4 or 4 1/2 smoother?

[Jerry_in_SD]

I'm ready to purchase a another hand plane and I could pick up either a 4 or 4 1/2 smoother but unsure of the pros and cons of each. I own a vintage stanley #5 that is fairly well tuned. My primary use would be for smoothing to remove machine marks prior to final sanding with final grit(s). Basically avoid the 80 to 120 grit initial sanding. Your opinions would be helpful.

[Llama]

I use a jointer plane to remove machine marks from my jointer.

A smoothing plane would be good to use after a thickness planer of desired.

However, with either the jointer or smoother, of your goal is eliminate the 80 grit sanding, the Jack plane is the tool to use.

[cellardoor]

Having agonized over this very decision myself this past summer, I'll tell you where I landed: Bronze No.4 from Lie Nielsen. Here's how I got there...

 

At some point I got in my head the wild idea of a modular system of interchangeable frogs. Maybe a holdover from my Festool addiction. Fortunately I thought better of it. Swapping frogs as part of a workflow is bonkers. 

 

Then I thought about going with the 4.5 and the 8 (I was buying a smoother and a jointer at the time) so I'd have the heaviest dutiest of all the planes! (again - a holdover from the power tool world). So I drove up to Warren and started making shavings in the showroom. 

 

I wound up with the No.4 and the No.7 because both represented the lightest weight version of their ilk and that allowed me greater control and longer planing time. I can't imagine the No.4.5 being of any real advantage in terms of producing a wider shaving. Smoothing a board with a nice sharp well-tuned plane is such a pleasure it's one of the few stages I don't feel like rushing!

 

Hope that helps. 

[G S Haydon]

I would echo William and not agonise.

 

If you're smaller in stature a #4, larger in stature #41/2.

 

You work on mainly smaller sections and less big panels #4 if the opposite is true #41/2. 

 

Add a dash of what you fancy and you should be good.

[Jerry_in_SD]

Thanks guys for feedback. I'll stick with the #4 which is where I was leaning.

[TerryMcK]

Good choice on the #4. The 4.1/2" is wider and heavier (read more difficult to push) than the #4. I am big boned and got rid of my 4.1/2 as it was very tiring and like William got a bronze #4, without the high frog, and love it. For difficult stuff the #3 sized LV small bevel up plane with an assortment of different bevel angle blades lets me go to York pitch and beyond.

[ChetlovesMer]

Looks like I'm too late to the party.
I actually went the other way. I got rid of my LN Bronze #4 because I prefer the LV 4-1/2.

 

Aside from the fact that I prefer the feel and fit of the LV to the LN. I find the 4-1/2 much less tiresome to use and much more comfortable. The additional weight holds the plane down for me, and actually makes it easier to use. ... especially with a little canning wax smeared on the sole.