dflan004 Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 Im looking to buy my first "real" hand plane but im not sure which one is the most useful. So if u had to only use one plane which would it be? Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 a regular bevel down jack plane AKA #5. It will smooth and joint. Marc Spag recommended the low angle jack but I don't see that as an advantage when starting out as low angle blades are best on end grain. You will want to plane face grain most of the time and a regular 45 degree frog will suffice for most regular timbers. But woodworking is not cheap and you will soon build up a collection of planes and other tools. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Immortan D Posted March 17, 2017 Popular Post Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 A machete. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BonPacific Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 For your first plane? Either a #5 or #4, all depends on preference. Try and get your hands on a few to decide which you like. If you have a Woodcraft nearby, they usually have a couple Woodrivers out with a board to play around on. If I could only have one plane it would be my Low angle Jack, but I'm slowly working to replace it with a full set of users (Smoother, Jack, Scrub, Jointer). I'd also say a good block plane is a separate tool. I love my LN Bronze 102. I would recommend buying a new plane for your first. Cleaning up old stanleys can be fun, but you need to know what a proper plane feels like first. My first was a garage sale #4 "Worth" brand. I sharpened it up, but never enjoyed using it. It would cut, but the surface was rough, and I had to fight the thing the whole way. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek_PNW Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 37 minutes ago, Immortan D said: A machete. I would find this very useful once I was frustrated with a project. While I do not have any insight to offer, I will be quietly watching this topic. I have been thinking about starting to get some hand tools to finesse the fit of my work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 40 minutes ago, Immortan D said: A machete. LOL. I think we are all going to have to go out and buy a Lie Nielsen machete now I showed that guitar video. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hurricane Dry Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 53 minutes ago, TerryMcK said: a regular bevel down jack plane AKA #5. It will smooth and joint. Marc Spag recommended the low angle jack but I don't see that as an advantage when starting out as low angle blades are best on end grain. You will want to plane face grain most of the time and a regular 45 degree frog will suffice for most regular timbers. But woodworking is not cheap and you will soon build up a collection of planes and other tools. 100% This. Then a #4 smoother, then a #5 low angle jack for shooting end grain, then a #7 Jointer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikem Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 If you don't already have a block plane, I would put that at the top of my list as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chet Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 12 minutes ago, mikem said: If you don't already have a block plane, I would put that at the top of my list as well. LN's rabbeting block plane is a good versatile block plane. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikem Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 2 minutes ago, Chet K said: LN's rabbeting block plane is a good versatile block plane. Agreed! This was my first block plane. I now have a standard angle block plane, but the LN RB is still my go-to plane. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjongsma Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 If you're going to be mostly a hand-tool woodworker, then I would not put a block plane at the top of your list. You'll get far more use out of other planes. I hardly ever use my block plane compared to my other planes. On the other hand, If you're going to be primarily a power-tool woodworker, then a block plane probably should be near the top of your list. Of course, everyone works differently, so maybe there are other hand tool woodworkers that use block planes a lot... I agree with Terry -- a classic bevel-down jack plane is your best bet to start with. I'd start with a vintage stanley -- they're available everywhere, and won't cost you a lot of money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 It is not about primarily being a hand tool user, it is about the project load or desire. I do not remember the last project I did not use block planes, and I don't remember the last time I used my five or seven. All of my projects are smaller in scale recently. YMMV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjongsma Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 49 minutes ago, C Shaffer said: It is not about primarily being a hand tool user, it is about the project load or desire. I do not remember the last project I did not use block planes, and I don't remember the last time I used my five or seven. All of my projects are smaller in scale recently. YMMV Perhaps my terminology was confusing. The intention of my "primarily a hand tool user" comment was meant to imply (though I should have explicitly stated it) that you mill all of your lumber by hand. If that is the case, I think you will get a lot more use from your bench planes than from a block plane. if you mill your lumber with machines (which I called "primarily a power-tool woodworker", but that's not necessarily an accurate statement), then you'll probably use a block plane more than the longer bench planes (though maybe not more than a smoother, depends on your projects and your style). 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted March 17, 2017 Report Share Posted March 17, 2017 Got it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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