lbs)

Stewie, in my travels some of the longer wooden planes seemed to weigh more than this. Would that be an indication of something one would want to avoid in a wooden jointer?

Maybe if my journey into woodworking started out with wooden bodied planes my plane accumulation would be totally different. However once my path went down the Bailey slope my slide hasn't wavered. Though my accumulation of wooden molding planes is growing. There really aren't many true metal molding planes. Combination planes are planes that can cut molding, but to me they are not really the same as a dedicated molding plane.

jtk

[David Bassett]

While we're talking about jointer planes (sorta') and sliding off-topic...

Would someone please buy the clean looking Type 15 (1931-33) #7 Jim Bode just put up for $150 shipped, so I won't? Thanks!

[Bill Sutherland]

My enjoyment using handplanes has really made me look at the other tools in my shop that I really don’t enjoy using and one of them is a complete Router and router table with the Incra LS and clean sweep setup. It’s noisy, time consuming to set up and I just plain and simple don’t find it fun to use. I’m going to sell it and invest in a Veritas combination plane. I have a LN router plane and have enjoyed using it.

[Jim Koepke]

My enjoyment using handplanes has really made me look at the other tools in my shop that I really don’t enjoy using and one of them is a complete Router and router table with the Incra LS and clean sweep setup. It’s noisy, time consuming to set up and I just plain and simple don’t find it fun to use. I’m going to sell it and invest in a Veritas combination plane. I have a LN router plane and have enjoyed using it.

My router table hasn't been used more than once since moving to Washington ~10 years ago. Mostly for the same reasons.

You will likely find a Veritas Combination Plane to be an investment you will enjoy.

jtk

[Bill Sutherland]

I really think I will enjoy using the Combination plane over a router. My hand tool arsenal is slowly growing.

[Patrick Chase]

You will likely find a Veritas Combination Plane to be an investment you will enjoy.

I really think I will enjoy using the Combination plane over a router. My hand tool arsenal is slowly growing.

I think that you'll enjoy the Veritas Combo *if* you have experience using other similar combination planes like the Stanley #45. If you don't then it will probably seem quite frustrating at first, though IMO taking the time to learn how to use one is worth it in the long run.

[Jim Koepke]

I think that you'll enjoy the Veritas Combo *if* you have experience using other similar combination planes like the Stanley #45. If you don't then it will probably seem quite frustrating at first, though IMO taking the time to learn how to use one is worth it in the long run.

There is a learning curve of course. The Veritas Combo isn't likely as steep a learning curve as trying to set up an old Stanley #45, even with a few extra knobs.

jtk

[Matt Evans]

For small pieces you can use a standard jack, smoother or jointer as a pseudo coopers jointer. Just mount the plane in a fixture or clamp it in a vise upside down. You then run the wood over it, rather than running it over the wood.

You can do things like add a fence and have a small neanderthal version of the powered jointer, you can skew the fence for gnarly grain, you can use a fence with a rebate plane for consistent rabbets, etc. It is also a great way to get repeatable angles by hand when building mitered boxes with any number of sides.

Length doesn't matter quite as much if you build a fixture for it, since you can add length via the fixture if you want to.

That said, I typically work in a larger scale, and use a no 6, 7 and 8 more than anything else, and use them in the standard fashion.

[Jim Koepke]

For small pieces you can use a standard jack, smoother or jointer as a pseudo coopers jointer. Just mount the plane in a fixture or clamp it in a vise upside down. You then run the wood over it, rather than running it over the wood.

BTDT, works great! Usually done with one of my #5s in the bench vise.

That said, I typically work in a larger scale, and use a no 6, 7 and 8 more than anything else, and use them in the standard fashion.

The #6 is my most used plane in that group. Maybe that is why there are still two in my shop. When there were two #7s, one got sold. There are two #8s, one of which hasn't been assembled of yet. Most likely it will be sold next time funds are needed to purchase something else.

jtk

[Bill Sutherland]

For some unknown reason I seem to be able to understand/read what is happening to the Wood by using hand tools. I never warmed up to the power Jointer because I always ended up with a tapered board and never could fully control it. That’s when I tried hand planing with my old Sears 9” hand plane and had better results and a lot more fun and peace and quiet. Same with the router in that I always seemed to bugger up a edge or corner and like the girls say ‘“ it just never blew wind up my skirt”!! I really enjoy using my LN router plane so now that the combo plane is on its way i’ll see if my router stays or gets sold.

[Bill Sutherland]

You can do things like add a fence and have a small neanderthal version of the powered jointer, you can skew the fence for gnarly grain, you can use a fence with a rebate plane for consistent rabbets, etc. It is also a great way to get repeatable angles by hand when building mitered boxes with any number of sides..

I’ve seen that done in a few videos but haven’t tried it yet. With the number 8 on the way I look forward to setting up the plane to work on small boxes I want to make.

[Patrick Chase]

You can do things like add a fence and have a small neanderthal version of the powered jointer, you can skew the fence for gnarly grain, you can use a fence with a rebate plane for consistent rabbets, etc. It is also a great way to get repeatable angles by hand when building mitered boxes with any number of sides.

I do that all the time. I often just "lock" a plane in place on my shooting board or donkey's ear (by intentionally over-tightening the rear stop) to do that.