Hand Plane - First time buying

[steven c newman]

Hmmm, anyone enjoy the little Show &Tell? or, are we too busy selling other planes?

Maybe I just wasted my time putting the picture show together....

[Victor Price Jr]

/smh I did say that didn’t I?

[David Bassett]

Oh, I think I’m going to try a couple of type 19 Stanley’s. What angle should’ve they be sharpened to? 25 or 30?

The (common) Stanley bench planes are bevel-down, so the bed sets your cutting angle and all you need to worry about is clearance and longevity. Clearance of 12-deg is considered plenty. (I read someone say 7-deg was the minimum, but I don't know under what conditions.) Therefore, with a 45-deg bed, you need 33-deg or less. Shoot for 30, more or less, and you should be good to go. (If you're jigged up for 25, that'd work too, but maybe not last as long.)

[glenn bradley]

More show and tell? ;-)

#1- The Apron Plane I prefer and a couple of other block planes that have been morphed into quasi-No 3's.

LA BLock n Apron.jpg

A bevel up smoother that I really like but . . .

BU Smoother test 1-r.jpg

I would leave it for a No 4 (in this case an MF No 9) if I could only have one.

MF No 9 (2).jpg

The ever-useful LAJ.

SB-Guide-Rail-3.jpg

A BU Jointer.

Low Profile Benchstop (3).jpg

I could do almost anything with these four but, I would really miss my shoulder planes ;-)

[Victor Price Jr]

Thanks for the info David. This has been a very helpful post. I really appreciate everyone’s feedback.

[Anuj Prateek]

Sharing my experience, may be of help.

Buy the first one or two planes based on wood length you are going to work with now or in near future. Rest you can add as needed.

Till few months back my most used plane was LV Custom #7. If you are going to work with long boards (un-jointed, 24" and more) then start here.

Now a days I work with 12-20" length wood pieces. I am using Wood River #5 most of the time. #7 is finding hardly any use.

Instead of block plane I would suggest a LA bevel up plane first. It works like a dream on end grains. With a plane from LV you can have one or two irons with different bevel angles. I have a LV LA Jack and if it's on bench I rarely reach for block plane.

I have a Wood River block plane. I use it mostly for rough work (on glue line) or when I need a very small plane.

I have a Stanley #3 and LV Custom #4. These are reserved as smoother. Though I often end up using #3 when working on smaller wood pieces. #3 can easily replace a block plane, for my usage. Smoother as smoother is the least used plane for me. I can't arrive at final finish without sandpaper. I guess it takes time to learn to use smoother effectively.

Well, if you can save some money on "not urgent" planes and buy a few joinery planes. I find router plane and plough, kind of indispensable.

Good luck with your plane search!

[Derek Cohen]

Hi Everyone, this is my first post and hopefully I can get some advice. I've primarily been woodworker who uses machines, but I'm find that I need more options. I'm planning on buying a few hand planes in the near future, and I'd like some opinions. I like to buy a tool once, and keep it, so I don't mind spending a little more up front from a quality tool. I already know the opinions will all be varied and informative, so please give me what you got.

I'm planning on having a total of 4 planes, some of which I haven't decided on, some I have. The one's I haven't are the one's I need help with.

#1 Block plane - I keep going round and round over this one. I'm stuck between the Veritas DX60 and the Lie-Neilsen 60 1/2 (can't make a decision on the standard or rabbit). I'm really hoping users who have these tools or have both, can give me some feedback regarding: adjustable mouth, blade adjustment, shape for medium sized hands, etc.

#2 Smoothing plane - Pretty sure I'm going with the LN 4 1/2 on this. (This will likely be the last of the 4 planes, that I buy)

#3 Jack plane - Pretty sure i'm going with the LN 5 1/2 here as well. This will likely be the second plane I buy. Block plane being first.

#4 Jointer plane - kind of at a loss on this one. The LN and the WoodRiver both look good with similar features, do not like the looks of the veritas' rounded shapes on the heel, but that's just a style choice. In regards to weight, comfort for hand size, etc.

I've been reading reviews, watching youtube non-stop, trying to get the best feel, but would really like some personal feedback.

Sorry for the long rant, but I appreciate any information or opinion you guys can provide.

Hi Victor

I am coming in late, and quite reluctant to make a suggestion as you must be overwhelmed by the suggestions. I do have a comment to make, however, which may not be what you are wanting to hear ...

Since you have a thicknesser and planer, forgo the #7 jointer at this time. Also forgo the jack plane. They are not a "must have' with the machines in the back ground.

The two planes you could get the most out out are the block plane and the smoother.

Which block plane? Both the DX60 and 60 1/2 are the best available and either would last a lifetime. I use both, and it's a tie: the Veritas has the better adjustments and blade steel (PM-V11), while the LN is a tad more comfortable in my hand.

Smoother? If depends how gung-ho you are. If you just want to get going, get a BU plane - the Veritas BU Smoother is amazing. If you would prefer a bevel down plane and are interested in setting a chipbreaker, a "super smoother" may be the ticket since you are smoothing flat boards: LN #5 1/2

Don't forget the sharpening stuff!

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Dan Kraakenes]

I could take you through my "journey"..
You could purchase used planes.. its cheaper and you can find great planes for little money.

I´m more in the camp of we have companies now that make new quality products, so I should spend my money on supporting those companies, or they will go under.
Or all we have left is used planes again.


Using "normal High End planes"... Lie Nilsen or Lee Valley.

LN : Lie Nilsen : Old school copies beefed up.
LV : Lee Valley: Science based and improving planes using body mechanics, quality of life upgrades (set screws) and metallurgy (PM-V11)

Regular advise, for your need.
Block: #60 1/2
Smoother: #4
Jack : #5
Jointer: #7


You have Big hands or larger built?
Block: #60 1/2
Smoother: #4 1/2
Jack: #5 1/2
Smoother: #7


I have big hands, and my ancient #4 feels to cramped.
So I was ready to go for 4 1/2, 5 1/2..

But, there is a another choice..
Bevel Up planes.. or LV Custom planes.
Your hands are not cramped up into the frog/blade..


BU : Bevel Up without Chip breaker.
BD : Bevel Down with Chip breaker.

I personally chose:
LN : #60 1/2
LV : BU Smoother
LV : BU Jack
LV : BU Jointer


BU: Simpler, lighter, a bit more complex to put camber on blade and controls "tear out" by sharpening a tiny secondary bevel on blade.
BD: A bit more complex, heavier, easier to put camber on blade and controls "tear out" by setting the chip breaker very close to the blade edge.

Im not sure yet if I regret choosing the BU compared to BD Custom...


But most advice I have seen during the years for starting with hand planes are in this order.
1. Bevel Up Jack (all are #5-5 1/2 sized and often called Low Angle Jack)
2. #60 1/2 Block
3. #4 or 4 1/2 Smoother
4. #7 Jointer


So...
LN BD: Classic design, pretty, fast Bailey adjustment, heavier, maybe cramped grip (many prefer it!!)
LV Custom: Newer design, ergonomically better, better blade steel, set screws for lateral adjustments, open grip, adjustable mouth, slower Norris adjuster
LV BU: Simpler, ergonomically better, better blade steel, set screws for lateral adjustments, open grip, adjustable mouth, slower Norris adjuster



Good luck...

.

[Nicholas Lawrence]

Place has been pretty quiet lately. Nice to see a good “spend my money for me” thread and a sharpening thread to get things livened up.

[Mike Kreinhop]

Hmmm, anyone enjoy the little Show &Tell? or, are we too busy selling other planes?

Maybe I just wasted my time putting the picture show together....

Well, since you asked, I usually don't look at any of your images because the contrast is too washed out on my monitor (27-inch iMac), the backgrounds are too cluttered, and clicking on them doesn't help much for the resolution. I think I remember reading in one of your posts that you use a one-size-fits-all post processing standard so your images will comply with restrictions on another website.

[steven c newman]

Yep....THIS site ....

Shows up fine on mine....

[Mike Henderson]

Yep....THIS site ....

Shows up fine on mine....

I didn't really look at your pictures until you asked the question but here's my comments. My first suggestion is to make the pictures larger. I like to use 1500 pixels across. The web site will scale the pictures to fill the screen but if someone clicks on that image they will get the full resolution. That allows someone to see more of the detail in the pictures.

Beyond that, attention to proper focus is really important. Some lesser improvements are to pose your image so that the object is the major focus of the picture. For example, if you are taking a picture of a hand plane, using a plain background, such as a white sheet, will bring attention to the plane and not to the background. The position of the camera to the image should be selected carefully to show the object in the proper perspective and with the detail you want to convey.

If you post process your pictures, such as with PhotoShop, adjust the lighting and contrast so that the details of the image are visible. For example, oftentimes detail is not visible in the shadows but with some adjustment in PhotoShop you can lighten up the shadows so that shadow detail is visible.

If you don't do post processing, attention to the lighting setup in the shot is very important so that strong shadows are minimized.

Anyway, just a few suggestions. Other people may have some of their own.

Mike

[Victor Price Jr]

I just want to say thank you to everyone so far. I appreciate your time and effort in providing me some valuable opinions and sites I can use for research. I'm working on starting with a LA block plane (Stanley for now, probably with a LV blade) and 1 or 2 Stanley type 19s (3 and 4 I think to start off with). I'll play with those for a while and get the feel of anything before making any bigger purchases.

[Andrew Seemann]

That sounds like a good plan. I started about the same way, except with lower quality planes. Back then availability wasn't what it is today, and I was poor

[Tony Wilkins]

I just want to say thank you to everyone so far. I appreciate your time and effort in providing me some valuable opinions and sites I can use for research. I'm working on starting with a LA block plane (Stanley for now, probably with a LV blade) and 1 or 2 Stanley type 19s (3 and 4 I think to start off with). I'll play with those for a while and get the feel of anything before making any bigger purchases.

just do your research on Stanley made 70’s or later.