# Hand planes on a budget



## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

Ok im new to hand tools, my wife bought me a stanley sweetheart 9 1/2 block plane for christmas.... IM HOOKED!!! I am a carpenter but dont have much experience in the realm of hand planes/tools. I have been on the search for hand planes to add to my collection and have found them to be expensive. Therefore I can only buy a few right now. Can someone point me in the direction of 2 or 3 others planes to add to my collection? I need planes I can use. I have read that some planes are good for the same things others are. Its confusing. Should my next be a Veritas 4 bench smoothing plane and a low angle jack? or perhaps a fore plane and a number 5? Just so every one knows also i do not have a jointer so i will be using plane to do this task, and i am slowly getting into making tables, small cabinets etc. I have searched for threads on this but cant find any. I am not looking for what brand but the exact plane number or type ....... Help!?


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## Dave Paine (May 30, 2012)

I am not sure how you searched, but there are a good number of threads on this topic. No single answer. It depends on your projects.

An example of a recent thread with links to other threads

http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f2/hand-plane-advice-47335/


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## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

You know what I have been on the internet looking at what to get for so long I think I have spun my self in a circle. Your right I must have missed that thread... sorry about that I dont want people to think that I have not put the leg work in. I think I have just found that every one have recommended different things. I am just very overwhelmed with the different types and their capabilities. Thank you for showing me that thread.


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## BZawat (Sep 21, 2012)

My first hand plane was a vintage Stanley Bailey no 5 that Dave Paine restored for me. I find that it is the most versatile plane I own, and I use it all the time for everything from roughing (with a cambered blade) to flattening to initial smoothing before the no 4 touches the stock.


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## mavawreck (Nov 26, 2011)

I started with a Stanley #4 from my grandpa when I was building a boat as a teen. Then bought a 9 1/2 a little later on. Then came the 60 1/2 which I love. Last year I bought a #5 which I'm using more than my #4 these days. I picked up a #78 and a #93 along the way which both need to be rehabbed, but once they are sharp I believe I'll use them quite a bit. 

I also have a mighty Stanley 12-101 which has come in really handy and is easy on the pocket. 

Next on my list - router plane, a shoulder plane, and to slowly fill out my moulding planes.


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## acowboy (Nov 20, 2013)

You don't want to get a old rusty ole' plane.

You will end up cleaning it, getting to know each scratch and dent.
What happens then, you may opt to finish the tote and knob, not fun, bet me

Next you spend either a few minutes or a few hours sharpening the blade. You finally get it sharp enough to shave with...that is where a smile comes on your face.

Let say your "use to be" rusty ole plane is over a 100 years old.
You use it to help build your project, it sings to you as you work it
Your done, you tidy up the area, and you give a glance at that ole plane, you have restored an old masterpiece, and built a new one. 

So no don't buy a rusty ole plane....
You will end up getting another...:yes:


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## Dave Paine (May 30, 2012)

acowboy said:


> So no don't buy a rusty ole plane....
> You will end up getting another...:yes:


I know the feeling. These were my second and third rust buckets from the local flea market. They were happy to see someone purchase these.

http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f11/latest-rust-bucket-planes-46494/

I did intend to clean up and pass these on, but for some reason they are still part of my vintage plane collection.

For the original poster, it is hard to give advise on which planes, since one person may use a given plane and another feel the same plane is useless.

A recent thread discussed shoulder planes. One of my favourite planes is a Veritas Medium Should Plane. Other folks felt a shoulder plane was a gimmick. In my shop it is a valued tool which I would purchase again.

If I look at the planes which I use the most, they are :
a) Stanley No. 5
b) Stanley No. 4
c) Veritas Low Angle Smoother
d) Veritas Low Angle Block plane.


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## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

That's I guess more what I'm looking for is what planes people use the most and can tackle the most jobs ... I was at first leaning towards brand new planes. Now you all have me leaning towards trying my hand a rust bucket!


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## adot45 (Jul 8, 2013)

Firewood furniture said:


> That's I guess more what I'm looking for is what planes people use the most and can tackle the most jobs ... I was at first leaning towards brand new planes. Now you all have me leaning towards trying my hand a rust bucket!


 
They make new ones? :huh:


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## Dave Paine (May 30, 2012)

Firewood furniture said:


> That's I guess more what I'm looking for is what planes people use the most and can tackle the most jobs ... I was at fist leaning towards brand new planes. Now you all have me leaning towards trying my hand a rust bucket!


I love my brand new Veritas planes. If you have the money go for it, you will have them forever.

A restoration is a good way to become familiar with hand planes. 

I do not restore to save money, per se. For me there is a lot of satisfaction in giving an old tool a second life.

If I were to value my time, then any restoration would be more costly than purchasing new.

No single answer on what plane will work for you. I expect most people would find a No. 4 or No. 5 a very useful addition to their shop. Same for a block plane, although so many different models of block plane.

I have 2 No. 4's in the restoration queue. One needs a lot more elbow grease than the other, but neither are true rust buckets. I also have a No. 5 also not a true rust bucket, but broken tote at the top, needs a lot of work on the blade. Likely more work than either of the No. 4's.

Once you get to 25 posts you can PM me if you want to purchase one of these planes for restoration. We can then discuss how much work you want to do vs have me do before sending the plane to you, e.g., sharpening the blade.


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## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

Thank you very much Dave ... The next question I guess is what should I pay for something like this ..



















The one on left/ top is a Stanley 5 bailey with flat bottom 

The right/ bottom is same but a 6 with a ribbed bottom

Are these two decent to start with?


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## Dave Paine (May 30, 2012)

Not sure how you see the pictures.

How they appear for me is that the top one is the No. 6 and the bottom one is the No. 5.

Flat sole vs corrugated is perhaps personal preference. I prefer flat, although my No. 7 is corrugated. No real difference in use, but I find flat sole easier to sight the blade, although I do not have to do this often.

One picture does not tell a full tale.

The No. 6 needs more work. I would end up removing the crappy paint and re-painting. Several hours work for me to remove the old paint since I do not have a sand blaster. I use paint stripper, but have a lot of scraping to do by hand. The tote appears to have been split, perhaps glued back together. I would make a new tote.

The No. 6 appears to have full size blade.

The No. 5 casting appears to just need cleaning, but the blade is shot. Notice the lateral adjustment lever is far longer than the blade. A full length blade is longer than the lateral adjustment lever. The blade has been sharpened, like within a short distance of the screw hole.

If you have a spare blade, not a problem but if starting out you likely do not have a spare. You can purchase a new blade from e.g., Lee Valley.

I cannot tell you what you should pay. Too many variables. If the seller is an antique collector they often have inflated view of the worth of these tools.

I think $15 - $25 is the most I would pay for the No. 5 knowing I would need to get a replacement blade.

I think $25 - $40 is the most I would pay for the No. 6.

A big unknown is whether any other parts need to be replaced.


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## Firewood furniture (Dec 25, 2013)

Holy cow... Thanks Dave! You just confirmed how green I am when it comes to this! I don't know what to do now. I had no idea that there was stuff wrong with blade etc i just saw the obvious stuff... Glad I didn't buy them... For I think 75$! Maybe I should start with something functional until I can get a working knowledge of these things so I dot make a mistake. Back to square one hahaha.


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