Wooden Planes anyone?!?

[Mark Kelly]

Everyone here, it seems, talks about all sorts of LN, Stanley, Clifton, etc. planes. What about wooden planes?

I am intrigued by wooden planes, and, in fact, purchased a used wooden jointer. Haven't had much time with it yet, so not sure how much I like it.

Anyone use wooden planes? Do you prefer them over cast iron planes? Anyone every build one? I plan on building a small wooden block plane for my son who is more than excited to work with me in the shop, but just a little to young to handle the cast steel planes.

[Pam Niedermayer]

...Anyone use wooden planes? Do you prefer them over cast iron planes? Anyone every build one?...

Yes. Yes. Yes.

Pam

[Mark Kelly]

Could you elaborate??

[Pam Niedermayer]

Could you elaborate??

Sure, for thousands of words. What do you want to know?

Pam

[Dave Anderson NH]

hi Mark-

I think that the tnedency to discuss Stanley style metal planes has mostly to do with their ready availability and the fact that you have to already be into hand tools before you discover the sources for the wooden ones. They also move with changes in temperature and humidity and this scares many folks off.

I regularly use my 24" wooden fore plane and my 28" jointer along with a 24" razee fore plane. I also have a half set of even numbered hollows and rounds and a number of beading planes and complex molders which see use as needed. For those who are intimidated by wooden planes, they do have a learning curve, but some practice will get you on the track. A prime source of information for any hand tool woodworker is Mike Dunbar's book: Restoring, Tuning, and Using Classic Woodworking Tools. It belongs in the library of any woodworker interested in hand tools.

[Roger Bell]

I own and use a number of planes, both iron and wood (all Western), including a several Stanley Bedrocks and a few fine English and Scottish infills. My hands-down favorite however, is a very old no-name razee fore plane in cuban mahogany with a laminated Marples Hibernia iron. The plane body is probably something a master craftsman fabricated for himself 125 years ago or so. I have never encountered cutting steel of such quality as is in this particular iron. The density and heft of the body is unbelievable compared to the typical beech-bodied plane and is rivalled only by rosewood or ebony. Not wishing to patch the mouth, or "true" the sole, I use this fine plane to rough joint edges prior to finishing with a #7 pattern. Light duty as befits its age and status, I think. As Dave has stated, it does take some trial and error to learn to hammer adjust the iron setting on a wooden plane, but once you get the hang of it, it is no more difficult to use, really, than the Stanley-Bailey.

The best thing about wooden planes is that there is not an great deal of user interest in wooden planes, so the prices have not spiked upwards for the more common ones as have those of the common adjustable cast iron patterns. It is not at all unusual to find fine quality wooden planes at very reasonable prices.

[Lloyd Robins]

I love my Knight Toolworks planes! I have a new jointer on order, and I am really looking forward to receiving it. So far my large planes are all Knight planes, and they are what has prompted my slide towards the Neanderthal side. Take a look at his site if you are interested in wooden planes. He is a good man to work with. www.knight-toolworks.com

[Mark Kelly]

Well, why do you like your wooden plane more than a cast iron?

Second, when you built your plane, did you find it difficult in getting the correct mouth opening? Or did you make it with an adjustable mouth?

Lastly (for now), did you find building your own plane difficult or easy overall? What types have you built?

[Mark Kelly]

[ For those who are intimidated by wooden planes, they do have a learning curve, but some practice will get you on the track.]

What is this learning curve you speak about? I am curious as to what I will come across when I pick up my jointer (and others in the future) and start using it.

[Davy Barr]

I have a Knight Toolworks purpleheart razee jointer and it's gorgeous. To top it off, it works great. Steve also sends gives directions on the use and care of his planes and they are tuned before he sends them to you. Great to deal with. Stanley jointers are going at high enough prices these days that I decided to just get a new Knight for close to the same price. That was a great decision.

[Pam Niedermayer]

Well, why do you like your wooden plane more than a cast iron?

Second, when you built your plane, did you find it difficult in getting the correct mouth opening? Or did you make it with an adjustable mouth?

Lastly (for now), did you find building your own plane difficult or easy overall? What types have you built?

I like my wooden planes because they work better than my metal ones. This may be due to my inability to tune metal planes, but I have no problem doing so for wooden planes. I still use some metal planes in situations where they are adequate, so I haven't even tried a wooden version. For example, the LN LA jack and Veritas 4.5 smoother (normally used on a shooting board). I also find the Record 043/044 plows superior.

I made a Japanese smoother in a class with a Japanese master dai maker, had no problems getting the correct mouth opening. Overall, it was easy, and it's a superior performer (6' long read through shavings); but there are details to be observed. Based on that class, I've made another, it was also easy, if exacting.

Pam

[Mark Singer]

Mark,
I have quite a few wooden planes. I have the ECE Primus series from the jointer, jack, English jack, reform smoother and block....all excellent. Especially the reform smoother! THey are light, very smooth gliding and no backlash on the adjuster. I have many old style...tap to adjust planes and I like several of those as well. I do have some great metal planes...several Lie Neilsen's , clifton #4, several older Stanleys...the wooden planes are excellent especially ECE because of the adjuster and solid bedding that make for chatter free planning.

[Dave Anderson NH]

Wooden planes require learning a new way of adjusting the irons, namely the use of a small hammer or mallet. This is a bit fussy at first and you will have to practice on each different style until you get a feel (literally) for the idiosyncracies of the different types of wedges and irons. Some planes, like those by Clark & Williams, use the traditional tapered iron while others use an iron of constant thickness. Each behaves slightly differently as you adjust it. In areas of the country with varying humidity and temperature you will occasionally have to reflatten the sole as the wood moves. A few months ago my C & W smoother wasn't behaving right so I threw a straight edge across the sole and found I needed to give it a slight adjustment to the sole to reflatten. Not a big thing, and it took me all of 10 minutes to get back to making shavings. You just have to be alert and be ready to perform the needed maintenence.

The learning curve on older wooden planes is a bit steeper since they often have been stored in less than benign environments. The irons backs often need to be flattened, The throat where the wedge goes often needs to be de-crudded of dirt, and the escapement needs to be cleaned with a tooth brush and mineral spirits. Additionally on hollows and rounds and complex molders with long thin tangs on the irons these need to be straightened and the tips of the tangs filed to remove the mushroom. Some irons will have to be reprofiled so they will conform to the shape of the sole and produce the correct profile. Older planes are a bit more work and there's more to learn about them, but are well worth the effort particularly if you are interested in making period furniture. Finally, a copy of Mike Dunbar's book will answer most of your questions and is really useful as a reference.

[Donnie Raines]

I have all metal bodied planes...I have tried the wooden bodies and I just simply could not get comfortable with them. I had a hrad time getting comfortable with the "frog" and how to set the iron with the wedge)I realize not all wooden planes are set up that way...but...thats what I used).

DonnieR

[Greg Wease]

Mark, I use a variety of planes in my shop, both metal and wood. I like the feel of wood on wood for smoothing and recently completed a Krenov style smoother using a Ron Hock blade that is especially sweet. It is very straightforward and doesn't require any specialized tools. Adjustment takes some time to get used to but the learning curve is steep. There are a number of sites that include instructions for building this type of plane. Here are a couple you might want to check out:

www.lowes.com/lkn?action=howTo&p=Build/BldHndPln

http://www.crfinefurniture.com/1page.../howplane.html

If I could afford one the ECE Primus Reform plane would head my list of most desirable hand tools.

Good Luck,
Greg Wease