All Replies on Which Plane Combo for A to Z Finishing?

I use a no.4 for finish planing.

I use a no.4 for finish planing.

- Loren

I’ll see your #4 and raise you a half.

-- Half of what we read or hear about finishing is right. We just don’t know which half! — Bob Flexner

That’s a good typical combo to have. A lot depends on the wood you’re using and the projects you do. It took me a couple years to figure out my go-to planes. I bought cheap vintage at first and restored them because I knew I didn’t know what I was going to ultimately need.

My milling planes (I don’t own a power planer or jointer):

Stanley 40 1/2 Scrub
L-N LA Jack for edge grain/shooting and also a toothed blade for finer scrub work (love the toothed blade on this thing)
L-N 4 1/2 with a 55 degree angle frog for crazy grain wood
Millers Falls No. 4 (or any brand #4, I love my MF.)
605 1/2 Bedrock
606 Bedrock
Stanley No. 8

Paul Sellers uses a 4 for almost anything, for example. I use an 8 on a lot of short pieces because of the mass. There is no ONE PROPER SET OF PLANES YOU MUST USE!

Again, these are the ones I enjoy most and my list doesn’t include any of my blocks or specialty planes, scrapers, etc. I also have multiple blades for my bench planes depending on grain. I’ve sold off more than I own now, after trying them out. I love buying planes but I don’t have space for collecting, so I only own users. You need to find the ones you enjoy most. I suggest buying vintage, or find someone who will let you try out some planes so you can customize for your needs.

Good luck and once you start down this road, you will never be able to get off it!

#4, Hi & Lo and standard sometimes the #3 for small jobs, Got a 5 1/4 for a jack. Never really found a need for a Scrub? Cabinet scraper and a Scraping plane take care of all final finish, well maybe a little chamfer with a LN 102?

-- Lifting one end of the plank.

#4, #7 and #60/12. But remember they are only as good as they are sharp. If they ain’t sharp , they ain’t worth
diddley squat!! In my book these 3 are the absolute minimum, least, anyone needs. My herd is growing all the time. There are other’s here who have scores of hand planes and way many more years of knowledge than I. Don W is probably the seinor leading expert on hand planes here, I suggest you defer to his judgment.

You nailed it for me. #2 for jewelry boxes & small stuff. #3 small panels. #4 panels. #4-1/2 big panels and tables.

-- Shooting down the walls of heartache. Bang bang. I am. The warrior.

#4, #7 and #60/12. But remember they are only as good as they are sharp. If they ain t sharp , they ain t worth
diddley squat!! In my book these 3 are the absolute minimum, least, anyone needs. My herd is growing all the time. There are other s here who have scores of hand planes and way many more years of knowledge than I. Don W is probably the seinor leading expert on hand planes here, I suggest you defer to his judgment.

- BurlyBob

Yes sir I’m aware of that, still learning the best ways to sharpen however Im getting there :)

Keep the #4 for a smoother at least until you get something else that can be made into a scrub type. You can take off a fair bit of wood without widening the mouth. Also a hatchet can work pretty well to really hog off wood.

Just curious… since I have only recently jumped into the “finishing” realm of shellac and dyes/stains and HVLP spray stuff, I thought hand planing smooth was not ideal for finishing due to the compacting of fibers, closing up pores, adhesion issues, etc?

-- The Carpenter Bee is derived from the Ancient Greek word wood-cutter "xylokopos/ξυλοκὀπος"

My basic collection is:
3,4, 5 1/2,7, 60 1/2.
Lots of others, but that’s my go-to set.
I have other irons both cambered and straight that are interchanged as needed.
Bill

-- [email protected]

A #4, #5Jack with an additional grooved blade, and a #7 Jointer, don´t care much about my scrub unless I am trying to square down rived lumber, can´t really find much use for it around the shop…..

Along the lines of the others.

Smoothing plane (#3-5 1/2) depending on what feels comfortable in your hand.
Rough Stock Removal with a Jack Plane, Fore Plane or Scrub plane (#5, #6 or #40)
Jointing (#7 or #8)
Finishing (Scraper or scraping plane #80, #12, or #112)

Block planes are useful. I prefer low angle adjustable mouth planes such as the (#60 1/2, or #65). Other adjustable mouth planes to consider are #9 1/2, #18 or #19. Non adjustable mouth would be a #220 or possibly a #102. How ever if you want a small block like the #102 I recommend you look at the Lie-Nielson.

Also consider Joinery planes such as a router plane and shoulder planes.

Rabbit Planes and grooving planes are also things to consider at some point.

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

Holbs, I’ve heard the same thing a bunch of times but have had 0 problems so far. Personally, a planed surface shines a bit more compared to sanded. The grain picture is clearer which I like.

-- Shooting down the walls of heartache. Bang bang. I am. The warrior.

I think you can do just about anything with a #4, #5, #7, and a good block plane.

That’s what I have (though the #7 is new and still being tuned up). My block plane is a Millers Falls low angle 56 (equivalent to a Stanley 60 1/2). I like it because it fits my hand perfectly, and I like the adjustable mouth. However, some people might find the Stanley 60 1/2 too small. Block planes come in all sorts of configurations, and I have found that block plane preferences are more idiosyncratic than bench plane preferences.

If your #4 is in good shape, I would keep it and use it as a smoother, not a scrub plane. Your smoother needs to be your most precisely tuned plane, so if you have a good one already, don’t waste it!

Hope that helps!

My block plane is a Millers Falls low angle 56 (equivalent to a Stanley 60 1/2). I like it because it fits my hand perfectly, and I like the adjustable mouth. However, some people might find the Stanley 60 1/2 too small.

- Vindex

I agree. The 60 1/2 feels a bit small to me. For this reason, the #65 is my favorite block plane.

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

Just curious… since I have only recently jumped into the “finishing” realm of shellac and dyes/stains and HVLP spray stuff, I thought hand planing smooth was not ideal for finishing due to the compacting of fibers, closing up pores, adhesion issues, etc?

- Holbs

Wide belt sanding at too fine a grit can burnish
the wood and prevent even stain uptake. This
is kind of an industrial problem. I hadn’t heard
of it occurring with other types of sanding
or planing.

Just curious… since I have only recently jumped into the “finishing” realm of shellac and dyes/stains and HVLP spray stuff, I thought hand planing smooth was not ideal for finishing due to the compacting of fibers, closing up pores, adhesion issues, etc?

- Holbs

Holbs,

My experience is not extensive by any means, but, as I understand it, these are all bigger problems with sanding than with planing. That’s why, for example, you have to worry about raising the grain on sanded wood but not on hand-planed wood.

The biggest issue with hand planing is that it takes more skill than sanding to do properly. A poorly planed board is probably going to look a lot worse than a poorly sanded one, so sanding is the lower risk option. My personal preference is for planing, but that is really a subjective opinion.

#5 for traversing / rough work, then #8 for flattening and truing edges. A #4 for smoothing, unless it’s a larger panel where the #4 1/2 excels. I have a #40 and rarely use it, too aggressive. Low angle, adjustable mouth block is great to have; find one that fits your hand to get the most from it. A#65 is a solid choice.

-- Don't anthropomorphize your handplanes. They hate it when you do that. - OldTools Archive -

The only thing I would change is I’d be looking for Sargent planes

-- http://timetestedtools.net - Collecting is an investment in the past, and the future.

Agreed, Don. Many of the old brands were of equal quality to Stanley and Record, and they can often cheaper to buy now. Millers Falls is also a good brand. So are Keen Kutter and Union.