Lie-Nielsen pricey pretty stuff.....

[Ben Rafael]

Then buy the Craftsman.
It will take you at least $140 of your time to make it work decently and it still wont be as good as the LN out of the box.

[John Schreiber]

And why buy a ferrari for 175K when you can drive a camry for 18k

PS

I think that a Lie-Nielsen is actually pretty close to a fully loaded Camry.

When I was making my decision I was thinking in terms of wrist watches. I like good watches that last such as a nice Seiko or Citizen. It seemed to me that Lie-Nielsen was a Rolex. What I found was that Lie-Nielsen is more equivalent to a good Seiko. The $30 Craftsman is roughly equivalent to the watches in plastic packages hanging on a peg at Wal-mart.

For Rolex, see something like Holtey or Marcou. To compare with cars, they probably qualify as a high end BMW or Lexis. I've seen pictures of Ferrari equivalent planes out there, but I don't know their names.

[Ben Davis]

Don't forget that you are purchasing a service contract for the life of the tool, not yours. If, when you are hitting hole-in-ones on the great golf course in the sky, your son has a problem with "Dad's old LN plane", he just calls up the company, sends the tool, pays shipping and gets back a totally functioning and tuned item.

[Bill Stoffels]

I tried one Lie Nielsen and now have 4 within a month .
There is always better. but for quality and usage these fit the bill for me .
The Marcou type for me would be a museum piece, a beautiful product but same functionality
Just my opinion
Bill

[Rick Cicciarelli]

Yeah, I've watched the videos of the guys working with their LN planes. FIRST off, I need to learn what all I can do with a basic set of planes. This is one area that I was never really exposed to much when I was growing up. I do love the appeal of working with a fine set of hand tools though. I also love watching the guys in the video pull off translucent shavings of wood using their LN planes. Again, I am not saying that they are not worth it...it is just interesting to look at the two extreme price points. One could argue the same thing for many tools...I could have gone out and gotten a cheap Ryobi router for $59.00. Instead I chose to purchase a nice a nice Bosch for over $200 and I love it.

[Ben Rafael]

I'd say the LN is more of a Lexus than a Camry. They both run well, are reliable and will last if taken care of. But the Lexus is far more comfortable and a pleasure to drive.
I'll keep my Tahoe though; I can barely fit in to most cars without banging my knees and elbows on everything.

[Jim Koepke]

Then buy the Craftsman.
It will take you at least $140 of your time to make it work decently and it still wont be as good as the LN out of the box.

Heck, it won't even be as good as the type 6 Stanley #4 I bought for $7.50.

jim

[Mike Cutler]

I know Lie-Nielsen shouldn't even be mentioned in the same sentence as Craftsman, but boy, sometimes one needs reminding of the justification for spending $165 on a Lie-Nielsen block plane when you can buy a Craftsman for $36.

Rick

Something that sometimes gets lost in threads like this, is the relative cost comparison of an LN plane in 2009, versus a Stanley Bedrock in say 1939.
If a comparison os done to the prevailing average wage of the different eras, how much more is an LN in 2009 dollars than a Stanley Bedrock in 1939 Dollars.( I'm using the Bedrock Series as a comparison here because that is the plane that LN is based on). Bedrock planes were expensive then, and in good condition still are today.

Another point to make is the cost of the raw material we are working with. Wood is expensive, and isn't getting any cheaper, no matter domestic or imported. Having a quality tool that is predicatable in it's perfromance can be of a cost benefit when weighed against making a mistake, or having to redo work, or go over it a second time.
Does it mean that an LN is an absolute necessity? No, but you should try to obtain the highest quality tool you can afford.I hate to be a snob, but I don't believe a new Craftsman tool is the tool you want. I actually think you'd be better off buying a 50 year old Craftsman for a few dollars at a flea market, than a new one.( At one time Craftsman was a well respected line, that represented quality at a good price, but I think Sears lost sight of that long ago. Which was too bad actually)

LN, or LV are tools that are built too last. Well made, durable, accurate. They will survive as a functional, quality tool for as long as they cared for properly.
I know that sometimes I get caught up in "babying" my LN's and using my refurb'd Stanley's, and MF's for the "rough work", but then I'll yank out my LN's and use them for their intended purpose.

[Dean Karavite]

This is my first and only LN plane, but it will not be my last. The whole slippery slope thing is before me. This is probably the best functioning and designed tool I own. It is my favorite tool to use. I have three cheap block planes and they were nothing but frustration and a hassle. I spent hours on a cheapo Groz and it performs okay, but you can't really trust it. The LN just killed it right out of the box.

Funny story, just today I was working on a cabinet project and had my trusty LN plane. My wife never ever notices my tools let alone says anything about them, even the Festool stuff. Today she actually stopped in her tracks and said something like, "Wow, look at that plane. That is amazing. You should do more projects that use hand tools like this..." She wouldn't stop talking about it!

Did I marry the right woman or what? Of course we didn't talk about how much it cost, but even the best marriage must have a few secrets!

[Don C Peterson]

...Even a cheap craftsman plane is better than what was available to most back them... Proof positive that tools are by far the least of the factors that a person needs to posses when it comes to making a "masterpiece"...
YMMV

I don't want to be rude, but this is simply not true.

Since at least the 18th century, craftsmen were able to get tools that in function, were at or near the standards of the best tools we have today. With all the advances we've made in engineering, there's been precious little that actually increased the FUNCTION of hand tools. Our improvements have made great strides in making them more consistent and easier (cheaper) to make, but not necessarily better.

It is a common mistake, but a mistake nevertheless to think of our ancestors (or their tools) as "primitive".

[David Myers]

Heck, it won't even be as good as the type 6 Stanley #4 I bought for $7.50.

jim

Awright, that's a clear gloat that demands a picture (or a link to the thread that contains the original gloat).

[Eddie Darby]

The better the tool, the better the job .....but you have to know how to do the job.

I have cheapo planes, and I have some middle to top-end planes, and I enjoy them all, just that my go to planes when in a pinch all seem to be the planes from the top-end.

[Justin Green]

I can't remember where I read this, probably here. A Stanley hand plane back in the glory days cost the worker a week's salary. The LNs might be a tad cheaper than that by today's standards, depending on the plane and your salary.

[John Sanford]

And why buy a ferrari for 175K when you can drive a camry for 18k
PS

duh. Because its much easier to pick up hot chicks in a Ferrari than a Camry!

Unfortunately for the LN crowd, hot chicks don't seem to appreciate the difference between a LN and a Craftsman. If the truth were told, most hot chicks would be pondering exactly who the tool is if you were to extoll the virtues of the LN!

All that aside, their is an implicit assumption in your question that is, well, stupid. Why stop at a Camry? Why drive an 18k Camry when you could drive a <1k used Dodge K car? In fact, why drive at all when you can take a bus, or ride a bike, or even walk? I mean, c'mon, all you want to do is get from Point A to Point B. A Camry is overkill for that!!!

Drive a Ferrari, or a Camry, or ride a Honda, or even, gak, a Harley, or a bicycle, or ride the bus, or walk. Do whatever it is that satisfies your value (both economic and personal) criteria.

As for hand planes, same gig. Just to be clear, ME ain't signing up to be a party to your assumption. U are going solo.

[Clay Thigpen]

I think we should turn this in for a television commercial for LN planes. I'll go ahead and be the first Volunteer to be the Professional Hand tool User on a well secured Maple board. Zing . At some point I will own a LN or it's 18th to mid 19th C. predecessor.