I started to

[lowell holmes]

I started to respond to George Sanders string, but realized that I was hijacking his thread.

What I was commenting on was about the use of a #6 plane.

I have one that never gets used for some reason. It is a war years vintage with a rubber adjusting knob, a substantial plane. However, I gravitate towards my 5 1/2 Bailey or my #7 Bedrock. I do not really know why, because the no. 6 is really a nice plane and it does a great job producing fine translucent shavings.

It would be interesting to hear if others have similar experiences.

[steven c newman]

Just recently used the T-10 No.6c I have..
It will do a nice job. Have been getting used to the NEW No.7c as well. Just depends on how long of a board I am working on.

I also use a T-17, No. 5-1/2 when I need something a bit lighter.

All work nicely.

[Frederick Skelly]

I have a nice #6 whose only job is shooting plane. It's square, flat and heavy - great for that application. But I use my 5 and 7 like you do, rather than reaching for the 6.

If what you and I experience with the 6 is common, maybe that's why Patrick Leach "disses" the 6?

Look forward to others' experiences.
Fred

[Jim Koepke]

Funny, my #6s get regular use and my #5-1/2 is the one that lays idle.
My #4-1/2 doesn't get as much use as my #3.

Lately other projects have come to the top and I haven't been out to the shop in almost a week.

Maybe today.

jtk

[lowell holmes]

My #3 is my favorite plane and it gets used more than the others. It almost feels like a block plane in my hands. Mine was a school plane in a previous life.

[David Eisenhauer]

Same here - the 6 doesn't get picked up much and the 3 is the one that I reach for when things aren't working right. The 3 is the "comfort food" of my collection. I probably don't grab the 6 as much due to still using a lot of machine-planed thickness wood as opposed to thickness planning by hand.

[Reinis Kanders]

Very old No.6 is one of my favorites. I put heavy camber on 5 1/2 and slight camber on No.6.
No.6 is sort of like a try plane for shorter stuff, drawer parts, etc.

[Warren Mickley]

I think some make a mistake that each of the Bailey bench planes has or had a specific purpose. Rather the various size planes are just options for the craftsman. In literature from a century ago, the #6 plane is billed as a short jointer, an alternative to the #7, not that someone would buy both. Today's collector is more likely to wish for a complete set than yesterday's craftsman. It is hard to imagine that anyone would need # 6, 7 and 8.

I have a nice pair of pruning shears with long hickory handles that I have used for 30 years. The company that makes them makes at least fifteen different shears, different length handles and different weight cutting heads, and each comes in both hickory and aluminum handles. I can't see wanting or needing a complete set.

[Frederick Skelly]

I think some make a mistake that each of the Bailey bench planes has or had a specific purpose. Rather the various size planes are just options for the craftsman. In literature from a century ago, the #6 plane is billed as a short jointer, an alternative to the #7, not that someone would buy both. Today's collector is more likely to wish for a complete set than yesterday's craftsman. It is hard to imagine that anyone would need # 6, 7 and 8.

I have a nice pair of pruning shears with long hickory handles that I have used for 30 years. The company that makes them makes at least fifteen different shears, different length handles and different weight cutting heads, and each comes in both hickory and aluminum handles. I can't see wanting or needing a complete set.

Well, now that you explain it Warren, all I can do is slap my head and go "DOH!" You're obviously right and I never thought about it until now.

[Jim Koepke]

It is hard to imagine that anyone would need # 6, 7 and 8.

Is there a need for the modern day craftsman/woodworker to have all three? No.

Is it warm and fuzzy to the soul while making time in the shop that much more enjoyable having a choice of which one gets used today? Of course! So much so that one might even be able to convince their significant other, some of them need to have duplicates.

jtk

[Stew Denton]

Hi Lowell,

I use a jack plane more than any other. I do have a couple of #5 1/2 plane that I haven't finished restoring, also consider them jack planes in the same class with the #5, but haven't finished restoring them so haven't used em yet.

Next on my list of actual planes that I use most frequently probably would be a block plane.

Stew

[steven c newman]

Mine are chosen according to what the size I'm working on is..
FULL till.jpg
Sometimes, it is nice to have a choice. From a #7c down to a #3.....Jacks run from 5-1/2 to a 5-1/4 ( Millers Falls No. 11.) a couple #4s and #3s, and a few block planes. Depends on both how long a plank I am working on is, how much weight I want to push around, somedays..it depends on what is sharpest in the till. All have been tuned up and ready to go. .....Just in case, right?

[Roy Lindberry]

Funny, my #6s get regular use and my #5-1/2 is the one that lays idle.
My #4-1/2 doesn't get as much use as my #3.

Lately other projects have come to the top and I haven't been out to the shop in almost a week.

Maybe today.

jtk

Well, I might as well weigh in...Along with Jim, my 6 is a real workhorse. It is my primary try plane. My 5 1/2 hasn't seen any use in quite a while.

But unlike Jim, my 4 1/2 is one of the most used planes in my shop, while the 3s sit idle all day long.

[Bill White]

Kinda like "whatever fits" in my shop. I use #3, #4c, #5 1/2c, #7, and 60 1/2. I'm not counting the woodies and others as needs might be. There's a #110 just for s**ts and giggles, and a #71 router as well.
Bill

[Bill Houghton]

I'm just backwards: I bought a 5-1/2 at a yard sale, but sold it on when I realized it was redundant to my No. 6.