Thread: What tool(s) have you been loving lately?

I like my hand plane. It's the bees knees. It is probably the greatest hand plane ever made by anyone in this house
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I quite enjoyed using my new Shinto saw rasp recently, really chews through material for rough shaping work and doesn't get clogged like traditional rasps.

Funny you should mention the rasp, I really need to look into getting some manual shaping tools soon!

That Shinto saw rasp looks the business, will look at getting one of those. Can anyone recommend a good manufacturer of more traditional style rasps? Only seen Bahco around Perth.

Going to fess up here, as a person who has only done building/construction work I am only just entering the world of the finer art of woodworking.

For me, the new favourite tools for me are decent sharp chisels and a crappy old hand plane that I bough many years ago from bunnings (or some place like that). The chisels I bought of a forum member and I think are Lee Neilson.

The last few years I have been reading a lot about timber. I go camping, I use my hatchets to whittle down wood then use my leatherman to go finer, the idea only being to learn to understand grain. I am taking those lessons to my crappy hand plane and decent chisels to further refine my understanding of timber. I still have a lot to learn (understatement), but I know a whole lot more than I did 2-3 years ago.

Originally Posted by bueller

That Shinto saw rasp looks the business, will look at getting one of those. Can anyone recommend a good manufacturer of more traditional style rasps? Only seen Bahco around Perth.

Never used them, but Liogier are often mentioned here as being top-notch... with a price to match.

Phew you weren't kidding, very pricey! They do look nice though.

An old Buck branded panel plane, as well as another unbranded one, and a Record #8. More using out of curiosity than "loving", I guess.

Unfortunately, I've been using a lot of track saw and green and black router.

Any kind of rasp which is hand-stitched.
The patterns are so nearly random ( = uniform?) that they don't leave cut-lines in the wood or stone like a machine stitched rasp will.
Liogier is one. I thing Arioux is another?
Lee Valley sells hand-stitched rifflers but OK only for fine work.

My 4 1/2 Stanley - now it's been fettled and the blade SS. The way it glided through the WRS and left a smooth as smooth finish, when shaping the architrave, was truely a pleasurable moment. It gave me respect for what some have called a useless plane.

Useless?? Who's saying stuff like that? The 4 1/2 is my favourite bench plane

A pretty basic one, but my barrow of clamps, which has allowed me to construct a 5x3m shed single handed in just over three weeks (except for two hours of help).



Actually, I did use both my hands.

Mmmmm. Bessey K body

Been good reading your replies, keep em coming!

My Liogier files - especially the little 150mm /13 which is wonderful for the figures I make. I can move straight onto 120 grit sandpaper to clean up.

Also, the second hand Festool ETS150/3. I seriously love that sander. Its used on every single job at some point. (The poor Rotex RO125 hasnt been used once since!!!)

If one is permitted a third favourite, they would be the spiral carbide up/down rouer bits I bought off Aldav. They are wonderful.