A Stanley No.6 question (buying advice)

[bridger berdel]

I don't know what the market is like there, but if they don't show up often, buy this one. Try to get the price down, but buy it anyway. Getting it up and running is a good learning experience, and if a better one comes along you can sell this one. Mr. Leach's opinions notwithstanding the #6 is quite useful, even as a jointer for long boards.

[bridger berdel]

It's a later model, non-rosewood handle, chrome levercap, kidneyhole plane. So not the premium collectable vintage, but fine as a user. Looks more dusty than rusty to me. Look at the sole and the blade. Cracks in the castings or rust pits near the cutting edge of the blade would be red flags.

[Kim Malmberg]

Dennis
Since we fish in the same waters I know that finding a no 6 or 7 sized plane in Finland is not easy. The no 6 is still about 52 times more common than a no 7.
If you want a really good plane and want to pay for it I would look at what the UK flea bay site has to offer. You will most likely have to wait for a very long time before a no 7 presents itself on the local market.
30 euro for this plane is not ideal considering the two holes. But having restored close to a hundred UK made Stanley's I am quite confident this plane would serve you well. And even though you'll surely find several examples in the UK, you would have to add about 25-30 pounds for shipping since a plane of this size exceeds the 2 kg limit. The plane in your pictures is of an earlier type without the flat diagonal ribs at the heel so it really ought to clean up well and turn out to be useful.

[Dennis Aspö]

I've looked at UK ebay but I detest online auctions (since I always loose them). I don't have the time to bid and actively follow or even remember to check up on them, so I don't bother unless I find an auction with only a few hours to go.

And there's also shipping as you mention, I'm not really amenable to paying high shipping rates, I used to shop online a lot but since there seems to have been a rate hike around 2013 or so I've stopped almost completely buying abroad unless I get a super deal at shipping. I do check swedish sites since shipping from there can be good sometimes.

Basically no, I don't want to pay for it

[Mike Holbrook]

I won a #6 recently at auction for around $65. I studied and bid on planes for a month or two before I found what I wanted. The plane in the picture was probably manufactured after or around WW II. The hole in the clamping mechanism has the little curve which was a change around that time from the older straight hole. The pre WW II planes are frequently more popular. The older planes have nicer rosewood handles that seem to stand the test of time quite well. Some believe the older planes have a little better fit & finish, which is why they often cost a little more. There are talented woodworkers on this forum who prefer a #6 to a #7 for some of the reasons mentioned above, so much is personal preference.

I like to see a picture or pictures of all the parts on the planes I bid on. Damage and other issues can be hidden under the cap iron. The #3 I bought recently had lots of pictures at the auction site, however, the picture of the plane blade was a partial picture which hid the fact that the blade was almost used up. The replacement PM-V11 blade and cap iron is $68 from Lee Valley. Just a blade in O1 or A2 is about $35, almost what I bought my #3 for.

There is free auction software that will place your bid in the last few seconds of bidding. The standard Ebay software now allows you to enter your top bid and the software uses that number to bid against all other bidders without going over the minimal bid raise.

[bridger berdel]

I find it humorous that the #6 gets so much bad press while the #5-1/2 is highly coveted. They are almost the same plane. Same blade, chipbreaker, cap, frog, really the only difference is that the #6 is a couple inches longer. And about 100 times more readily available.

[Dave Anderson NH]

So far one thing hasn't been mentioned Dennis. If you intend to use the #6C as a jointer and you don't have or won't have another plane to use as a jointer I would pass on the #6C. The corrugated sole makes it a bit more difficult to use when jointing the edges of boards. This is particularly true when trying to balance it and avoid slipping into the corrugations on very thin stock. If you do decide to get a #7 or #8 for use as a jointer buying the #6C is reasonable. I have a WWII vintage #6 which had a much heavier body casting in addition to a hard rubber blade adjusting knob. Set up as a smoothing panel plane it is a joy to use when surfacing large flat cabinet panels, table tops, and other big areas.

[David Weaver]

Dave, my #6 is identical to yours. rubber covered adjuster and heavy casting. It is a nice plane to use. I've never had another stanley 6, so I don't have anything else to compare it to in terms of weight. I think I may have weighed it in another thread on here, but I'm not sure. (It looks like I didn't)

[steven c newman]

I happen to have a DE6c. Use it as the Small Jointer a lot. For longer stuff, I use a Stanley #31 ( 24" long, 2-3/8" wide blade). Most stuff I joint will be fine using the 6. Haven't had any issue with the groovy bottom, since i run the plane at a slight diagonal as i go along the edge.

Also, now have a #81 try plane, @ 22" long. Still drag out the old #6c to joint the panel edges before glue ups. Also have a Stanley #5-1/2 T19, about the same era as that #6 you are looking at. Works just fine, not a thing wrong with it.