Do you use Asian type planes?

[RogerP]

Just wondering how many of us routinely use Japanese/Taiwanese/Chinese etc planes?

For several years I have and I hardly use our traditional type planes at all any more.

 

[AndyT]

Not routinely but I have just used a Mujingfang rosewood smoother as a mitre plane on a bit of picture framing in a mitre cramp. It's ideal for the purpose as there is plenty of sole ahead of the blade, for good registration, and the mouth is nice and tight.

 

[Ed Bray]

I have a Mujingfang Chamfer plane and round-over plane wooden planes, but I also have a couple of Quangsheng planes and a couple of Woodriver planes and I am pretty sure they are all Asian too I also have a Canadian plane as well, they all work the same to me :ho2

 

[RogerP]

I have a Mujingfang Chamfer plane and round-over plane wooden planes, but I also have a couple of Quangsheng planes and a couple of Woodriver planes and I am pretty sure they are all Asian too I also have a Canadian plane as well, they all work the same to me :ho2

... but the big difference is whether you push them or pull them.

 

[lanemaux]

I have a rather small and very cheap model that I got through the bay. It actually arrived in a plastic bag with a cardboard topper with a hanging hole , so not a revered blacksmiths masterpiece. Given the low price , this came as no surprise to me. What did surprise me was how well it worked. At about the same size as my 220 block plane and with far less weight it still is an admirable little smoother. The edge retention is also very good and it came pretty darn sharp as well. The thick blade is very easy to register on my stones for quick and easy touchups and I have yet to ding it enough to need re-grinding. In short , I like it very much .

 

[Argus]

... but the big difference is whether you push them or pull them.

Either......... I usually use mine on the push stroke, as a 'Western' plane, but they work on the pull stroke..... as do Western planes.

Seriously, I've been enthusiastic about the Mujingfang so called 'Hong-Kong' style for some years.

The mouths of mine are very tight, have a brass inset and work extremely well. The steel is not the very best there is, but quite adequate; mine needed some work on the backs and a bit of edge straightening from new, but you only need to do that once. It's a good tool, sharpens well and keeps a good edge even when worked on hard Oak.
But the main advantage for me is that the irons are bedded at 60 degrees - half-pitch - and are excellent on wavy grain. The finish is excellent.

PS: I should add that I have a set of three of these planes, from about 8", 5" and 3" and they are generally used as a finish, because they can be set very close, to leave a very thin shaving and an exceptionally smooth surface.

.

 

[Bedrock]

I bought two last year, one about 9" and the other about 14" at an auction. The smaller has a cut blade, stamped Made in China, has the finest mouth of any I have seen, with a very well made brass insert. I'm still getting to grips with it but when I get it set up right, it takes a very fine shaving and leaves a very good finish.
The other came with a Stanley blade with a chip breaker which can't have been the original. No brass insert. I have had difficulty in getting it to work properly. A couple of days ago, I stuck in an uncut Herring blade, just to see what would happen, as it is the right width. The mouth is too narrow for bevel down, but bevel up, it is beginning to come together. I have no idea what the blade would have looked like, presumably something like the Chinese blade in the smaller plane, but a cut blade makes no sense. If anyone can post a picture of one of these planes with an original blade, I should be very grateful.

I will continue to play around with them to see how to get the best out of them, as I think they have great potential for the price. Be interested to hear how others get on. The smaller I push and pull, but the longer is more comfortable to pull.

Mike

 

[jimi43]

I have a bit of a soft spot for Japanese planes but like Western ones..the quality varies enormously...I think most of us (including me) don't know what to choose.

I got a nice smoother quite by luck..and just feeling...and it's a corker...

Learning how to tune it is really interesting and I think I have a fair way to go yet...

I think this is part of the fun of trying new tools.

I have quite a few irons....and I'm playing with them in a hybrid Asian/Western plane I'm prototyping...

I love 'em!

Jimi

 

[Silverbirch]

I picked up these when in Hong Kong a year or two ago. They`ve just sat at the back of a drawer waiting to receive a little fettling/sharpening. They have nice thick blades, tight mouths and apart from the rectangular shaped one with the steel wedge, have the blades set at a high angle. They are a bit rough in places, (though not the places that really matter) but at the price I paid, I won`t complain.
They`re on my "to do" list, which unfortunately seems to have got longer, not shorter since I retired!

Ian

 

[Derek Cohen (Perth Oz)]

Just wondering how many of us routinely use Japanese/Taiwanese/Chinese etc planes?

For several years I have and I hardly use our traditional type planes at all any more.

Don't forget to include HNT Gordon planes ...

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[jimi43]

Oh now we ARE cooking on gas!

Superb artwork there Mr Cohen!

Thanks for the reminder!!

Great picture too!

Jimi