Thread: Opinions on Henry Eckert low angle jack?

You get the PMA steel blade with the Henry Eckert LAJ.

I have one. Certificate Number 9 out of the first 40.

All of my other many planes are Lie Nielsen and I intended buying a Lie Nielsen low angle jack. Henry Eckerts were selling a used Lie Nielsen a few weeks back and due to a computer mix up it was over sold so I was told about the Henry Eckert version and decided to give it a try. The plane looks good, feels good in my hands and planes great. The blade took a while to fully flatten and sharpen to my liking as it was harder than what I was used to. I still use oil stones so that may not be an issue with water stones but then again I would not know. Holds a good edge. Australian made is a plus. I got Redgum handles. I am happy with it. I like how the Lie Nielsen and now the Henry Eckert feel in my fairly small to medium sized hands. I have tried the Veritas and do not like the feel of them in comparison.

Col
Lara, Vic.

Thanks for the feedback.

Col how was the flatness and squareness of the body? Was the sole dead flat? I see they have the upgraded adjuster too, do you notice any difference? I'm not a massive fan of the PMA blades for the reason you mention but could be worth a go.

It's a tricky one, stick with the LN that everyone swears by or take a punt on anaussie made which in theory should be every bit as good.

Thanks, Josh

Originally Posted by jw2373

Thanks for the feedback.

Col how was the flatness and squareness of the body? Was the sole dead flat? I see they have the upgraded adjuster too, do you notice any difference? I'm not a massive fan of the PMA blades for the reason you mention but could be worth a go.

It's a tricky one, stick with the LN that everyone swears by or take a punt on anaussie made which in theory should be every bit as good.

Thanks, Josh

Without coating machinists blue all over it I wouldn't be able to tell you if the sole is dead flat but for woodwork purposes it is machined well. It is weighty and feels and planes as I would have hoped. Castings are all great. It isn't a Chinese knock off. It has a Howard adjuster and to be honest that could have had a larger adjusting wheel on it but by taking pressure off the blade cap the adjuster moves the blade smoothly in and out and then the cap is re tightened. The blade was fairly flat and probably would or could have been honed and used straight off by the majority of users but I wanted it rubbed flat across the whole area so spent much longer doing so. I still have a tiny bit to go but will catch that up next time. If the tool was crap I would not hesitate to tell you because I hate crappy cheap tools. It is equal to what I would expect from Lie Nielsen in my opinion. I would recommend it and if you do get one and you are not happy with it and have any complaints I am sure David Eckert will sort it for you. For me it has been money well spent.

Col.

Thanks Col, exactly what I was after. I agree, spend once and spend well.
Cheers, Josh.

Made in Adelaide. I'm impressed. It's great to see someone manufacturing planes instead of getting them made offshore - which inevitably means China or India.

If I didn't already have an LAJ (Veritas) I'd be interested.

Cheers, Vann.

That's what I thought too Vann. I'd prefer to buy local if it's as good as others. I ended up ordering one with the Huon Pine handle and David said he should have handles with a bit of Birdseye in it which would be nice. He also said that the plane is a much thicker casting and weighs about the same as a modern jack with frog so should have plenty of heft. Hopefully it's flat, good casting and works a treat. Very much looking forward to it arriving.

Hi Col, ended up getting one but wanted to check with you - how tight can you get the mouth opening on your plane? Mine only seems to close to about 2mm, which is far less than a LN and original 62. I'm hoping that's not entirely it?
IMG_4798.jpgIMG_4797.jpgIMG_4797.jpg

JW, I'd love to see more photos - and a general assessment of the plane.

Cheers, Vann.

Originally Posted by jw2373

Hi Col, ended up getting one but wanted to check with you - how tight can you get the mouth opening on your plane? Mine only seems to close to about 2mm, which is far less than a LN and original 62. I'm hoping that's not entirely it?
IMG_4798.jpgIMG_4797.jpgIMG_4797.jpg

I have the minimum and max as per photos. It could possibly close to zero with some fiddling. I bought one of his 90 degree scraping blades for it at the Melb woodwork show but have not tried it yet. As I mentioned earlier, I am happy with the plane and with a bit of use and with the sharp edges eased up a bit it will get better. Now I have it on the bench a bit of a light file and fine emery will sort that. Get back working on my teak park bench.

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Originally Posted by Vann

JW, I'd love to see more photos - and a general assessment of the plane.

Cheers, Vann.

Hi Vann,

Will do, though I've got a 1 week old baby so could be a few weeks before I get to it sorry.

Josh.

Thanks for the quick response Col.

Seems as though they are the same if yours is reading at about 1.8mm fullly closed. I wonder what sort of fiddling would be required to close it further. Seems to me that the brass adjuster under the knob is too large and fouls on the casting. I'd be a little hesitant to modify the adjuster but seems that this might be the only option. I might give David a call and see what he thinks.

Originally Posted by jw2373

Thanks for the quick response Col.

Seems as though they are the same if yours is reading at about 1.8mm fullly closed. I wonder what sort of fiddling would be required to close it further. Seems to me that the brass adjuster under the knob is too large and fouls on the casting. I'd be a little hesitant to modify the adjuster but seems that this might be the only option. I might give David a call and see what he thinks.

When you need it closed further. Remove the brass adjuster, replace with a suitable size washer and adjust by hand or file the side of the adjuster so it moves across further. Just modify to suit your needs like many tools need. Whats the worsr that can happen if it goes wrong? Just get a replacement bit from Eckerts.


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It looks like the brass adjuster needs some filing back to allow the mouth to fully close. (area highlighted in red) The top outer radius will also likely need filing back.