Lie-Nielsen

Second that !

Joe Rogers, Northern Virginia

>Just in the last week they made an adjustment that corected my order with remarkable speed. JR

Re: Lie-Nielsen

Dan Clermont in Burnaby

>Yep.

Truly phenomenal people. They always respond to my e-mails in a timely fashion and like they truly care.

The tools are pretty good as well. I find the fit and finish on my LN's to be second to none and they are worth every penny.

Now id they only made the 4.5 in Bronze for a reasonable chunk of money..........

Dan Clermont

Re: Lie-Nielsen

Derek Cohen (in Perth Australia)

>I actually have more LN planes and tools than LV ones, and have had numerous dealings with LN over the years. One particular experience stands out. About a year and a half ago I bought a new (unused) #60 1/2 LA Block Plane on eBay (got it for a good price otherwise would have bought it direct). The adjuster did not work correctly, so I emailed LN for advice on repairing it. Tom L-N replied within the hour with instructions what to do, plus offered to sent a free replacement adjuster. If that wasn't enough, he emailed me the next day to see how I had got on. A craftsman and a gentleman. (incidentally, the adjuster just needed a little straightening and was fine).

Regards from Perth

Derek

Re: Lie-Nielsen's bronze 4.5

Dave Thompson

>Similar positive experiences with LN....

Yes, I'm also waiting for that bronze 4.5 that Tom hinted at for their 25th aniversary. Though I'd prefer the white bronze, only because I'm under the impression it would be even heavier and no corrosion marring (not much concern). On the flip side, I'm not clear on why white bronze is so much more money. I'm under the impression it's just german silver (copper-zinc-nickel alloy).

Dave

Re: Lie-Nielsen

Steve Mackay

>Yes Sir ! I love folks who at least ACT like they want my money ! Inside they might hate my guts but I'd never know it !

Re: Lie-Nielsen's bronze 4.5

david marcus brown

>I think you're right about the composition of the white bronze. I looked around on google and it is probably "german silver" which is defined as "a silver-white alloy, hard and tough, but malleable and ductile, and quite permanent in the air. It contains nickel, copper, and zinc in varying proportions, and was originally made from old copper slag at Henneberg. A small amount of iron is sometimes added to make it whiter and harder. It is essentially identical with the Chinese alloy packfong. It was formerly much used for tableware, knife handles, frames, cases, bearings of machinery, etc., but is now largely superseded by other white alloys."

I imagine the cost is simply a fact of economies of scale. The white bronze costs more because it's only used for limited editions. I imagine that if they made it in the same quantities as the regular bronze or iron that it would cost the same.

Re: Lie-Nielsen

DickL in Tampa

>Derek, I'm shocked. SHOCKED I tell you. You have LN tools? How am I to reconcile that with the statements of that fellow on another forum who was convinced that you were a paid shill for LV.

Just kidding. I have enjoyed your plane reviews. (Alf's too) Keep them coming.

German silver...

HC Sakman @ Victoria, BC

>...that I know of can get tarnished pretty badly overtime, though it remains shiny for a while once is polished. (longer than regular silver)

Chico...

Re: Lie-Nielsen *LINK*

Dan Clermont in Burnaby

>Derek doesn't really review the LN's only the LV's or at least for the most part.

Not trying to start anything but most of these reviews are of LV tools and some other personal profjects (which are quite informative)


Derek's reviews

Re: Lie-Nielsen

mikew

>My experiences are much like Derek's--and the rest of the respondees. Tom & Company are top-notch people. Quality attracts quality.

With all the negative threads concerning people's gripes, it's always good to have a positive thread. So thanks, Dean!

Take care, Mike

who still owns a few more planes from LN and regrets selling those he did...

German silver isn't silver (Ag)

David Barnett - SW Florida

>It's just a name for what is actually a white brass and gets it's color from added nickel. There is no elemental silver in it whatsoever. Same thing with nickel 'silver'. Sterling silver has .925 silver (the remaining .075 is usually copper but does not have to be). The new tarnish-resistant silver trade-marked 'Argentium' is a sterling because it contains at least .925 Ag. 'Fine silver' is .999 silver and is considered pure for coining and jewelry, is whiter than sterling but softer, as well but does not tarnish in the same way as sterling. The tarnish in sterling is from the reaction with sulphur compounds in air, largely a product of the industrial revolution. THat's right, copper-bearing silver alloys did not readily tarnish before smoke-belching industries came along. Proximity with eggs will do, of course.

Re: Lie-Nielsen Canada

Brent Smith

>Just wanted to chime in here that Rob Cosman, LN's Canadian distributor, is as much a gentleman and as much a pleasure to deal with as everyone says Tom Lie-Nielsen is.

Brent

Re: Lie-Nielsen Canada

Dan Clermont in Burnaby

>Yep,

99% of my dealings are with Rob Cosman or Allan (his assistant) and responses are quick and knowledgeable.

Rob is a great Craftsman and a pretty darn good salesman.LN should be happy to have him as part of their company

Dan Clermont

Yep. Rob's a great guy

Stephen in Ottawa

>No direct dealings with Tom LN, besides some email inquiries which he replied to promptly, but Rob is a fine person to deal with and very helpful.

- Stephen

Good point !

Darren

>

Oh, holy god of the slippery slope

Marc in Luxembourg

>Late in the evening this sounds like... hm... I don't know. What are you talking about guys? I for my part think, this is aaaabsolutely average. One prove, I have some tools of the brand. As earlier on, I admit, some owned some Stanleys, now I think, we have to go to have some LNs. As they perform gorgeously fine in our time, are well-designed for the job, customer service via web fine too, why not? Or is there anything else? He?

Marc, in spring not so serious.

Re: Lie-Nielsen's bronze 4.5

Dan Clermont in Burnaby

>My understanding is it will be yellow bronze although I concur about the weight and the non-staining or marring of the wood which can be found from other yellow bronze tools which don't get used.

Must admit though that my planes get used allot so I won;t have a problem with yellow bronze

Dan Clermont

white bronze weight difference?

Dave Thompson

>I was wondering if anyone could comment on the weight difference of white bronze. I have a vague recollection from long ago reading that it was heavier than the yellow Mn-bronze that LN uses, but don't recall the source or the details. Any ideas?

Thanks,

Dave

Re: white bronze weight difference? *LINK*

David Barnett - SW Florida

>There are SO many alloys that may be called white bronze. This includes bronzes (copper alloys containing tin) that contain any whitening metal, usually nickel, but can also be used to include alloys that would otherwise be called brasses (copper alloys containing zinc). Technically, all copper-tin alloys containing at least .780 Cu are 'bronzes', but there are traditional nomenclatural deviations according to region, period, and industrial use (for example Phoenician bronze was 90/10 copper and tin). One of the earliest bronzes was actually a copper-arsenic alloy, but one can assume the 'expertise' lost in smelting due to arsenic bearing gases was rather common. Besides, copper-tin bronzes are less prone to chip than copper-tin, and uniformity of tin ore is far more predictable than arsenicals. Today, you can find white bronzes that are .400 tin although this is often used for plating or mirrors. Mild bronze is only about .030 tin. Bell metal is characteristically .250 tin. So... I suppose you'll need to know the what's in any particular alloy to guess its weight. I would imagine L-N could give you those figures.

Bronze and gunmetals I've cast have mostly been very sophisticated alloys (often available as ingot or shot from art casting and jewelry suppliers -- try RioGrande.com) but it's fun to experiment with the older simpler combinations, too. So many beautiful metals, and most of them will work nicely for tools. Just throw a few (preferably not too toxic) metals in the crucible and see what happens. Maybe read up on it first, heh.


Fun with copper

Errata

David Barnett - SW Florida

>1. Besides, copper-tin bronzes are less prone to chip than copper-ARSENIC, and uniformity of tin ore is far more predictable than arsenicals.

2. Today, you can find white bronzes that are .400 tin although this is often used for plating or mirrors. Mild bronze is only about .300 tin.

(not .030)

Erratum in the above errata.

David Barnett - SW Florida

>Dafter by the minute, apparently...

Mild bronze IS .030 tin, if anybody even gives a rat's arse.

2. Today, you can find white bronzes that are .400 tin although this is often used for plating or mirrors. Mild bronze is only about .300 tin.

(not .030)

Actually

Marc in Luxembourg

>I wanted to tell you this: You are all right, when you say LN is high quality, good service, easy contact, easy handling ... What I am angry about is, why you can buy an electron burner in your local store for some hundred dollars, but no LN or LV, or some other decent working plane. Do they have that noname stuff only to sell the power tools? Hey man, do not buy the handplane, that's no good, come on over here and have this power handplane. Instead when I want to try out a LN, I have to drive 8 hours to come to such a store. Yes I'm angry that such a nice store as is the shop in Warren isn't my local tool store.

Regards, Marc

I know...

HC Sakman @ Victoria, BC

>I was just saying that it was marketed as "tarnish-free" in the past, and it's not true. In my incomplete post, I meant to say it'd be suicidle if any plane maker used such alloy.

Chico...

Re: Lie-Nielsen

Hank Knight from SC

>I have had a number of dealings with Lie-Nielsen over the years and they are fine people with wonderful products. I feel like I've stepped back in time 50 or 60 years when I deal with them to a time when people cared about their products and their customers and took pride in both. It's too bad that attitude is almost universally absent from today's market place. Three cheers for LN and those few others who keep it alive.