I've got the Veritas scraper plane.

It a very nice and very usable tool. I tend to reach for the vintage #112 more, but I can't really tell you why.

 

I got mine a few months ago and I use it quite a lot. It doesn't remove a huge amount of material, but it's not supposed to. I use it for final smoothing and it works great on figured woods.

 

Well OF COURSE Don W has one. Who here would think he Didn't??

 

I bought two Veritas planes recently and they had Chinese blades.
Nice steel, dont know why they dont make their own.

Jamie

 

I DO NOT have one… BUT,
I'll bet you anything you want to bet… That it is Very Good!

They just make Excellent stuff… they try to make the Best!
... and from what I've heard, are doing pretty good.

I think you will be happy with it… if you get one…

 

I have both the Veritas and the LN scraping planes. The advantages of the Veritas are a thin blade and the screw to bow the blade, the LN does not have this. IMO the LN is better made, but since the blade is too thick and you are unable to bow it, I only use it for rough scraping. For example, initial scraping after some tear out. OTOH it is easier to set than the Veritas. For some reason I have a heck of a time setting the Veritas plane, while the LN seems to be squared better.

Is it a toy, not IMO, it is very useful if you are scraping large areas.

 

@Jamie- You bought Veritas planes and they had CHINESE irons??? I'm guessing you bought them used since Veritas (Lee Valley) does make their own irons. If you bought them new, I'd contact the Lee Valley CS office and ask about that.

 

Somewhat OT, and apologies if this is "hijacking the thread", but: can someone compare the whys and wheres of a "scraper plane" vs. just a hand-held card scraper?

 

Burnt thumbs. Fiddling with angles. Corners of the card scraper digging into parts of your hands. Fatigue. Those are the doenfalls of hand scraping. It all depends if you think those annoyances are worth $200 or so.

 

+1 Chris. Get a hand scraper and try it for a while. I think I only paid about $70 for my 112. Not tried the Veritas scraper although I might have to given the Woodworking show is in town next weekend and LV will be there. Another less expensive option are the #80 and #81 scrapers. They can be found for $10-$20 if you hunt around. Or for that matter, you could make one. Lots of examples on the LJ site.

 

+1 for Stef's comments. Its not an either or. I still use card scrapers for small areas or uneven terrain.

Also, a scraper plane is one of the easiest to make. I use these all the time. I also made one for the last swap.

 

Sikwrap, they were both new in the box

Jamie

 

I have the Veritas and love it.
Works like a gem and I think they made a beautiful tool for once.
You will have no reason not to buy this. ;-)
Best thoughts,
Mads

 

I've had the Veritas for several years. Used as intended - in place of hand scraping - it is a gem. No more hurting hands and wavy surfaces. It does take some time to figure out how to properly set it up. DO NOT use a "flat piece of wood" when initially inserting the blade and setting blade depth. Use something that is very flat like formica countertop a a piece of glass. Adjust the mechanism up to about ~5°-10° from verticle, then set the blade. Test. You only want the wispiest shavings or none at all. Start adjusting the blade forward, or bowing the blade, until you start getting .0005"-.001" thick shavings, if that thick. The shavings should look like single ply toilet paper. For use on hardwoods, not softwoods.

Play with it for a while. Try different angles and amount of bow in the blade. I know I questioned the wisdom of buying it for a while until I learned how to properly set it up. I use it primarily as the final pass after a smoothing plane, sometimes instead of a smoother.

I can't directly compare the Veritas to the LN or Stanley 112 - I haven't used them, but my thought process was I can get an old Stanley for $100, have to buy a blade for $20 +, spend time fettling, and still not have the precision of the Veritas. I can get an LN for ~$60 more and not have the flexibility of thin or thick blade. It was a straightforward decision for me.

 

A while back a well known woodworking writer sold his LN scraper and went back a Stanley #80. Veritas makes a newer version of the #80 for much less than the scraper plane, or you could try ebay for a No. 80.