Replies

1. 
   MarkRoderick | May 23, 2003 02:44pm | #1

   Completely agree!

2. 
   garth | May 23, 2003 06:50pm | #2

   Nothing feels better than a well tuned plane taking nice thin shavings.

   Scott T.

3. 
   sophmore05 | May 23, 2003 07:23pm | #3

   that feeling that comes w/ using a hand plane, feeling the plane just slice through wood instead of ripping through it, just feels so good.

4. 
   fdampier5 | May 23, 2003 10:18pm | #4

   I had an old stanley hand plane but I had to throw it away,  I couldn't find where to plug it in... <G>

1. 
   JeffKurtz | May 24, 2003 12:23am | #6

   That's absloutely wicked, Frenchy!!!!

5. 
   Colinsdad | May 23, 2003 11:08pm | #5

   :)

   nothing better!!!

6. 
   Lar55 | May 24, 2003 01:17am | #7

   It is a great feeling!!!

7. 
   SCFrankland | May 24, 2003 03:57am | #8

   Went to use one on my smoothers the other day and the blade was dull.  Went to wipe out the waterstones and they were no where to be found.  They got lost in my move and the moving company would not replace them because they never had a inventory control tag on it and the box they placed them in was not labeled containing waterstones.  Fun thing is all the boxs in my shop were marked "Tools/shop".  Luck I never lost anything else.

   Scott C. Frankland

8. 
   RMillard | May 25, 2003 12:26am | #9

   I could not agree more. I’m always curious to know how people approach woodworking without hand planes. I could quite easily ( well maybe not easily) build furniture from solid wood without any sort of power tools, but I couldn’t build a packing crate without a hand plane.

1. 
   domermatt | May 25, 2003 06:23am | #10

   I don't know where I'd be without my planes. Use them all the time for every conceivable task.  It's a shame more people don't know the fun of using a well tuned plane. And you don't even need to wear a dust mask to use one!!

   When people 100 years from now see my work, they'll know I cared. --Matt Mulka

1. 
   lostarrow | May 25, 2003 03:45pm | #11

   I too, use handplanes all the time in my work. For me, the ultimate satisfaction of using a handplane comes from the first few shavings you make with a plane that you have crafted yourself. It always brings a smile to my face when I hear the first "whoosh" of the blade and see those first shavings peel of the plank. Heaven indeed.Be not afraid of going slowly.  Be afraid only of standing still.   chinese proverb

9. 
   BrianMcG | May 26, 2003 05:29am | #12

   If I'm ticked off about something (shop related or otherwise), I've found a few minutes just making shavings with my cheapo Stanley block plane is just what the doctor ordered.

   The sound and feel of a blade taking a shaving is zen like.

   Brian

   
   

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   Edited 5/25/2003 10:32:26 PM ET by BrianMcG

   
   

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   Edited 5/25/2003 10:33:34 PM ET by BrianMcG

1. 
   MarkRoderick | May 27, 2003 12:10am | #13

   Today I needed to mill a five foot piece of mahogany with a fairly serious bow. First I snapped a straight chalk line and cut it with a jigsaw, but that left a definitely wavy edge. Then I pulled out my L-N low-angle jack and in about 60 seconds had a very flat, even edge to work with, with nice long shavings on the floor.

   The usefulness of hand tools, not to mention the pleasure they give, is way under-reported in the advertising-driven press (Norm, magazines, etc.). It would be only a slight understatement to say that if you were just starting out with woodworking and relying on what you read and see in the media, you would hardly know hand tools existed, much less that they sometimes do a better, faster job than their motorized counterparts.

1. 
   Lar55 | May 27, 2003 01:58am | #14

   Couldn't agree more Mark, well said.  I did the samething today using a bandsaw and cleaned up with the L-N low-angle Jack.  As the days go by I'm reaching more and more for the handplanes, handsaws, chisels..etc. and less and less for the tools with cords.  First time I used the bandsaw in weeks.  Probably won't use it again for a couple more weeks, if at all.

   Lar

10. 
    Mackwood | May 28, 2003 06:34am | #15

    W.S.

    I've been using a small group of hand planes for a few years now (#'s 7C, 5C, 4C, 40 and some scrapers).  Just last week I finished fixing up an old Sargent VBM jack plane, my first wood bodied plane.  I could not believe how sweet that thing works!  It's so much lighter than my #5 but it just glides and cuts fantastically!

    Keep hand toolin'

    Enjoy!

    Mac