Modern Stanley planes - worth the effort?

[dlowry_uk]

I have a couple of modern Stanleys (no 5 jack, cheap'n'cheerful Handyman smoother). I bought these a few years back for general DIY carpentry, installing doors, linings and such, and never worried too much about fine setting up.

That changed as i got into more detailed work, and have discovered - among other things - that the no 5 sole has a distinct concave bow. Is it worth the considerable effort to flatten this, or would i be better served investing in a better general purpose jack?

Thanks
Drew

 

[George_N]

there have been loads of threads on this recently. I have gone the route of buying older Record and Stanley planes through Ebay. This involves more work for me in fettling the planes and probably buying new blades, but still loads cheaper than a brand new, high end plane. Having said that lots of people seem to sing the praises of the Veritas bevel-up jack as a plane that will do most jobs very well.

cheers

George

 

[dlowry_uk]

George - yes, I've read a couple of threads about Veritas planes. I'm also aware that modern Stanleys aren't well regarded, so its a question of whether the end result of fettling would actually justify the effort in this case.

I've never bought a tool on eBay - has it worked out well for you?

Drew

 

[George_N]

I've never had any problems with Ebay. I've recently bought a Record No. 5 for £10 and a Stanley No. 4 1/2 for £1.24. The postage is quite high on planes (they are cast iron), usually about £7, although some sellers try to guarantee a minimum selling price by charging a lot for postage (£10 or more). Delivery has been quick and the money side is secure if you use PayPal. The biggest thing I've bought was a sliding table for my Triton Workcentre, again no problems. There will always be a few dodgy characters around on Ebay...I'm sure there have been threads on that in the past, but I reckon you can usually tell a genuine sale from a scam. As with many other things in life, if it looks too good to be true, then it probably is.

cheers

George

 

[nickson71]

I've bought lots of ebay including things like planes all the way upto a EB planner/thicknesser, compound sliding mitre saw..... not a single problem

I bought an old no4 record of ebay ... just sharpened the blade and I've not touched the stanley handyman (again bought for DIY doors) since

 

[Midnight]

Drew... the forst plane I bought when I started getting interested in handraulics was a new Stanley #5.. over time I've flattened it, tuned it and replaced both the blade and chip-breaker with kosher Lie Neilsen replacements...

Although the tuning and upgraded business end has made a significant difference, it still can't hold a candle to my L-N's in performance; it's useable, yea... but a far cry from being a go-to tool..

If you can live with using it as a roughing plane, then by all means spend some time and cash on the upgrades.. Failing that' keep it set aside for use on materials that won't tax its capabilities, soft woods for example..

If however, you're looking for tools that will cope with dealing with highly figured hardwoods... naaaa stick with quality tools... ya canna make a silk purse fae a sow's ear.....yea..???

 

[Jarviser]

....cheap'n'cheerful Handyman smoother....

Drew, main problem with the Handyman is that the frog and base are not machined, so the frog is bedded onto that lovely maroon paint and there's no frog adjust screw. You can fettle it as a rougher, but it is difficult to get a fine cut even with a flattened sole.

 

[dlowry_uk]

Thanks for the replies. i think the conclusion is, for fine work I need to invest a little of the hard-earned. I'll reserve the stanleys for their original DIY purpose. Now back to those LONG threads on the merits of bevel-up vs bevel-down, and a trawl through eBay.

Thanks
Drew