Shoulder Plane


tim0625

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I'm not a huge hand tool guy but I've recently run into occasions where a shoulder plane would have easily solved some problems. I'm considering the Veritas Medium.  I will mostly use it for cleaning dados and smoothing tenons.

1 - Is this a good size to begin with?

2 - Is the Veritas a good choice or is there one you like better?

Thanks

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The Veritas medium is a great tool, I love mine but it mostly gets used for light tuning of rabbets and tongues, etc...stuff like that.  What james said.  A router plane is better for dados as well as tenon cheeks.  Also, better for cheeks would be either a larger shoulder plane or a rabbet block of sometype.  

 

If you want to just buy one plane right now though for both dados and tenon cheeks a router plane is the way to go.

 

I have the LV router plane, and LN makes a nice one too.

 

LN has a video showing how to use a router plane for both dado and cheek work:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buLJWnGMQTE

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I have the veritas medium shoulder plane and prefer it to the LN. I like the multiply ways you can grip the plane. I mostly use this plane for cleaning up tenon cheeks and 3/4 dados. For tenon shoulders I would go along with what James said, the rabbit block plane is best suited for this application. In fact I just pick up a LN rabbit block plane as a early Christmas present and now using it on my coffee table project.

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I feel like something is sneaking up on me.....NEANDERTHALS!!! I know what you're doing...you're trying to lul me into a dazed state and cast your hand tool spell over me using the Lie-Nielson guy.  Not gonna work.  The #71 is pretty and a good way to go if you're a true knuckle dragger...I'm not...I just don't have enough patience.

Sorry guys...I think I just need a shoulder plane to hit it, hit it, hit it and I'm through.  Tenon smoothed.  So....small, medium, or large?

Veritas or Lie-Nielson?

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I've used the Veritas medium shoulder plane once before in a class, it worked well. One thing to think about is the Veritas is 11/16" wide and can be used for trimming 3/4" dados, whereas the LN is a full 3/4" and would jam in that size of cut. They're only $4 different in price ($14 if you get the PM-V11 blade), so it really comes down to what works best for you. 

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I think I just need a shoulder plane to hit it, hit it, hit it and I'm through.  Tenon smoothed.  So....small, medium, or large?

Veritas or Lie-Nielson?

 

Ok, so sticking within the shoulder plane arena the answer is, it depends. If you want to use it for dados that pretty much rules out the LV and LN larges, and well as the LN medium.  Personally, the two shoulder planes I like the best for "all-around use" are the LV medium and the LN small 041 (not to be confused with the small LN infill). The LN 041 looks and feels quite small, but at 5/8" wide its only 1/16" narrower than the medium LV, it's very comfortable in one hand but still has enough width to handle most shoulder plane tasks.  The LV medium falls about halfway between the LN medium and the LN small in terms of size. It more substantial then the LN small, but is still easily wielded in one hand, and for "general all around use" it is my favorite shoulder plane on the market.

 

However, if your main purpose in tenon cheeks then you'll prefer either a large shoulder plane or rabbet block plane...the width is just better suited for getting a trued tenon cheek, but again you won't be able to use them for dados.

 

Just for reference of where my opinion comes from...

 

I personally own 3 shoulder planes.  My smallest is the little LN bronze 1/2" infill, which is just super handy for little trimming and truing tasks, my medium is the LV medium, which again, I love as a great all around general purpose shoulder plane (its my most used of the 3), and my largest is not an LN or LV l...rather its a vintage 1 1/2" wide Slater infill shoulder plane.  It's wider then both the LN and LVs, but also shorter, and lower so it much easier to wield one handed...It almost feels like a cross between a large shoulder plane and a rabbet block plane.

 

I've also tried all the LN and LV shoulder planes at various points in time either at shows or in friends workshops.

 

For the larges...I like the LV a little bit better just because I find the shape of the body and the knobs make it more comfortable for me to use than the Large LN, but that said, the Large LN is also pretty sweet, and I wouldn't give strong preference to one over the other...and if going with a large would base the decision on how you think you would prefer to grip a shoulder plane.

 

For mediums...I like the LV much better than the LN medium. I just don't like the feel of the LN/Record/Preston style shoulder planes in that size.  They feel a lot larger and one handed use is less intuitive than on the LV or similar width Stanley, without adding much capacity. The 3/4 (model 042) LN/Recod/Preston style just don't suit me, but thats just me as I like a shoulder plane that I can easily wield one-handed. Obviously that style had been around in that size for a long time and if you want a 3/4" plane that you can really get a lot of power behind with two hands you might prefer the LN/Record in that size.

 

For smalls...tough choice...for all around use I'd have to go with the LN 041....It just a really nice handy size...fits in the hand almost like a small block plane, but at 5/8" wide it just more versitile than either the LV small or the LN infill....I actually really love both the LV small as well as the little LN infill that I own, BUT I often will use a shoulder plane to tweak 1/2" wide rabbets in those cases its nice to have something a little wider than the rabbet...while I love both those little planes, I wouldn't want a 1/2" shoulder plane as my only plane.

 

So to answer your original question, yes for your purposes, I think the LV medium is the way to go, since its the widest of the planes that are narrow enough to fit in a 3/4" or slightly under dado and while it's got some good heft to it and the body is big enough to get two hands one when needed, its still easily wielded in one hand. Its not as ideal for truing tenon cheeks as a large shoulder plane or rabbet block will be but it will get that job done and in other ways it may be a better all-arounder then a Large shoulder plane.

 

Of course...just because I've tried a handful of shoulder planes doesn't mean I know jack about woodworking or have any idea what I'm talking about and even if I did...these are just my personal preferences (and I generally prefer smaller shoulder planes), so please feel free to take my opinion with a grain of salt or ignore entirely :-) 

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I have that small Record too.  I don't think I've ever had the nose off of it.  I also bought an 073 at the same time I bought the small one-both new in the '70s.   Both have been used a lot over the years, to the point that the nickel plating is a little weathered from sweat.

 

All the talk about one being better than the other, and agonizing over which one to buy is a little funny to me.   I'm good with a really sharp one of any type.

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