What to expect from used hollows and rounds?

[Tom Jones III]

I would like to try my hand at mouldings so I got the book and video from Matthew Bickford. It looks like a lot of fun so now I need to figure out how to get some planes. I would rather spend my time building furniture than rebuilding tools, but the price for a single new pair is the same price as a half set of used planes!

What has been your experience in buying used moulding planes? Should I buy a used, harlequin, half set? Should I expect to get all of the planes in decent working order with a reasonable amount of work or is that too much to expect for a $400-$600 half set?

[John Vernier]

A lot will depend on who you buy your planes from. As demand for H&R sets is high these days, prices are getting higher on online auctions even if sellers don't give you enough information to judge the condition of a set - and many sellers don't know what to look for. You are far better off buying an old set from a reputable dealer like Josh Clark, Patrick Leach or Lee Richmond, who generally sell usable tools, understand the tools and can answer questions properly - although you pay more for their level of service. If you are just starting out with moulders and watching your pennies you are much better off buying a few pairs or even individual planes to start with. You can do a lot of work with a few planes, as Matt Bickford explains pretty well in his book. Single or paired planes command less of a premium on the 'bay than large sets, although over time the shipping costs for assembling your own harlequin set this way could add up.

I have bought quite a few moulding planes from the 'bay as well as from dealers. The quality of planes at auction is all over the place, just don't waste your time with an offering where the photos and facts supplied are inadequate to judge the condition of the item. Sadly this is often a problem. If you want to go this route and are new to moulding planes, you would be best off starting gradually, trying one or two planes for a while to get the feel of them in use. That's the simplest way to learn what to look for later.

[James Conrad]

Unless you just want a complete set, you don't need it. Pairs in 4 to 10 will satisfiy 90% of your needs paired with a rabbet plane or two.

Local antique shops are a good place to start, you can get your hands on them and haggle a bit. I've had decent luck on eBay, check the irons to make sure there is still usable length on them, plenty of pictures of all sides, the wedge, etc. I've often bought larger lots to get what I wanted then resold the others.

[Tom M King]

All mine are old ones, and I do use them. I've had best luck with ones from the UK sold by a few sellers on ebay. I never bothered with one that looks like it needs a lot of work. Most of the ones from this country look like they've spent the last century or so in a barn. I don't own any of them. I stayed away from any one that looked like the iron had any pitting on it. Most of mine were won at auctions for less than 20 bucks a piece, and shipping on a small packet was less than 10 dollars. I probably have over a hundred profile molding planes that were bought the same way. Out of all of them I have, almost all only needed the iron sharpened, or maybe some boxing replaced. Only one chattered, and that one had a replacement wedge that I didn't catch in the photos.

I've never found one in a local antique store in a condition that I would consider. My "interests you follow" ebay page shows up a page full of newly listed molding planes every day.

[Darrell LaRue]

I was given Matt's book for Xmas. A good read, some of the stuff he wrote about I understood from my own experience, but some was news to me. And I think I need a new project to try some of this out on.

I picked up most of my H&Rs from the UK. These planes were made there until the middle of the 20th century I think, so some are not all that old. A few pairs is all you need to get started. The narrower sizes are easy to hone, as there's not as much metal to deal with when flattening the back of the irons. The wide ones, like the really big mismatched pair I used to make ogee bracket feet, well, those are another matter. Lapping those was a lot of work.

This is some crown I made for a cabinet, used a rebate, two rounds and a hollow.

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I suggest you contact a reputable dealer and ask for a couple of pairs in good shape. Play with them and see if you like working with H&Rs.

Darrell

[David Turner]

I agree with Darrell, Almost all of the 60 plus side escapement planes I have purchased required work; even those purchased from the above mentioned reputable dealers. Most will be slightly warped and the profile will require straightening. The blades will require grinding to match the profile and then sharpened and honed. The wedge will require work as most will be stuck from the plane body shrinking and in most cases the end of the wedge will need attention so as to keep from jamming in the mouth.

Purchase a pair or two and see if you are up for the work required to make them function.

David Turner
Plymouth, MI.

[Steve Voigt]

Purchase a pair or two and see if you are up for the work required to make them function.

Yes, this.

Also, one of the points of Matt's book is that you can do an enormous amount with just one or two pairs.