I make small stuff, (boxes, cutting boards, stuff like that). I purchased, a few years back, a Rali smoothing plane and somewhere along the line acquired a Stanley block plane. I am self taught and am still learning. I do not own a jointer so I have been using a friends jointer. It is great for milling up rough stock. However, sometimes, I’m at my own shop and in the middle of a project and need to just flatten something. As I said, I do small stuff, so it’s not a big deal. However, I know nothing about planes. I read the other post about “owning two planes” but even some of that I was lost on, hence the reason for my post.
1) is the Rali plane useful for anything? if so, what? I have the smoothing plane and a block plane.
2) how do I determine what kind of block plane I own from Stanley? I can’t seem to see a number on it.
3) I have alot of exotics and curly woods. (I had grand plans once upon a time, and some excess money…not the case now, at least the money). What plane (s) would be the best for working them?
4) is the block plane the best for end-grain? If not, what is?
5) lastly, of course, is money. I have, I figure, about $100-$150 to spend on a plane or planes. If I can get by with the Rali smoothing and the Stanley block, would I still need one of the “low-angle” planes? I have the Lee Valley catalog and found that but still am lost.
The best situation would be for me to buy a jointer. That is not going to happen, no money, less space. Also, since I have access where I work part-time, it’s hard to justify at this point. Plus, I don’t do big stuff.
I just need some advice to get through all the info. Thanks.
Replies
Fr highly figured woods the low angle plane works best....a low angle block plane is a good tool to have with and adjustable mouth. In addition it would be good to have a low angle smoothing plane for pieces of wood in the size you seem to be refering to. Veritas and Lie Neilsen both make very good low angle smoothers with adjustable mouths. The stanley low angle bloch is what I ahve and it works great for less tha $100
Wicked Decent Woodworks
(oldest woodworking shop in NH)
Rochester NH
" If the women dont find you handsome, they should at least find you handy........yessa!"
I work a lot like you have described your situation. I have little space for equipment.
I have both the LN Low Angle smoother and jack and a LA Stanley block with a Hock blade and I wouldn't trade them for anything. They seldom get put away because I use them so much.
The Jack would work for you for a jointer, if your pieces aren't too long and you could probably get away with the smoother that you have. The low angle planes just seem to perform better on the wild grained woods.
You only "need" a low angle plane if you are working on end grain. Low angle planes are designed for working end grain. You can buy high angle blades to make them act like a regular angle or even a york pitch angle. If you work with exotics then you want a high angle plane not a low angle plane. Lee Valley sells a wooden plane that I think they call a Taiwanese wooden pull plane. I have not used it but it is supposed to be very good on figured wood. Peter
Low angle planes are designed for working end grain.. You bet.. BUT.. I work with Purpleheart ALOT.. May have to stop because I think I'm getting a rash from it.. Anyway.. Purple heart can get really nasty in some places.. Sort of like running into a knot that is NOT there! Low angle works good in those places...
Or better yet.. A card scraper....
Good point, Will George. I sometimes think that we feel that a low angle plane is the right plane of choice on difficult wood because it is easier to push. It presents a sharper angle of attack to the wood and will therefore plane easier. The result of the planned wood is what we are after though. Hmmmm interesting... Peter
Will
With nasty grained woods, I use a low angle jack blade, with a the blade having a secondary bevel of say, 37-42 degrees, to get the effective angle in the 55 degree range. I use this on crotches and burls with extreme success.
Jeff
on crotches and burls ??
I can't affors them... I just have knots...
Check out ebay for planes by steve knight or go to http://www.knight-toolworks.com
He sometimes sells them on ebay and you can get a good deal. I own a couple and they are great. Look for his smoothing plane for the exotics. I have used mine on quilted, curly and birdseye maple and they all had no tearout
Robin
for a good case study of Stanley planes check out http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/stan0a.html
scroll to do the bottom and look.
Low angle block planes are best for end grain.
In general, hi angle smoothers are best for difficult/gnarly/burly woods. Why? They act more like scrapers.
For $150 you can buy several old/used Stanley planes that will meet your needs (the way I understand them from your post). The trick(s): 1) to find them, and 2) to tune them to do the job. As someone mentioned e.g. the Jack plane (Stanley #5 or equivalent) will do for a jointer on small pieces, as well as for other jobs (i.e. Jack of all trades)...
Lastly:
>>> However, I know nothing about planes.
Not too late to learn, they'll open up new horizons for you. Even if you have a jointer, small pieces ("small stuff") are not safe to use on a powered machine. YMMV...
Robynlynn,
I was just like you in my use of planes before an old time North Carolina furniture maker taught me about their use. Using a properly tuned hand plane is both more enjoyable and safer that using power tools. I recommend you find a Stanley #4, #5 and a #7 for your smoothing chores. You can still find them on E-Bay for very little money in user condition. Properly tuned (you can find articles in FWW and on the web to help you tune them properly) used planes work better than many new planes at a fraction of the cost. If you have some difficult or highly figured wood to work, a #10 block plane is a low-cost choice. It has a blade angle less likey to cause tearout.
As you become more proficient, you can even learn to make you own wood planes. It's easy, once you get the hang of it. Good luck and have fun
Joe
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