Plow Planes

[Doomwolf]

A plow plane is on my eventual tool list for when I get into some larger furniture pieces. If I go with Veritas, I'm looking at anywhere from $250-450 depending on how many blades, etc I get with it. Alternatively, there is a guy in the area with a couple of old Stanley 45's for sale for $150 (see link).

 

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-hand-tool/ottawa/hand-plane/1026762038

 

I've heard that the old 45's have a bit of a steep learning curve. Is the Veritas model that much better that I should save up for it? Or are plow planes something that a beginner shouldn't worry about until they specifically need one?

 

Also, Merry Christmas!

[Llama]

I love my 45. Wouldn't trade it straight up for the veritas offerings.

Learning curve isn't bad at all. There is a great video that Woodwright did last season, as well as a write up in PWW.

I paid a little over $100 for mine.

[Tpt life]

I love my 45. I love even more having a 55 also. I can leave one set up for tongue and the other groove. Don't recall purchase prices at the moment but I can dig.

[G S Haydon]

If you just want a plow and are thinking of vintage look at a Stanley No.50 as well. Lighter and easier to use. Nowt wrong with a 405 Record (I have one), Stanley 45/55 ( I have one)  but they are quite big and clunky. No 50 is the one I reach for.

[TerryMcK]

+1 on the 50 - I too have one but it still has a learning curve. I tape a pencil to it that enables me to see that it is upright as it is so easy to tip it at an angle.

[Tom King]

I don't own a 45, but a couple of 55's.  They work fine

[Freddie]

My 45 looks awesome in my tool cabinet.   I bought it at a show with no project in mind, really just wanted to have it. Mine's actually still missing a screw that locks the fence and I will be needing to get some kind of replacement eventually. I used the veritas plow at that same show, and there really is no learning curve based on skill level. The same rule applies to all your hand tools, you need to be able to sharpen the blades to achieve optimal performance. Once you got that, you can handle that tool. 

[Doomwolf]

That's a fairly universal set of good opinions. As I do some comparisons, I'm not seeing a lot of Stanley 50's, but there are a lot of Record 43's and 44's; are they the equivalent? Also, does any modern manufacturer produce plow plane blades that will fit in a Stanley or Record plane?

[Llama]

I don't think the ones from Veritas fits the old Stanleys and such. I think St. James Bay still makes cutters that will fit. Worth looking if eBay doesn't have what you need.

 

In reality, unless you are going all by hand, you will only use a few profiles.

 

I can do a short run-down if you need more info on the 45. 

[Arminius]

The Veritas ones will fit the Record, and most of the Stanleys.  The blades were 1/8", so not that hard to make one with some O1 steel if it comes to it, but that is the same thickness as the Veritas ones.  A bit shorter, but otherwise they will fit.

[Tom King]

That's a fairly universal set of good opinions. As I do some comparisons, I'm not seeing a lot of Stanley 50's, but there are a lot of Record 43's and 44's; are they the equivalent? Also, does any modern manufacturer produce plow plane blades that will fit in a Stanley or Record plane?

You can find irons on ebay.  Record or Stanley are interchangeable. 

 

Steer clear of the Record 044C (I hope I got that number right). It's the one with the plastic tote that slants forward.   I have one that I bought new, when they were available.  The depth stop is TERRIBLE.  A screw threads down into a soft plastic tube that expands to lock it in place.  It doesn't stay put. The old Stanleys have great depth stops, which are important. 

 

I use the Record irons that came with my Record multi plane in my old 55s.   In that picture I posted, it's an old Stanley 55, with the right fence not being used, and probably a Record iron.

[Barbancourt]

I've got the Veritas small plow plane, and it's one of my favorite tools.  It's easy to set up, holds it's settings, and gets good results.  It is a bit pricier though...

[skiback46]

I have a 45, and love it.  Another good source for info on old combination planes is here:

http://www.cornishworkshop.co.uk/combinationplanes.html

 

Hopefully she leaves it up now that shes done blogging.

[Tom King]

Some good info at that link.  I'm glad to see that I'm not the only one who doesn't like the 044C.

 

Plowing is one of the simplest of molding plane jobs to do, as far as operator skill is required.  Depending on the piece of wood, you can set the depth stop to take a small bite, and make full passes, gradually raising the depth stop with each pass, or you can hog out deeper, shorter cuts, by starting at the tail end and working your way back.  The second method is the one I'm using on the board in the picture. With the hogging out method, you don't have to worry about setting the depth stop anything but full depth of the groove you want. The first method is a PIA with anything that doesn't have a very stout, and easy to adjust depth stop-like the 044C.

 

Shavings you get are different too.  Notice the short shavings in the air in the hogging out picture.  With the full pass method, you get long shavings.