What should I get for my first hand plane?

[Dave Schreib]

For the price of shipping one to you $19...I can send a No. 5 Stanley Jack plane to your address...sharpened and ready to go.

Better yet, just PM your Mailing Address...and I will send it out tomorrow's Mail.

That's outrageously generous. I'd like to venmo you $ for it. I really love the idea that someone who knows how a plane is supposed to work has used it and thinks that it works as it should. That takes a big variable out of this process for me.

Thank you so much!

[steven c newman]

It is called: Paying it Forward....and I tend to do quite a bit of it...just need an address to send this to...

[Dave Schreib]

PM sent. Thanks again.

[Luis Reyes]

I think you got some good advice already but one thing I learned the hard way is that I tried going cheap with my first two planes (one had a bent blade that I didn't even know wasn't supposed to be like that!). They were not fun to sharpen and I just couldn't get them to work properly. I almost gave up, however at the advice of an instructor I bought a #5 millers falls from a dealer and although I paid more for it than fb marketplace it was what I needed to fall in love with hand planes. It was ready to go straight away and it would sharpen relatively easily. I think you got an offer already for one here which is great as it'll work "out of the box".

Enjoy the journey!

[Cameron Wood]

Don't try fixing a problem when there may not be a problem to fix. The sole looks a little rough, clean it with some mineral spirits, rub some wax on it and see how it does before trying to flatten the sole. It is easier to mess up a good enough sole than it is to fix any unknown problem.

Save the sandpaper and look into > scary sharp < until you settle on a sharpening set up. You might try to look for other woodworkers in your area and hopefully find someone willing to be a mentor.



I've bought many irons via ebay. They are also available from most woodworking supply houses. Lee Valley carries Hock blades. A new one with a chip breaker will cost more than the plane you linked earlier.

Lie-Nielsen has some good sharpening videos. At Youtube search > lie nielsen sharpening < There are less expensive sharpening guides. For some, it is easier to just learn freehand sharpening.

jtk

You could say the same thing about sharpening: Don't try fixing a problem when it might be OK. You could mess up the iron trying to sharpen it. Just rub some wax on it, it's good enough.

[Jim Koepke]

You could say the same thing about sharpening: Don't try fixing a problem when it might be OK. You could mess up the iron trying to sharpen it. Just rub some wax on it, it's good enough.

Sharpness is easy to test. Sometimes it is easy to see by eye.

Flatness can also be checked with tools and knowledgable examination.

It helps to know what problem needs to be fixed before starting to fix it.

jtk

[Charles Edward]

A No. 7, but with a spare blade that you've shaped to have a pretty profound curve to it. Some call it "camber" but whatever. Shape the end on a coarse oilstone, not at the grinder. If you don't know how to hone it won't matter what you buy because nothing will work as it should.

[steven c newman]

Box will get mailed today....there IS a little surprise inside..be careful when you open it....will PM a tracking number when I get one.

[Mark Rainey]

Steve comes up big again! Wow. What Generosity.

[Dave Schreib]

Steve comes up big again! Wow. What Generosity.

Agreed.

Now I have to actually make something with that plane that's worthy of the generosity. Not sure I'm up to that challenge!

[steven c newman]

Scheduled delivery is this coming Saturday's Mail..

[Dave Schreib]

Thank you Steve!

[John C Cox]

Very nice and awesome generosity from Steve. If nothing had turned up, I was going to suggest a Woodcraft Woodriver brand plane. They come in good out of the box and use a normal, high carbon steel iron that is easy to keep sharp.

Best of luck with your new toy.

[steven c newman]

Was marked as delivered, today.....Let me know how it went.

[Dave Schreib]

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Look what the Easter Bunny brought me!

Not one but two hand planes. A number 5 and a number 4.

I was working on this pine workbench when they were delivered and they went to work immediately. I took down some high spots on the table top and I planned the ends to remove some ugly saw marks. I've never used a hand plane before but I fiddled with the various adjustments and I was able to take shavings almost immediately. There's going to be a learning curve but I can see how these tools are invaluable for certain tasks.

I am ordering the "scary sharp" deluxe sharpening system from Taylor Tools and I'll watch some videos on how to set these up and use them. But of course Steve had them razor sharp when they arrived.

Thanks to Steve for his generosity. I will look for an opportunity to to keep the generosity train going.

Steve, do you know anything about the history of these tools and how old they might be?