Low Angle Jointer and Smooth Plane... Keep or Sell?

[Derek Cohen]

Sorry Tom. I did not intend to imply that you would not have worked woods with complex grain. Just that you had established your way of working wood (using Stanley planes) long before the BU planes began to become popular.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Mark Gibney]

I never bought one of either because I never had a need for one. I do have one of each, and multiples of some, of all the other types, and they do get used.

I have to say I really enjoyed this post, Tom. It reads like a page of Victorian childrens' poetry in a dusty book, the sort of lines my mother can still quote at will.

[Matthew Hills]

My LAJ is getting some occasional use:
- edge jointing (no camber on blade and low center of mass)
- toothed blade is good for some rougher work where a cambered blade can get really deep tearout

Matt

[Jacob Mac]

Projects change, needs change, shop size, desire, physical ability etc. I would keep them around.

[Thomas Crawford]

I second Derek's opinion on the high angle secondary bevel. I have Stanley #3 and 4 1/2 that I like to use, but for grain that has any complication at all I use my BU smoother with a 50 degree secondary bevel. I know some people might be able to set up a traditional plane to do it but for me the effort in trying to figure out where to put the d**n frog and how big a cut to take are not worth my time. If I didn't have the bevel up smoother I'd at least have a LN #3 with a high angle frog.

I have the bevel up smooth, jack and jointer. I could most easily part with the jointer. The jack I have multiple blades for (25 and ~40 degree) and it does most of its duty on my shooting board.

[Thomas Wilson]

Everyone seems to have missed the possibility of using your planes as objets d’art on your coffee table. This is sort of a joke but I did have a “tool wall” in my apartment when I was working away from home for a couple of years. The planes and saws flanked my Studley tool cabinet
print. I also had a silver nut dish on the filled with various nuts of the mechanical sort. Still have the nut dish
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[Prashun Patel]

Surprised you don’t use that jointer. I love it. Low center of gravity just feels better to me.

I sold my smoother because my num 4 works so well.

[glenn bradley]

If the tools are unused (including as decorative or collectable items) then they are just taking up space. If you do not use a jointer much and have been at it for a while I do not know that you would suddenly "need" a jointer. It is hard to imagine not needing a smoother as I have 4 that all get used for different smoothing operations. all of our answers will vary depending on what we do in our own shops. Good luck.

P.s. Prashun and I are both in the LV BU Jointer-lovers club.

[Erich Weidner]

Hi Glenn,

I do actually use my BD #5, #8, and #4 on every project. As well as my BU block plane. But I've just never used the BU jointer or smoother.

[J. Greg Jones]

I keep telling myself I should part with my BU jointer because the non-smooth sides on a jointer is a deal breaker for me. I’m constantly canting the jointer along the board to check the surface, so I stick with a Miller’s Falls #22 for jointing tasks. Otherwise, the BU jointer is a joy to use.

[Jim R Edwards]

If you dont use the tools I would sell them and buy something you want. The BD planes you have will work with most North American hardwoods.