Replies

1. 
   BrentS | Jul 30, 2005 03:51am | #1

   Hi Mike,

     Welcome to Knots. As for which plane to buy, it depends on the kind of work you do. I find these days that I reach for my low angle smoother more than any other plane I own. But as I said it depends on what you need it for. If you do alot of joinery, you might find more use for a shoulder plane. Alot of people will mention a #4 or 41/2 smoother as your next logical planes,but, your #5 can accomplish the same things. If you want to flatten panels or table tops, I'd suggest a #7 or 8. If you do decide to go the smoother route think about a low angle. It is more versitile than a regular smoother.

     The other point is manufacturers.LN makes a great product,but, you pay dearly for it. Lee Valley (Veritas) also makes a great product. While they may not be as beautifully finished as LN, their planes are every bit as well made, and alot cheaper.

   Brent 

   .

    

2. 
   ram | Jul 30, 2005 04:05am | #2

   I'm a beginner as well. Welcome!

   As I understand it, bevel down is a bench plane, bevel up is a block plane, regardless of size. Bevel up/block design does not incorporate a frog and therefore is a little less expensive to make.

   I have a L/N low angle adjustable mouth block, Veritas medium shoulder, L/N #4, and L/N low angle jack. I'm extremely impressed with all. It's obvious every time I pick them up the tool wants to function as designed, the major limitation is the user. If I had it to do over I would have got a Veritas #4 1/2 instead of the L/N #4. If you get a low angle jack (bevel up) a spare blade is nice to have so you can sharpen them at different angles for end vs. long grain.

   This move will necessitate learning to sharpen. Try not to get too obsessed, unless of course you want to ;-). Many historical threads here and on other forums to mine for tips and opinions.

3. 
   cherryaric | Jul 30, 2005 08:08am | #3

   I have had both LN and LV products and have return most of my LN stuff because i personally was not satisfied with the quality. They did take everything back no questions asked which was awesome but still now that i have my LN stuff i will never go back. I just got a 5 1/2 and a set of the bevel edge chisels. So much better than anything I have ever used. I hope that helps. I personally have my 5 1/2 set up with a High angle frog and I find that with the added weight of the plane I hardly even notice the extra effort. I know david charlesworth recommends a 5 1/2 or jack as they are sometimes known as. Good luck and have fun

4. 
   Midnight | Jul 30, 2005 09:49pm | #4

   welcome aboard Mike... (thinkin this could get confusing...)

   I don't wanna try to confuse you, but generally the #5 is considered to be the "general purpose" plane, although in all fairness I reckon you're gonna struggle with your Stanley until you get it fettled and a decent blade for it... As has been mentioned earlier, getting a couple of spare blades enables you to grind each for a different purpose; aggressively cambered for course work, slightly cambered for general work and straight (with the corners clipped) for smoothing...

   What to recommend for your next plane will hinge around exactly how heavily you want to get into handraulics... I prep all my stock by hand, therefore my first 4 planes would be a scrub, a jack, a jointer and a heavy smoother...

   When you need to fine tune tenons there's little to beat a shoulder plane; spoke shaves really come into their own when shaping intricate work while having some card scrapers or even a scraper plane is an invaluable reserve for dealing with particularly difficult grain...

   Right now you've so many options open to you that you're spoiled for choice both in models to chose and manufacturers to choose from... If you can afford to do so, try to avoid cheap tools... the auld moral of "buy cheap an ye'll pay dear" is as true today as its ever been...

   If you can, try to read up on the type of woodworking that interests you, ask around re which tools are best suited to that particular method before researching manufacturers. 3 names I'd recommend freely as quality manufacturers are Clifton, Lee Valley and Lie Nielsen, all 3 having excellent reputations for build quality and customer service...

   Last point... never be afraid to ask... there's a wealth of experience and information available to you here... tap into it as and when you need...

   Mike Wallace

   Stay safe....Have fun

1. 
   mike9 | Jul 31, 2005 01:55am | #5

   Thanx for the insight. I used the #5 today and it seems to work really well, I never really used it aside from jointing a few boards but today I cleaned up the face of a couple Zebrawood boards and I impressed myself. I think I will buy a Veritas 14" low angle with an extra blade that I can grind a diff. angle on. Thanx again Mike W.

1. 
   BrentS | Jul 31, 2005 05:41am | #6

   Mike,

     That's a good choice you've made. The low angle will help you with difficult grain. There is one thing you should think about though, there will be times when you are working on smaller pieces. The longer bed of your #5 and of the Veritas LA Jack may be overkill in these situations. Perhaps save the Jack for your next-next plane and go with the Veritas LA Smoother or the Veritas bevel up smoother ( which you can buy blades of different angles for ). The 10" length on these planes will give you more choices on how to approach a piece of work.

     By the way, how are your sharpening skills. Now that the plane bug has bitten you're going to feel the need to put a razor edge on these beasts every time you touch metal to wood.

    

   Brent

1. 
   mike9 | Jul 31, 2005 03:35pm | #7

   Good advice! My sharpening skills are not to bad, I've been useing the Scary Sharp method with several grits of sil. carb. paper on a glass plate.Practice practice practice. The 10" bev up smoother sounds like it might work. Thanx Again, Mike W.