Brook . . Anant planes ?

[pswallace]

Hi guys, I'm considering buying A number 6 fore plane,I don't really have the budget for anything like A Veritas or similar.I was going to check out Stanley or Record but I just received the Tilgear spring clearance catalogue and I noticed A make of plane called 'Brook',I also remember reading A review about Anant planes in A magazine some time ago but can't remember if they got A good review.Does anyone own one of these brands?,any comments? .Phil

 

[jordec66]

Don't waste your hard earned on Anant, they are completely useless.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Keep watching the sales, car boots etc. --buy something a bit tatty, maybe. Take a little care- take it to bits, cleaning everything, taking the varnish off the woodwork, flattening the sole and generally fettling it. you will better understand how it works, and feel much happier using it.

 

[Digit]

Do what we hard up pensioners do, make a wooden one, nice to make and a pleasure to use.

Roy.

 

[AndyT]

Your cheapest option is an old one, but that can be a bit of a lottery, and many people prefer the certainty of buying new.

It's possible that the Brook planes are made in the same Chinese factory as other brands which can be very good, but that in itself is no guarantee of quality. If you really want a reliable new no 6 I'd say that the Chinese Quangsheng from Workshop Heaven is your best bet at £129.50. Read up on the hand tools forum to see that WH carefully check everything they sell, and really care about customer service. (I don't have this particular model, but the Quangsheng plane I do have is excellent.)
More here: http://www.workshopheaven.com/tools/Quangsheng_Planes.html#aE01_2d700506

I do (sadly) have one Anant plane that I bought in a sale: I can see why nobody wanted it at full price.

 

[Alf]

Yeah, run away from the Anants. Like Andy sez, the Brook planes do seem to hail from "that" Chinese factory, but specs will vary depending on what the retailer has asked for - so a Workshop Heaven one will be different from a Rutlands which'll be different from the Brook and so forth. Best bang for buck will be a secondhand Record or Stanley. Might be worth put a "Wanted" on the For Sale board if you don't fancy hanging around car boot sales etc. Or there's Ebay (if you feel lucky), or one of the dealers, who'll be happy to help. Just specify you're looking for a user.

 

[baldpate]

I'd like to add my "-1" for Anant. I wrote about my own experience with one of their planes in this earlier thread https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/post644935.html#p644935:
the resounding opinion in that thread too was "don't touch them with bargepoll".

 

[Sawyer]

I've never read anything good about Anant planes, except perhaps the price tag (but then an item which is useless is expensive at any price!).

I have a Quangsheng no. 6, the WH version and it's excellent.

 

[pswallace]

Thanks for the feedback,will be staying well away from Anant...'have been keeping an eye out for A second hand Record at A local car boot but no joy yet ! I'm not too keen buying without seeing first and as I live in N.Ireland postage can be expensive from Eng',Scot or Wales so not really looking that direction .'Am going to have A look at those Quangsheng planes I think! Phil.

 

[Alf]

In fairness, for the models of plane that no-one else makes any more, the Anants are the best.

Um, yeah...

But I was surprised how well their copy of the Stanley #39 worked. Lots of cheese slices disguised as tool steel mind you, but try finding a #39 in any condition in this country.

 

[Dangermouse]

I agree about Anant planes, unless you get one and put hours and hours of work into it and then the material quality isnt good. If your looking for a decent new plane at a cheap price I'd advise Faithfull, they do a series of planes at reasonable prices. I purchased a no10 carrage plane new, as it was on offer and ultra cheap, expecting it to be crap. But on taking a straight edge to it found that it was within British standard of 3 thou and the sides within a few thou too. So after a bit of fettling of about an hour it became a very good plane. The blade shapened up well and cuts fine, although its not up to LN quality, and I'm thinking of putting in a thick blade from Ray Iles, the Replacement Carriage Maker Plane Cutter Ref: RI001, costs around £18 to £20. The Faithfull no6 on ebay at the moment is £34.00 including postage.

 

[AndyT]

That's a good thought Dangermouse. I've got a Faithfull version of the Record 778 rebate plane which is really quite good. Anyone know where they are made?

 

[jordec66]

I have not used any faithfull hand tools, but I do have one of their kitchen worktop jigs, and it is spot on.