Thread: Novic with Planes

Hi MadSpazz--gotta love the user name...

The RB series of planes are not the best idea Stanley ever came up with. I'm sorry to say that I know of no one who has ever made one work for more than stripping paint.

Perhaps another here will have had success.

Take care, Mike

Bullnose planes (worse chisel planes) are notoriously hard to set up to work well unless the blade is very sharp, and the depth of cut minimal. As well, because the blade is not well supported, there will likely be some chatter - or a tendency to "submarine".

I have a Lee Valley Bullnose plane, the upper front section of which can be removed for the plane to be used as a chisel plane.



This is in a bit of a different league from the Stanley though.

What was it you were wanting to use the tool for?

As a PS: I have to say that the Stanley tool looks a piece of absolute CR@P - sorry!

MadSpazz,
I followed the link to your plane and I reckon MikeW is being too kind. It looks like an atrocious piece of junk that was designed by a team of accountants, market researchers and interior designers (does it come in any other colours? ). It's got disposable blades!:eek: Meaning they're probab;y marginally thicker than a razor blade and will flex and chatter. What do you want to do woodwork wise? If you give us a run down on projects you'd like to tackle I'm sure you'll recieve some good advice as to what sort of tools you need.

Mick

Originally Posted by journeyman Mick

MadSpazz,
I followed the link to your plane and I reckon MikeW is being too kind.

That's me. Me mum would have been proud of my word choice.

Nah, she doesn't carry the nickname of "Viper Woman" where she is an office manager for nothing...She probably would have boxed my ears...

Take care, Mike

I plan to make a bow for a bow and arrow. To do this I need to to rough out the shape from a 1x2 then make it bend through scraping with a cabinet scraper or a rasp. I am able to cut with my bandsaw within 3-4mm of the rough shape, but need to finish the rough out by planing (or something else) up to the lines. I got some advice to try a spokeshave, what do you think? I am not looking to shell out a lot of money for a plane, and I have no experience honing a cheap one, so maybe something else would be better.

I will be working with hardwoods, red/white oak, hickory, maybe ash.

Madspazz,
The spokeshave advice was probably the best. It's relatively easy to make a spokeshave work. Even if it's not doing a perfect job, it will remove a good deal of wood fairly easily and quickly. And the good news is, they aren't expensive. If you are going to get into bow making in any way, you'll soon have a collection of spokeshaves set up for rough and fine work, I'd say, so splash out and get yourself one to start off.
That thing in the link looks llike just the tool to turn a would-be woodworker off for keeps!
Cheers,

Mad, I'd go with the spokeshave. I picked up my two at a garage sale for Au 5, so check out the garage sales, flea markets etc for cheap pre wwII stanley spokeshaves. Do a seach on this BB for Bob Smasler, as he has done an excellent instructional piece on rehabillitating spokeshaves.

A spokeshave is the way to go mate; lovely things if tuned properly