bigarm Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 I know nothing about planes, or hand tools in general for that matter, so would like some guidance. My jointer is only 6" and I need to joint wider boards at times. I know I can do the 6" and finish the rest with a hand plane, but don't know what plane to use. What do you suggest? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaneymack Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 I would start with a Low angle jack plane. It works great at getting one side flat to use as a reference face for the planer. It also works well for shooting and edge jointing. Just swap out the blades for different applications. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 I totally agree with @shaneymack I have a regular #5 jack plane and it's VERY useful but if i was going to get a new plane it'd be a low angle. If budget is a huge concern the stanley #5 planes that are on ebay can be had for a great deal. My amazing girlfriend bought me one for Christmas and also got a Hock blade to go with it. Mine was a gift so i didn't get to choose if i had a choice I'd have gone low angle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Wright Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 It all depends on how "flat you want it" the big key is how long the bead of the plane is. if you go for a #8 you can get a very flat surface, but it will take a lot of time to bring it down. The usual guideline is that the plane be half the length of the board, but there is no real reason to go longer then 2' the second thing is what angle will the cutting head be at. for 90% of the work 40-55 degrees will suit you well, but there are a few times that you may want a low angle (Mostly end grain). if the grain has any figure you want that angle higher if possible. that is why most planes come at 45 degrees. with the newer designs of the low Angle beds people now flip the blade over (Bevel up as apposed to the traditional Bevel down) you can get a cutting angle as low as 25 degrees. As to this project. if you are going to do it by hand don't mess with jointing half that will be a pain to try and make the second half match. you are better off and quicker to do the whole surface by hand. make a pair of winding sticks and a good strait edge and you will be surprised how fast it goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronn W Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 I do agree with the comments by the others. But just on the subject of board being wider than the jointer "at times". If the board is just a little wider than the jointer I have actually used a low angle block plane. I am usually taking off only between 1/32" and 1/16" of wood. I recognize that this is not the tool of choice but it is what I have, it is inexpensive, very useful for other tasks and works well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minorhero Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 I like a number 4. It is smaller than a number 5 and easier to push. When planing wide things like table tops the whole half as wide idea goes out the window. Anyone not checking with a straight edge and a light won't notice something not being perfectly dead flat. I prefer ease of use therefore. The number 4 and 5 are pretty much my go to planes. Do yourself a favor and buy off of eBay a used tool in decent condition for less then 70$ and use that till you know enough to appreciate a 200-300$ hand plane. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 4 hours ago, bigarm said: I know nothing about planes, or hand tools in general for that matter, so would like some guidance. My jointer is only 6" and I need to joint wider boards at times. I know I can do the 6" and finish the rest with a hand plane, but don't know what plane to use. What do you suggest? If you own a planer, instead of buying a hand plane to get your first reference surface, I'd buy a few pieces of 3/4" MDF cut to 7" wide. Use the thickness you can on the jointer, place the mdf on turners tape to the jointed spot. That gives you a flat reference to plane the other side . Flip over, remove mdf, plane away strip. Done. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 Brendon has it until you get to boards wider than your planer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 19 minutes ago, C Shaffer said: Brendon has it until you get to boards wider than your planer. Should have mentioned that yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gee-dub Posted May 9, 2016 Report Share Posted May 9, 2016 I believe Brendon_t is referring to the method Marc demonstrates at the 4 minute mark in this video. https://youtu.be/c_R8mD5IKII The blank being used for the demonstration is a healthy thickness, is already pretty well milled and so does not create a lot of spoil. If your board is pretty irregular this method can have varying success in leaving you with a usable size result but, this is true of any method if the board is bad enough. Silk Purse out of Pig's Ears aside . . . A planer sled can get you flat with a minimum of wasted material as will a hand plane. If I was after a hand plane and didn't have any, I would go with a low angle jack. I have been told that this plane becomes superfluous once you flesh out your hand plane collection but, I still find it a go-to tool for many things. It is long enough to do minor jointing tasks and light enough to use for edges or smaller smoothing tasks as well. The variation of answers to this (recurring) question shows how varied and clever we all are in our preferred approaches to a problem. I found the Saturday morning I spent making a planer sled to pay off handsomely at least once a year but, you've got to store it. A handplane takes up a lot less room but, I don't want to spend all my shop time flattening a face. You will have to judge for yourself which way to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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