Replies

1. 
   dukeone | Dec 31, 2006 07:50pm | #1

   DWB: The only thing I could add is that the blade on the LN is way too thick to "camber". If this is an advantage in other ways I defer to those with more experience, although I believe a thicker blade is less likely to "chatter". I have the LN large model but have not been able to get it to work right for me yet; due to my inexperience no doubt. KDM

   "... Buy the best and only cry once.........

2. 
   mwenz | Dec 31, 2006 08:29pm | #2

   The ability to camber the blade is a plus under some circumstances. Maybe even many. LV also makes a thicker blade for a small additional cost.

   I owned the LN large scraper plane for several years. Excellent plane. The cabinet maker's scraper was a plane I had considered getting at one time do to the scale of my typical work.

   If I were to purchase another--I sold my LN recently--it would probably be the LV due to the blade thing, but I would get both blades. And if didn't have a toothing plane, I would get a toothed blade. With a toothed blade one can quickly waste otherwise hard to plane surfaces such as crotch figure with a conventional plane.

   Either company's plane will scrape a surface as good as the other. Neither will flatten a larger surface per se. Think of a scraper plane as an adjunct to final surface smoothing, except they are used in either areas of grain which will readily tear out using even your best smoother, or as a final "smoother" on entire tops where there is risk of tear out.

   But they are too short a plane for flattening.

   Another option is the LV #80 type of scraper. I probably use this more than a scraper plane. That and hand-held scrapers. I really only used the scraper plane for large tops which had reversing grain.

   Take care, Mike

3. 
   Lataxe | Dec 31, 2006 09:01pm | #3

   DWB,

   I too bought the Veritas scraper plane, mainly because it offered the thin/bendable blade option.  I had their other scraper - the one that looks like a big spokeshave - so knew just how much control the ability to bend the blade gives.

   It seems mysterious that Lie Lielsen only offer the stiff blade, as the traditional card scraper for finishing wood only seems to work if you bend it a bit.  Also, a bent blade not only offers easy fine control of the depth of cut but also prevents tramlines caused by the corners of a flat blade.

   Anyway, I can recommend the Veritas as very controllable scraperplane, well made and very easy for even a scraping novice like me to set up and use.

   Perhaps a Lie Nielsen scraper plane owner can be persuaded to say how best to use the straight-blade option?

   Lataxe

1. 
   mwenz | Dec 31, 2006 10:42pm | #4

   Hi Lataxe,

   The thick blade on the LN does indeed work exceedingly well, especially for large flat surfaces. No real need to bend the blade unless one is working locally instead of the entire, or major portion thereof, surface.

   Most of the time, I never put a hoock on the blade if I was working something very hard. Else from the hardness of Mahogany or less I rolled a shallow hook.

   But--the LV version does allow the thin blade and flex, so that's why if I were to ever purchase another scraper plane, it's the one I would get. I would still obtain the thicker blade for it. Basically the thicker blade one can lightly relieve the corners of the blade [like some do smoothers] for heavy work on hard woods over larger areas.

   Take care, Mike