hand plane

[TonyinNYC]

The chip break is the piece of metal between the blade and the cap iron. It goes almost to the tip of the blade.

[Dave Bagwill]

The 'chip break' is not used on a block plane, btw. FYI. FWIW. :-)

[Tim Benware]

Ergo, Tim - I'm a faffer from way back...


A friend of mine just emailed to say that he sometimes faffs after Mexican food...

Obviously from definition #4 meaning: to long for, to have a hankering or hunger for, to crave
. NO?

[Dave Bagwill]

Oh, yeah!

[Brian Itzkin]

High quality plans are the sh*t!

If you think your ebay planes are just as good as lie nielsens, veritas, and vintage stanley bedrocks, you really need to try some good planes, Tony. I know I'm a pain in the ass about LN and veritas planes, but seriously, they're awesome and make a huge difference in everything.





The relatively cheap stanley in the middle is a decent plane, but after I upgraded to a hock blade it became almost like my LN above it (but the casting still isn't as thick or as good)

Vintage and new stanley spokeshaves... I plan on replacing the new one with a LN boggs spokeshave soon. That little LN model makers block plane is probably my favorite plane btw.



This mini veritas router plane gets used way more than you'd think



This low angle veritas smoothing plane is awesome.

[Brian Itzkin]

I'm also restoring my Grandfather's vintage Stanley 9 1/2. Just need to order a hock blade.

[Brian Itzkin]

I guess, to be more specific Tony, you - mi amigo, mon ami, - have forced me to say the following: a better plane does a better job, and does it more easily.
That's it, I'm done, what works for you works for you, I'm just sayin'.
I really don't want to upset a French Artiste! :-)

You are on my poopie list now!!



Nah. Just kidding. I dont actually have a poopie list.
I am sure a good, expensive plane does a great job. But I also know you can get a cheaper plane to do a very good job as well.
One big thing I read that causes problems with cheaper planes is that the chip break does not sit flat on the blade, thus defeating its purpose. I took a file and a little time and flattened my chip break and it made a world of difference in the kind of shavings I can take.
Also, having the frog set properly for the type of material you are working and the type of bite you want to take makes a big difference too. I am still learning how to adjust properly for the material I am working.
I am not against expensive planes, I am simply saying that if you are willing to invest some time, you can get an inexpensive plane, not a piece of $hit plane, an inexpensive plane, to do an excellent job.

How long does it take you to joint a top with your plane, tony? It takes me 5 minutes at the most.