Vintage Stanley Sweetheart

[John Anderson]

Hello,

so i want to get a decent collection of hand tools, and from everything ive read, the best way is to get the old stuff. a couple of weeks ago i went to the local flea market and was surprised at what i found. i first got an original Stanley Sweetheart No. 6 with a ribbed bottom. then i found a Sweetheart No. 4! i got both planes for $35. the No4 was clean, but the no.6 needed a little attention. I read the article in the Most recent FWW all about restoring old planes so that helped me out. what im getting at is, i thought the Sweetheart line was like EXTREMELY rare. i dont know a lot about the line and when i put it in google all i get is ithe new crap they make in Mexico. i did learn that the Sweethearts were made between 1918 and 1932, but i dont know much more. here are my questions:

Are they really rare?

Is there anything special to them besides the little heart on the blade?

how does the No6 fore plane differ from the no7 jointer plane besides length? (what specific job is it used for?)

thanks

Ando

[Mister Pants]

Define rare. There was really nothing especially special about the sweetheart stuff, as they weren't a specific line of planes but indicative of a logo that Stanley used in a date range. The sweetheart logo was a result of the merger of the Stanley Rule and Level Company and Stanley Toolworks (there used to be two Stanley companies) and it was a merging of their two logos, with the heart being a memorial to the Stanley Works' president William Hart. The Stanley in the rectangle is the Stanley Rule and Level Company's logo and the SW in the heart indicated Stanley Works. They were well made, but they weren't much different than the planes made before or after the period (pre-WWII and especially pre-1960) where they used that logo. Generally when people are nostalgic for the old Sweetheart planes they tend to be nostalgic for the era and the quality of the Stanley planes of that era itself. I expect the sweetheart logo itself is more important to tool collectors than tool users.

As for rarity, bear in mind Stanley was the premier maker of hand planes during that time-frame and planes were in much greater use than they are today (carpenters, contractors, home owners etc all had them). As such they are not really very rare at all, with the exception of the Stanley #1 (quite rare, hence its >$1k price tag), the Stanley #2 and to a much lesser extent the #6.

The 6 is basically a baby jointer, and that's pretty much where the difference between it and the 7 comes into play. Its easier to handle due to size and being lighter, but obviously doesn't have the bed length of the 7. From my understanding it was designed for the guy on site as it was smaller and easier to carry.

At least that's my understanding. I'm sure there's a better historian who's about to thwap my ignorance .

[Dan S]

type and size are the major contributors to value. http://www.tooltrip.com/tooltrip9/stanley/stan-bpl/bailey-types.htm

• type 4 and earlier are pre lateral adjustment lever, and in my opinion not as user friendly. However they cost more, because they are what collectors want.
• type 5 - 8 have the lateral adjustment lever but the earlier frog design. still a good plane
• type 9-15 (or was it 16) have the new frog design, when people say old this is what they normally mean
• type 16-20 have the newest and inferior (according to most, me included) frog design and are not worth as much

[Roger T]

For just about all the information about Stanley Planes that a guy could want go here

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/stan0a.html

I think he covers just about every plane Stanley ever made. This is pretty much the defacto online resource for all planes Stanley.

Good luck with you new addiction, I've been after them for quite a while, and don't have all that I want just yet.

BTW, A type 11 #6 is my absolute favorite plane, and then after that is a type 11 4 1/2, and a type 11 #3. I think I gotta thing for type 11's. lol Maybe throw in a #5 for some rough work and you would have a really nice working set of planes. Not to much you cant do with the above 4 planes.

HTH,

Roger

[jwatson]

don't know if anyone has answered this but a #6 is 18 inches long and a #7 is 22 inches long. Right now i only have a number 6 and used it as a jointer which it does just fine at. number 6s are good for jointers or shooting boards. the name fore plane is a confusing term since jacks were commonly used as a fore plane. its an odd size but its work as i use it is solely a jointer.

[Mister Pants]

BTW, A type 11 #6 is my absolute favorite plane, and then after that is a type 11 4 1/2, and a type 11 #3. I think I gotta thing for type 11's. lol Maybe throw in a #5 for some rough work and you would have a really nice working set of planes. Not to much you cant do with the above 4 planes.

HTH,

Roger

I've got a frankenstein #6. Its the only WWII plane I have in my (way too large) collection. It works well enough, but I tend to reach for my #7 more often. I suppose it would be good for smaller jointing tasks though. Now I just need an 8. No reason other than the OCD of needing an 8 .

And yeah Patrick's Blood and Gore page is a tremendous resource. I also like http://hyperkitten.com/tools/stanley_bench_plane/ for dating and typing different planes.