Thread: Which type of plane

Originally Posted by Superbunny

...... the money is much but the experience little.

That could attract some flies to the honeypot, SB!

For what you describe, you could manage with a single #6-sized plane (see a recent thread on what plane does what), but if $$s aren't too tight, 2 or 3 planes would be more convenient, & save blade-changing/altering mouth openings, etc.

I like a scrub plane for initial levelling of the big bumps & dags. These are very simple tools, and one can be easily made from an old #4 or #5. All it needs is the blade ground to an arc & the mouth opened wide to let very big chips through.

A longish plane then takes over for final levelling (#6-8, take your pick according to your physical size & stamina).

Finally, a finely tuned & set smoother to get the finish desired. Again, choice is individual - I like a #4 size, but many like larger & longer planes. The ipmortant thing is that it be very sharp & capable of taking very fine, clean shavings.

If you are able to get really clean rip cuts for your book-matched pairs, which need little or no levelling out, you probably only need the last plane in the series. The less you remove from the surfaces, the better the book match, of course...

Cheers,

Thanks for your advice , Ianw it seems there are no fixed rules and planes are very adaptable

SB

Originally Posted by Superbunny

Hi, I'm just getting into planes now after avoiding them for 30 years.

Hi SB,

It is funny you should say that. I was reading the recent edition of Fine Woodworking and it struck me how much effort some people go to to make a power tool do what a hand tool could do in its sleep. The project that struck me most was the effort they went to to get a tapered end on a curved tabletop, the had the whole tabletop suspended on a pendulum thingo hanging over a tablesaw with a tilted blade, looked pretty dangerous to me but it did save them 5-minutes with a spokeshave

Back to the subject...
As you have already noticed, planes are pretty versatile.
I would start with a #4 sized plane, the plane can be setup to suit the work you are doing (scrubbing, smoothing etc.). Buy one from either Veritas or HNT Gordon, they both make great planes and plenty of forumites will justify why one is superior over the other.

Add a block plane to the collection and you have a great starter kit. Then sit back and watch your collection grow all by itself as you learn to love hand tools

Regards,
Chris

The main use I hope to use a plane for is one of two jobs. a) to clean up the basic slab for book matching and joing into one pannel and b) planing to a finish before final sanding.

Hi SB

Planing bookmatched panels requires a specific technique (well, this is the technique I use). Since you end up with panels with grain running in opposing directions, planing with the grain with one ends up going against the grain with the other. A recipe for tearout somewhere.

The answer is to plane across the grain for both. The best type of plane for this is one with a low cutting angle. You could use a common angle with a sharp edge, but a low cutting angle is best.

For small boards, such as narrow boxes, a LA block plane would be fine. For large panels, I would use a plane such as the LV LA Jack.

Cleaning up/smoothing after cross grain planing depends on the wood. If hardwood, either use a cabinet/card scraper or use a high angled smoother to minimise tearout against the grain. My preference is the scraper.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Thank you both Polie and derekcohen, I often use a scraper for difficult grain. Yes I have been using a machine to do simple things that a hand tool could do simpler and I guess that's why I'm now exploring the world of planes. I'm lucky that I have a woodwork teacher willing to show me how to use the planes I end up buying so I don't go in blind.

SB

Hand planes are very addictive!!

For what it's worth I got into hand planes soon after I got into woodworking. I purchased a LV bevel up jack with a couple of blades. It's a great plane that's very versatile. You can use it as a short jointer for your slabs.

As for a dedicated smoother I have a HNT Gordon smoother. These planes speak for themselves and Derek has a great write up on his site. You can reverse the blade and turn it into a scraper plane which is brilliant!

My next plane is going to be a LV bevel up smoother, it's a similar size to a 4 1/2 and you can hone a secondary bevel to create different cutting angles. Do a search on these planes (bevel up) they are great for new hand plane users as they're simple to set up.

Good luck,
Andy

Do a web search for ' Chris Schwarz' or 'Christopher Schwarz' (no 't') - he is a contributing editor to Popular Woodworking in the US & author of several books & DVD's on hand tools. You should come up with some free videos & blog entries on using various planes to finish boards etc. Also 'Roy Underhill', but he is a lot more eclectic in subject matter.

If I had to get just one plane it would be the Lie Nielsen low angle jack and a few blades to set up differently. I wouldn't buy Lee Valley, they are ugly!

Originally Posted by mic-d

If I had to get just one plane it would be the Lie Nielsen low angle jack and a few blades to set up differently. I wouldn't buy Lee Valley, they are ugly!

?? ?? Apart from the wood, they are tweedle dum & tweedle dee, to me, Micahael.

I agree that LV totes are fugly, but I think the LNs are no raving beauties, either.

Cheers

The LN and LV LA Jacks are different planes - different sizes and different features. Both are built to the same high standards.

The LV is a new, more advanced design. The LN is based on the Stanley, a century old design, but ramped right up in the quality stakes compared to the Stanley.

One needs to try out both to appreciate the extras on the LV, which lead to easier set up and tuning, and a wider range of use.

Regards from Perth

Derek (who has both the LV and the Stanley, and used the LN many times)

This is a man who carries an axe in his briefcase

Every time I go to Muricca with SWMBO it seems to be semester break at his school but one of these times it will all fit and hopefully the Schwarz will be leading

Even got decent beer over ther now as the people have taken brewing back frp {abst and Schlitz etc

Neil

Originally Posted by bsrlee

Do a web search for ' Chris Schwarz' or 'Christopher Schwarz' (no 't') - he is a contributing editor to Popular Woodworking in the US & author of several books & DVD's on hand tools. You should come up with some free videos & blog entries on using various planes to finish boards etc. Also 'Roy Underhill', but he is a lot more eclectic in subject matter.

Originally Posted by IanW

?? ?? Apart from the wood, they are tweedle dum & tweedle dee, to me, Micahael.

I agree that LV totes are fugly, but I think the LNs are no raving beauties, either.

Cheers

I was just fishing for a bite Ian

Originally Posted by mic-d

I was just fishing for a bite Ian

I know, Michael - and I couldn't resist.....

Derek says they really are different, & since he's used both, he's in a position to say so, which I am certainly not. For some reason, I just havent caught the BU bug as badly as many seem to have. Probably a reflection of the decent () cabinet woods available to us over this side of the island, but I've gotten by with BD planes very well up to this stage.

(I do have a single LV BU plane, which I like (especially now that it has something more like a proper handle! ), but no more than a few orther boring, stock-standard planes in my kit. Pearls before swine, perhaps. )

Cheers,

Well after all your advice and some research, I've decided, unless someone objects with good reason, to go for the Veritas low angle jack plane and to complement it the bevel up smoother. Now all I have to decide is do I buy in Aust at Carba-tec price or order from Lee Valley at canadan prices with shipping. Yes the dollar will decide I'm sorry to say at this stage. Thank you all for your help.

SB