Thread: New Stanley Tools.

Hi there. Now I'm no expert but from what I've read, the newer Stanleys are no where near as good as the older ones. For example, the older ones have more metal in the frog which helps reduce chatter in the blade.

I would be looking for an older one and spend some time reconditioning it. You should be able to get the older ones for much cheaper than $100 I think.

i have bought a 90 and a 93 for a total $140 off ebay previously (in separate auctions). there are bargains there if you are willing to wait for the right time. they are in good condition and only needed a clean and a sharpen to be perfect users.

can't speak from experience for second hand vs new in terms of quality or design changes (but from reading many posts here, as mentioned above - get the tried and tested!)

nick

Cool, Yeah those sound like bargains I'll keep a keener eye out, but they only come up every so often. Thanks!

Elandos

I think you will find that these tools (#92 and #93) are UK made Stanleys

When I bought my #92 in about '97 it was advertsed as "UK made" as by then US Stanley had ceased making them

when it comes to shoulder planes (which is what the #92 and #93 are) size matters followed to a lesser extent by the height of the sides
These days I find myself reaching most frequently for the 3/4" or smaller sizes
and I have a preference for planes with high sides like the Clifton #410



ian

If a 92-93 has been dropped they'll often have the nose out of square, and some older ones were just made slightly parallelogram-ed, so be careful with ebay , rarely will the sellers fess up to such a thing. ie. caveat emptor
After a few e-bay disasters I now prefer the tool sales and dealers, less speculative and more likely to get a tool that will actually do the work.
cheers
Ian