How many times has this been hashed over?

Re: How many times has this been hashed over?

Angelo in Cornwall, NY

>Hey David, Glad to see you made it to the Dark Side....Handplanes are like lathes....once you get one you're hooked.

I will let the more experienced crowd answer as to which is best but the LV's or the LN are great tools. The two you have are actua;;y "Stanley" planes..they bought the patent from bailey. If you have an actual "bailey" you should probably not use it.

I know others will ask so I'll do it first...What do you want to use the planes for? That will determine which to get. I started with a #4 and #5, added several block planes and now have a 3,6,7,long woodie jointer, scraper plane, etc.

Reconditiong isn't that hard. Check the articles section..there are 2 or 3 articles and check the archives, there is some good info there to.

Re: How many times has this been hashed over?

Jack from Maine

>Welcome to the quiet place. My opinion? Learn everything you can about the two planes you have. Learn about handplaning by making them work and using them. As to how? A good place to start is The Handplane Book by Garrett Hack. And keep checking here. I learned quite alot just by frequenting these forums.Stanley bench planes are good quality tools when properly tuned.---Crackerjack

Re: How many times has this been hashed over?

David Hammond, in Powder Springs GA

>Angelo - thanks for the response.

Woodturning really did hook me, so right now my Dad and I are seriously persuing a woodturning business - a VB36 and other tools followed the purchase of my first Grizzly lathe, and we're planning a big Open House this June. So, these hand planes and hand tools are just for a hobby: what I'd like to make, first, will probably be a jewelry box. I've got two peices of quarter-sawn spalted white ash, and some walnut, that I'd like to use. I've got a band saw that I'll use to rough dimension the wood, then I'd like to go to hand tools - hand planes, and learn to cut some dovetails, maybe some half blinds too. Next project in mind will probably be a chest - wide planks, wide dovetails, arched top, iron strap hinges, etc. So, I know I'll need a good back saw eventually, but I'd like to start with a plane. I don't think I want to tackle tuning up one of these old planes just yet, though I have read just about every article here about the subject, and it doesn't sound too daunting.

What do you guys say about building the Shepherd Thumb plane, or Chariot? I like both of them, and the Lee Valley block planes - is it just a toss up? Just preference and my choice? Or if I did an excellent job on the Shepherd, would it be a better tool? Thanks.

David

Re: How many times has this been hashed over?

Wiley Horne--Glendora CA

>Hi David,

Every single person on this side was in your shoes at some point in their life, so the question is very familiar to us all and never really gets old.

The learning curve goes something like this: What is sharp? How do you get a blade sharp? What does a properly functioning plane feel like? What does a proper shaving look like? How do you get an inop plane to make a proper shaving? From there, you go into how to plane a board flat, how to joint an edge, how to plane to a finished surface, and so on. But the early learning curve has a lot of meat in it.

My first two planes were an old beater Stanley Bedrock 605, which needed a lot of rehab--I mean, this plane could not have been sold for parts it was so thrashed--and a brand new LN4. It was very helpful having a new quality plane in good working order, because that gives you a solid idea of what a plane should feel like, and what a shaving looks like. At the same time, doing the rehab from the ground up--or else building your own plane--is about the only way you'll ever learn what makes a plane do its job. It's very helpful to have both. By the way, that beater 605 is a fine plane today.

You mentioned the LV block plane. That is a solid choice--and there are others--for helping you get your feet on the ground. You will also want to begin your sharpening journey at once. Once you are able to sharpen, and to make a good shaving, you'll be ready to move into rehabbing your Stanleys, and/or building from kit or from scratch.

Welcome aboard! Wiley

Re: How many times has this been hashed over?

Jonathan Kaplan (OR)

>David,

Others will no doubt supply better and more informed answers, but here's my $.02.

You already have what very likely can become two fine planes -- they will likely need work, but there are very good instructions for doing so in the Articles section (as was mentioned above).

Infill kits (of the Shepard sort) are supposed to be wonderful, and, properly made, will likely perform 'better' in some sense than a standard metal body plane. But if you are concerned that you don't know how your planes *should* perform, buying a kit won't fix that. You'd be better off buying a well-made standard metal-body plane, such as the LN or LV. And if you want to use it as a guide to tuning your #4 and #5 planes, a block plane might not be the best guide as it is a rather different kind of beast.

But it sounds to me like you don't need a plane to use as a guide to fixing up your old ones -- if you are willing to even consider an infill kit, I'm sure you are more than up to fixing up your old ones. With a new iron and new chipbreaker, and a fairly easy tune-up, your two planes will likely perform wonderfully...

A block plane would likely be a nice addition to that set, but have fun w/ those two while you decide which to get!

Again, all IMHO, etc. :)

Jonathan

Re: How many times has this been hashed over?

David Hammond, in Powder Springs GA

>Thanks Wiley - I've been sitting here reading some of Bob Smalser's articles, and others on rehabbing, sharpening, etc. There is an unbelievable amount of information here, and I'm just trying to soak some of it up - thanks for adding to the tid-bits I'm tucking away to take with me to the shop.

Sounds like I need to work on what I've already got - spend my first few bucks on a new iron, and some sharpening stuff, and get the two planes going that are sitting in my shop. I'll be full of questions as I slowly pursue this journey, thanks again.

David

Re: How many times has this been hashed over?

David Hammond, in Powder Springs GA

>Thanks for your $.02 - it's worth quite a bit to me, as I would fishing in the dark without WC; the articles and people here are incredibly helpful.

I think the idea here is that I need to work on what I've got - get myself a good iron and chip breaker like you said, some glass and sandpaper, and do some learning: get these two planes sharp and working, then start drooling at those purty Shepherds when I know a little better about what I need. :o)

Thanks again.

David

Re: How many times has this been hashed over?

Jim in Burlington Ontario

>I like the LV low angle block plane. If you want to figure out how to use them and work on it, plane all your scraps down expecially the nasty grained ones.