thedovetailjoint

Great article and an excellent thread of comments!

There will always be demand, and dare I say need for low cost, entry-level tools; and these tools have ALWAYS been made in the third world. Heck, 130 years ago the third world was the USA! As for LN, if WC is going to have a product value engineered, which tool should they emulate? No one copies #2!

I have an Ace Hardware private label Millers Falls plane from 1993 that was made with the same care for design, material and workmanship as my old 1985 Ford Mustang. In both cases these were pieces of garbage. Would it have been better if WC copied THAT plane?

As for patent protection, Thomas Lie-Nielsen has no patents on his bench planes, and if he did he would be entitled to the full coverage of protection afforded to patent holders in exchange for disclosing his innovations and putting them in the public domain at the end of the term of the patent. That’s the deal with the devil that all patent holders make. I just searched the US Patent office and see that Lie-Nielsen was recently granted a patent for a router plane, and in 2021 it will be fair game if anyone produces a faithful copy. That’s how it works.

That said, there are NO patent infringement or trade dress or copyright issues in this situation, even IF WC copied the LN product.

I’m fully plugged-in in my shop and only rarely reach for a plane. I’d love to own a WoodRiver plane and have never considered purchasing a Lie-Nielsen tool. Yes, they’re nice, but I just can’t justify it to myself. So many routers and so little time.

Is there anything cheese can't do? Nice video Gary.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvppFMRy0ZE