Hi Graham

I just had a bo-peep in The British Library list of versions using a search term of "Planecraft" which should find all versions and editions.

Seems John Sainsbury only wrote one edition of "Planecraft:A Woodworkers Handbook" in 1984.
If he credits a previous book, then he is probably referring to "Planecraft, Handplaning By Modern Methods" by Hamptons in 1934, and later revised versions.

I have the 1959 revised edition of this, but as a 1997 reprint by Woodcraft USA under permission from Hamptons, and a steal for Record collectors at $14US + PP.
Buy Planecraft at Woodcraft.com

The content of this book is relatively "old world", and quite different to "Planecraft :A Woodworkers Handbook", but a real goldmine for collectors of Record planes and info, and can also be handy for actual work.
(Leslie Harrison has a reprint of the Record catalogue 15 of 1938, and other info in his book "Record Tools" 2003, but it is a collectors book with little planing instruction).

Yes, Sainsbury appears to use some older Record photos and diagrams.


My Stanley 13-050 has similar "leanings" to yours, of the depth guide and beading stop, relative to the vertical dimension of the skates, but I think this is of minor consequence, and will not interfere much in actual work, as you hold the plane vertically by "feel" of the main body, and by the side fence against your work.
I normally add a piece of plywood to the fence to enlarge it to get good verticality. Highly recommended.

The guide pins are quite a bit smaller than the holes, and this allows a good amount of "manufacturing tolerance", and this contributes to the situation.
The beading stop shoe on mine is not machined exactly correctly, probably the same for all of this type, so that the skate lower edge holds the beading stop away from the skate, when it engages the tiny longitudinal machined rebate in the shoe.
When the guide thumbscrew is tightened, the guide/stop is held at an angle.
Nothing really "wrong" here and you could correct it with an accurate pass of a small mill, widening the tiny rebate, but of doubtful improvement.

Like your Record 050, My three Record 050s, two Record 405s are much better in this regard. I cant find the beading stop for my Stanley 45 at the moment (put away in a safe place), but judging by the fit of the rest of it, it will be very similar to a 405.

Let us know how you get on with your work.

cheerio, mike