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Thread: Veritas LA/BU planes or Custom planes?

  1. #31
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    Quote Originally Posted by Derek Cohen View Post
    I find it interesting that we obsess so over planes to such a degree. I do love it as much as the next person, but it is all so overkill ... once the finish is on, who can tell ....
    Derek
    Absolutely agree!

  2. #32
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jeff Ranck View Post
    I have a old stanly #5 set up with a very curved iron that I use as a fore plane, a LV BU jointer, a LV BU jack, a LV custom #4 (set up as in Derek's review), a Lie-Nielson #3 (50 deg. frog). I use them all, but for different things. As far as smoothing goes, the LV custom #4 does the "best" overall smoothing job. However, my preference is for a smaller smoother and prefer the size of the #3. I wish LV made the custom plane in a #3 size. So often, I find myself reaching for the #3 simply because I prefer its size. For smoothing, I prefer the BD irons and would recommend BD irons for smoothing. (However, that said, I really like my BU jointer and am not sure that I'd trade that for a BD plane. I like the BU geometry of the plane and find it easier to use as a jointer due to its lower center of gravity. I use my BU jack as a "small jointer" and not as a jack plane is typically used.)

    I've used my BU jointer as a smoothing plane (before I had the #4 and #3). It worked ok, but the BD planes that I have perform much better as a smoother.

    If your main concern is handle size, the LV custom planes have a few handle options and if none of those work for you, it would be pretty easy to make one to fit your hand. Personally, I would change plane type to the LV custom plane rather than go to a 4 1/2 smoother.

    I would like to reduce the number of planes that I have to maintain, but so far am unwilling to part with any. Sooner or later, though, I probably will eliminate one or more. I like having only three bench planes to maintain.
    Jeff, I am fascinated by your commentary ... did I write this and use another name?

    Regards from Perth

    Derek

  3. #33
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    A #4-1/2 is a slightly longer plane. In the Stanley/Bailey design, not only is there a bit more space, the tote is also larger.
    Thanks for that Jim. I was unaware. I always appreciate your knowledge and experience with these things ;-)
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  4. #34
    So.. If one has a Scrub and a Shooting plane.

    Which of the three Bevel Up / Low angle Smoother, Jack, Jointer, is the most "useless" and could be swapped out with a Bevel Down with Chipbreaker.
    Last edited by Dan Kraakenes; 08-11-2020 at 3:53 PM.

  5. #35
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Kraakenes View Post
    So.. If one has a Scrub and a Shooting plane.

    Which of the three Bevel Up / Low angle Smoother, Jack, Jointer, is the most "useless" and could be swapped out with a Bevel Down with Chipbreaker.
    My reply would be the smoother.

    The Jack and Jointer are more for working rough lumber to dimensional pieces. The smoother finishes the surface and hopefully can overcome any of the light tear out from the previous planes.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  6. #36
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Kraakenes View Post
    So.. If one has a Scrub and a Shooting plane.

    Which of the three Bevel Up / Low angle Smoother, Jack, Jointer, is the most "useless" and could be swapped out with a Bevel Down with Chipbreaker.
    A lot of people use their bu jack for shooting and a cambered jack is often serving the same purpose as a scrub; the question is then, what are you going to use a jack for? If you don’t have an answer then maybe you don’t need either bd or bu. The chip breaker rediscovery of recent years means that the reason many used a bu smoother may not be applicable. I personally prefer a bd jointer because the height of the plane makes it easier to feel vertical.

  7. #37
    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Kraakenes View Post
    So.. If one has a Scrub and a Shooting plane.

    Which of the three Bevel Up / Low angle Smoother, Jack, Jointer, is the most "useless" and could be swapped out with a Bevel Down with Chipbreaker.
    I had the BU Jointer but didn't like it for the simple fact I couldn't use it as a straight edge while I worked. I now use a LN #7, much better for me.

  8. #38
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    Derek: Maybe I've just learned too many things from you. I guess my own experience mirrors yours.

  9. #39
    Bevel up: Smoother, Jack and jointer.

    Use 25 degree blades in all 3
    Camber the blades 6-8degrees
    Microbevel to 50-60ish degree

    Plane through anything with nearly zero tear out..


    Do we concur?

  10. #40
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Kraakenes View Post
    Bevel up: Smoother, Jack and jointer.

    Use 25 degree blades in all 3
    Camber the blades 6-8degrees
    Microbevel to 50-60ish degree

    Plane through anything with nearly zero tear out..


    Do we concur?

    You will be planing everything with a 60-70 degree cutting angle. Not so bad for final smoothing but I wouldn't want it for a lot of other planing tasks- limits depth of cut and is kind of nasty on softer woods. So you end up wanting additional blades ground at different angles, etc.

    I don't think you will much enjoy cleaning up the face of a scrub-planed board with 1.5 thou shavings at a 65 degree effective cutting angle, for example. That's where a nice BD try plane would shine.


    To answer your earlier question, if you have a scrub and a shooting plane then the one BU plane I'd keep would be the jack. I'd just keep a 25 or 30 deg bevel on it and use it for end grain tasks and wasting material away where you want more control/refinement than the scrub plane allows.

  11. #41
    Quote Originally Posted by Rock Eulo View Post
    I had the BU Jointer but didn't like it for the simple fact I couldn't use it as a straight edge while I worked. I now use a LN #7, much better for me.

    Can you please elaborate on the statement "couldn't us it as a straight edge"? I'm not sure I understand.

  12. #42
    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Kraakenes View Post
    So.. If one has a Scrub and a Shooting plane.

    Which of the three Bevel Up / Low angle Smoother, Jack, Jointer, is the most "useless" and could be swapped out with a Bevel Down with Chipbreaker.

    Other than my block plane I have no experience with BU planes. (And I'm just edging out of beginner phase... so take appropriate grain of salt).

    I have a LN #5 BD with cambered iron, and a LN scrub (obviously with cambered iron). I don't consider them interchangeable. The scrub worked great for planing down a board edge that I had an inch or so of material to remove. I've done the same with the #5, though with the less aggressive camber it takes longer.

    My scrub plane was actually the 2nd premium tool I bought. For a few early projects I tried to use it, where in my recent experience, has shown I should have used a cambered jack plane. The scrub is just way to aggressive for planing down to thickness in the face of a board (At least for me) and the blade width is too narrow so you are making many more passes, each with deep dawks.

  13. #43
    Quote Originally Posted by Erich Weidner View Post
    Can you please elaborate on the statement "couldn't us it as a straight edge"? I'm not sure I understand.

    This is probably what Rock means: On most planes, the sole and the side are flat planes along the the entire length of the plane, and they intersect in a straight line that also runs the length of the plane. If you tilt the plane to the side, it will rest on that straight line, and you can use it as a straightedge. Plane the workpiece, then tilt the plane to the side and check for light passing underneath; if you see light, then it's not flat.

    The sides of the Veritas BU jointer aren't ground flat along the entire length. They're ground flat for only about half the length, which means you can't use the tilting method to check for flatness. (It's too awkward to try to tilt it and keep just the front half -- the part where the side is ground flat -- on the workpiece.)

    Here's the BU jointer:

    05P3701-veritas-bevel-up-jointer-plane-a2-f-08.jpg

    For comparison, here's the Lie Nielsen #7:

    1-7.jpg

  14. #44
    Quote Originally Posted by Winston Chang View Post
    This is probably what Rock means: On most planes, the sole and the side are flat planes along the the entire length of the plane, and they intersect in a straight line that also runs the length of the plane.
    Got it. I didn't realize they weren't flat like the BD planes. I use the plane for this (checking for flat) as part of the work. That would be a big strike against the BD jointer for me.

    (Funny thing is I own one, but it is still in the closet never used it... I went a little nuts buying stuff a few years back)

  15. #45
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    Quote Originally Posted by Erich Weidner View Post
    ... That would be a big strike against the BD jointer for me. ...
    Uh, I'm pretty sure you meant BU jointer there.

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