No 62 as Primary Plane for Beginner?

[robodude666]

7 minutes ago, Llama said:

A low angle jack is not a smoother.

Are you saying that from the point of view that the No 62 is ~5 inches longer than a No 4? Or another reason? (Other than the angle as the blades can be honed w/ a microbevel to match the angle-of-attack of a No 4 from my understanding.)

1 minute ago, Eric. said:

That's no longer a low angle plane.  It's a bevel up with a 62* cutting angle, which is a higher effective angle than a standard bench plane.

Correct, and that's why I'm looking at the LAJ as a potentially good starting plane. In Marc's video he does mention that the LAJ's length isn't ideal for a smoother nor a jointer, but I would imagine it would still get the job done good enough for a beginner to get some practice.

[BonPacific]

1 minute ago, Eric. said:

That's no longer a low angle plane.  It's a bevel up with a 62* cutting angle, which is a higher effective angle than a standard bench plane.

I was just arguing against those who claimed blade angles don't matter.  In my experience, that's not correct.

This is one of those places where it's easy for new folks to get confused. A Low-Angle-Jack (LAJ) like the Stanley #62, is referring to the angle of the bed, not the angle of the blade. It doesn't help that the blades are often sharpened for a lower effective angle (42*) than a standard bench plane (45*).

These planes are also known as bevel-up planes, which is a less confusing term. Since the bevel of the blade is on the top, it is easy to change the angle of the cut, just by changing the sharpened angle. Standard bench planes put the bevel "down" which means the cutting edge is presented to the wood at the angle set by the frog. Frogs can be changed out for different angles, and "back-beveling" the blade is a technique that some people use.

One of the things that make the bevel up planes popular is the ease of switching to a high-angle blade for dealing with figured wood. Having the option of a low-angle blade is better for end-grain, though is by no means required. My LAJ is usually set up for smoothing figured wood.

[Eric.]

22 minutes ago, robodude666 said:

Correct, and that's why I'm looking at the LAJ as a potentially good starting plane. In Marc's video he does mention that the LAJ's length isn't ideal for a smoother nor a jointer, but I would imagine it would still get the job done good enough for a beginner to get some practice.

We've complicated this issue for you, as we always do with this very question (it comes up often).

The easy answer is: Yes, it's a decent place to start.  But you may find it much less useful if you grow your plane collection down the road.

My slightly longer answer would be: I recommend buying at least a #4 to go with the #62.  And the block plane.  That will be a much more versatile set.  Unless you're milling boards by hand (in which case you'll want more planes than just these), then I imagine you'll find yourself using the #4 and block plane way more than the LAJ.  I know I do.  I use my #4 and #103 far more than any other planes in my cabinet.  Ten fold probably.

I make these comments assuming you'll be a primarily power tool woodworker.

[wtnhighlander]

Just buy the darned thing, and get to work! If you choose to flesh out your collection in the future, you can always recoup a decent part of your investment by selling the LAJ to another up and comer.

And Llama is right, you need a solid, stable work surface for planing by hand. Plywood over horses ain't gonna cut it.

[derekcohen]

On 11/28/2016 at 11:44 AM, robodude666 said:

Howdy,

I'm getting into woodworking and was planning on getting vintage Stanley planes off eBay and restoring them. Based on recommended planes to own, I was considering:

• No 18 Block
• No 7 Jointer
• No 4 Smooth
• No 5 Jack

However, I ran across Marc's The Only Handplane You Need? article on Popular Woodworking which got me thinking...

Based on the fact that most No 7s on eBay are selling for $120+ (including shipping) you can easily spend ~250+ (including shipping) on vintage planes and then you have to put in unknown amount of hours into restoring them. Further searching the forums brings up many positive comments about either the Lee Valley or Lie-Nielsen No 62 Low Angle Jack Plane.

It seems more practical to buy a new LV/LN No 62 and a spare blade (to set to 50 degree) -- about $300 total and much less space -- than it is to deal with hunting down vintage planes and restoring them. Another consideration is the Stanley No 62 for ~$125, but I've read many negative reviews about it.

What do you guys think? I may still end up picking up a No 18 because they seem handy to have, but would do all of my jointing/smoothing with the No 62. Am I missing something, or is it as good as it sounds?

EDIT: And before people ask, yes I've checked Craigslist; it's very rare to find woodworking stuff for sale and my local antique shops are asking ~3x eBay prices for Stanley planes.

Thanks,

-robodude666

You're absolutely correct. If you are starting out, have no tools at all, and want one plane to do as much as possible as you need (jointing, smoothing, shooting), get a LAJ and 2 blades (one with a 25 degree bevel for shooting and cross grain, and a higher pitch for face grain). 

When you are starting out you will not be working complex wood. No doubt you will stick to pine for a while. Once you have learned on this you can consider more advanced blade angles. For now you simply want an easy plane on which to learn. They do not come more simple than a BU plane. 

Later, you can consider a smoother, either BU or BD. Wait a while. Get a block plane now. My suggestion is the LN #102. Hone a 30-35 degree secondary micro bevel. This will make it work like a small smoother. It will be better for chamfering edges. You can use the LAJ for shooting endgrain.

Bottom line: you are starting out. Keep It Simple. Learn to use a plane first.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[gee-dub]

" my local antique shops are asking ~3x eBay prices for Stanley planes "

Don't you hate that.  They don't even know what they are, they're just rustic looking nick nacks ;-(