Materials and workmanship are guaranteed for the life of your tool. Call for repairs or replacement parts. We are available for advice if you ever have a problem using your tool. Proposition 65 Notice: As you measure the depth-adjustment nut, note if it is 1-1/4inch in diameter. That means it has three dates cast into the bed, and the plane is Type 12, dating between 1919 and 1924. If not, that means it is a Type 11 and dates 1910 and 1918.

Understanding Bench Planes | Popular Woodworking Understanding Bench Planes | Popular Woodworking

English made Stanley planes seem to be less desirable then the US made ones. Why is that? Are they inferior? When using this plane, I would have to say that it works just as well as my type 11. The original blade and chipbreaker were in nearly new condition, so they weren't messed up and I didn't need to replace them. The original blade, however, does tend to need sharpening more frequently than my Ray Iles aftermarket blade. I used this plane exclusively on a recent project with great results. I think the number one thing in getting a plane to work is making sure it is sharp. CLASSIC CHERRY WOOD HANDLES: Made from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified cherry wood, the handle and knob are shaped to fit the hand naturally and comfortably, providing comfort in extended or repetitive use.I am so frustrated and haven’t a clue what I’m doing wrong! Bought an old Stanley No. 4 plane from Tooltique and it has been working great on my workbench build (first ever woodworking project). I sharpened the blade a couple of times and it has started skipping/jumping across the wood leaving horizontal lines. It happens both with and against the grain, and doesn’t matter how shallow I set the blade. So I’m thinking it’s either something wrong with my sharpening, or with the way I’m putting it together. I don’t have a honing guide so am sharpening freehand on 240, 600 and 1200 grit sandpaper taped to a flat bathroom tile. I wondered if the angle was too steep so tried to sharpen again really trying for 25 – 30 degrees but it hasn’t made any difference. Should I buy a honing guide and try again?

No. 4 Bronze Smooth Plane Lie-Nielsen Toolworks No. 4 Bronze Smooth Plane Lie-Nielsen Toolworks

The only other thing I’ve noticed is that the lever cap is set way off centre which just seems wrong to me, but the screw is off centre so are they all like this? I’ve attached some photos to try and explain my point – the lever cap is pretty much touching the side of the plane on one side, but it’s a good 3mm off the other side. How can this be right? Having said that, I wasn’t having any problems at the start so I know it’s something I’m doing. I’ll take some photos later of the blade etc. Howard, I’m using 240, 600 and 1200 grit sandpaper taped to a flat tile and trying to follow the technique on Paul’s sharpening video. I’m sorry but I’m not sure what is meant by the chip-breaker being honed – again I’ll take some more photos and hopefully you can enlighten me on this! If that’s all set ok, I think it’s possible you aren’t applying enough downward pressure on the planing stroke. You need to press down on the front of the plane when starting the stoke, balance the pressure through the stroke and put pressure on the rear of the plane at the end. Some people describe it as trying to plane a hollow in the middle of the board. Also, the mouth on the type 11 is finer. This doesn't really make a difference to me, though. Since I've learned to set the chipbreaker farther forward on the blade for fine shavings, I've not noticed a need for a fine mouth. The lateral adjustment lever is now two-piece construction. It has a circular disk replacing the straight portion where it engages the slot in the iron. The brass adjusting nut has a left-hand thread. “7-24-88” is also stamped into the lever.

If there is anything this plane has taught me, it is that you shouldn't take anything you read too seriously. If you need a plane and the one in front of you isn't the one that some "expert" says you should get, give it a try. That is, with certain exceptions. I'm a bit wary of any company that manufactures this style of plane currently, especially for cheap. You can't tell me that Made in India is just as good as Made in Sheffield. Also, I'm a bit wary of Chinese copies of modern premium planes. And yes, I include Stanley Sweetheart in this category.

STANLEY® “No. 4” Sweetheart™ Smoothing Bench Plane

I don't often do this on old planes, but I figured this plane didn't look particularly old so it might be fun to make it look new again. I think the shiny bits turned out nice. For more information on advanced sharpening we recommend David Charlesworth’s video Plane Sharpening, available in both DVD I’m fairly sure the lever cap and screw is set correctly – it’s definitely not too loose, if anything I set it too tight and had to loosen it to allow me to adjust the depth. Stanley Type 15 Handplanes date 1931-1932. They remove all patent info on the bottom casting. “BAILEY” is now cast behind the knob toward the rib, and the number is directly in front of the knob. Stanley Type 11 Handplanes date from 1910-1918. The APR-19-10 patent date appears with the other patent dates cast behind the frog. There is a new trademark adopted, where “STANLEY” “NEW BRITAIN” “CONN.” “U.S.A.” forms a v-shaped logo.Stanley Type 5 Handplanes dates 1885-1888. It has two patent dates, “2-8-76” and “10-21-84”, stamped with the word “STANLEY.” It has the same trademark stamped into the iron, except that “STANLEY” is in a straight line, in large letters. The lateral lever is one-piece construction and engages the slot straight across the iron. The frog top is no longer rounded but flattened into an arch shape. The rest of the logo is in small letters. Today I decided go a bit more in-depth with my rehab of this plane, and work on the cosmetics. The first thing I did was polish up the brass with toothpaste and a gray scratchy on the parts that needed it.