Hey all... It's been quite a while since I posted. The last year or so hasn't been great. Anyway, that has absolutely nothing to do with this post.
A couple years ago out in Iowa at Handworks I so a thing of beauty. It was the plastic prototype for a Veritas Shooting Plane. Now the Stanley 51 is sweet, as is the Lie-Nielsen version of it. But I really like the the new approach that Lee Valley took. One of my favorite things about all their planes is the use of set screws to help position the blade. I also like the Norris adjuster. But the biggy is the adjustable mouth. Plus, no offense Tom, I just like the feel of Veritas planes. They fit me.
So anyway, flash forward to today, I finally took the plunge and got one (complete with the PM-V11 blade). It arrived today and I felt like a kid on Christmas opening it up. I started cleaning it up and, having just watched Chuck Bender's video, I put my Woodpeckers Try Square on it and was actually shocked to see that it wobbled. It appeared that the plane was out of square. Now, I trust my Woodpeckers Try Square, but I pulled out my Starrett Double Square to double check and got the same results. So I checked each of them on my Woodpeckers Precision Angle Reference Plate which clearly indicates angle from 0 to 55 degrees in 1/4 degree increments, and both squares were... well square. Now I was completely convinced already but I dug out my "in the box, only used once before" Bridge City TS-2V2 Try Square and got the exact same wobble. Finally, with the utmost care and reverence I checked it with my 150+/- year old (and still perfectly dead accurate) Mathieson & Son Try Square and guess what? Yeah, still out of square. So I pulled out a Bevel a Bevel Gauge and checked it against the before referenced Angle Reference Plate and it is a quarter of a degree off. Instead of 90 degrees, it's 89.75 degrees.
OK, I don't know what is an acceptable tolerance so I call. The guy I talked to said that they talk in thousandths of an inch, so I got out my feeler gauge and with my Woodpecker's Square I measured the gap along the face (the one with the blade) referenced from the base I got anywhere from .003" to .005" of a gap depending on the width of the face. Some parts of the face are wider than others, and naturally the gap gets wider the further away you measure from the reference edge. He said I could return it and they would send me another, but that it may be exactly the same.
So, here's my question:
What is an acceptable tolerance? He said I their limit was typically 3-4 thousandths, but if I exchange it and the next one is just the same what have I achieved? Before you all start saying that I can sand & sand & sand until I get it perfect, I am disabled and do not have the strength or stamina to do that. No, a quarter of a degree isn't much, but is it enough that you will see it in an assembled project? I mean, assuming I build it accurate, the shooting board and the plane should give me perfect 90 degree joints in one direction. Rob, if you see this, I am in absolutely NO WAY disparaging your products!!! I love your stuff, and have spent my fair share of money on your things to prove it. Your Low-Angle Block Plane with the Tote & Knob options is my favorite plane. I reach for it more than any other.
I don't know, what would you guys & gals do?