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I would be interested to hear how many of us frequently use hand planes for thicknessing backs,sides,top,-shaping fingerboards,head-tail blocks and other elements of our guitars. Our needs are often a bit different, than other fine woodworkers,I think.Even though I have a near state of the art router table,I'm working on a new cutter for a router plane to rabbett a neck/fingerboard/headstock. Just stubborn,I guess.("Procrastinator"-tried your bigboy yet?)Probably,NO,he is after all the self-proclaimed "P")Miketobey38787.3160648148

I use hand planes for thicknessing plates, shaping the fingerboard, shaping brace blanks after splitting, contouring sides and what not. I learned how to use a hand plane a long time ago and I don't have a thickness sander; it's not like it is a big deal for me to be a hand tool purist or anything, I just use what I have. I will get around to building a drum sander one of these days...

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

I use planes alot....most of my fleet are Verita......a smoother on my tops, and on sides and backs when grain isnt too cranky. Where side or back is not cooperating I go to a scraper plane (Veritas or a vintage Millers Falls No64) and cabinet scrapers. The block plane comes out for headstock work and working on braces.

I have low angle veritas smoother but find it's a bit sensitive to run out so it doesnt get as much use.

Cheers Martin

I use them for all of the operations stated including jointing the top and back plates.

Equip them with quality irons, keep them properly aligned and scary sharp and they're a pleasure to use. Anything less and they won't be fun to use and the results will suffer.

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JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

I have vintage #s 3, 5, and 6 Stanleys. I use the 5 for thicknessing and for
jointing the top and back plates (it's much ligher than the 6, ergo easier
to use as shooting plane). I use the 6 for bigger jointing jobs like face
jointing the neck blank or fingerboard. I don't really ever use the 3.

Jay

Interesting so far. Several reasons for me.1. A bit of a purist.2.Tactile pleasure(actually aural too)3.Less risk of instant disaster.4. Not doing this for a living so have the luxury of time.5.Have so many planes I must use them to assuage ownership guilt.6.There are some things I believe are best done with a handplane(eg. preliminary brace shaping,champfering edges). Keep reporting guys,Thanks.MT(Letterman-like humor(our)ous TOP TEN?)

I recently aquired an old Stanley 5 1/2 that I tuned up and have a block plane and fingerplanes I use for braces.When they're set up right they are a joy to use!

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Anderson Guitars
Clearwater,Fl. 33755

I like to use planes a lot there is nothing more satisfying than to seea nice curl come off. I now don't have a thickness sander but use a safeT planer and sanding disc for plate thicknessing but for operations such as jointing, side profiling, neck blank squaring a good plane can't be beaten. I only use vintage Stanley and Record planes.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

I think there are about 10-12 more not in this picture. See what I mean about guilt? I'm just as awful about chisels

Mike,

What's so awful about being prepared?

I use planes on necks, fretboards, jointing plates, finger planes for braces and a scraper plane for thicknessing after the Wagner Saf-T-Planer. Not a purist either, just use what I have, tough I do enjoy using them when they're sharp and tuned up. A thickness sander would sure be nice, though. burbank38787.4288541667

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now known around here as Pat Foster
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

While I use a wide belt sander to take tops, backs and side close to final thickness, all dimensioning to final size is done by planes or scrapers with the exception of the taper of the neck thickness of which I use either a Wagner Safety Planer or Gilbert style sanding disk as it is the easiest way to get a consistent taper for a neck (all shaping after that on the neck is spokeshave and scraper).

For jointing tops and backs I use a shooting board with either a tuned up Stanley #6 or a Norris jointer (about #5 1/2 size). For braces I use a finger plane (IBEX), for other touchup I have stanley block planes (both low angle and regular, both with adjustable throat).

While I use a power trimmer for routing the purfling/binding, I use a gramil to do the initial cut for the purfling as it is the crispest cut and helps to eliminate the possibility of chipping or tearout on the top that is unforgiving. While I have done a bunch of guitars (classical) with just a gramil the speed and easy setup of a Williams, Fleischman, or Ribbecke style binding system is a really great way to go.

It is more a matter of having the tools that work the way that you work whether it be all power, all hand tool or a mixture, all can give excellent results if tuned and used in a way that is consistent and comfortable for you.

Is a fair summary,especially for those of us who aren't true pros be:"Ilike to use handplanes and other hand tools when they give a good result, and are pleasant to use,but I'll turn on the power when I think I need it."? For instance, when I make a slot head neck one of these days,I'll darn well use my router table to rough the slots out-probably use it for the trussrod slot. I'm not going to punish myself by doing it with one of my router planes,by golly.(Then again, I might give it a try when I'm in a ,shall we say, artiste-te-te-te-te/sentimental mood.{ For the youngsters, a bit o' Monty Python, there})

I have an old Stanley #5 hand-me-down and that's pretty much my workhorse. I use the scary sharp method and it works great for me. Had a bit of a problem with cury cherrywood, though. I guess I could of used one of those beautiful Veritas Low-angle planes with the optional high-angle blade (been on the christmas/birthday wishlist for a year now!). I guess I'll eventually break down while at Lee Valleys and say 'Happy birthday to me!'...
   I use my plane for plate thicknessing, jointing, side profiling, surfacing, thinning/truing fingerboards and headstocks (also for the truing of the scarf joint).
   I think the secret is keeping is sharp. Simple as that. I still would like a Veritas or a Lie-Nielsen... Alain Desforges38787.6392939815

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I'd like to be able to prove, just for once, that money wouldn't make me happy...

I've got a 'meh' quality #4 (UK Stanley, new, it's OK after some tuning), a nice old (1915-ish) #5 stanley, and a really quite nice adjustable mouth Stanley block plane. The #5 gets used for tops, and I'll be trying it out on backs/sides soon as well (I'm still learning how to use the things), and I'm probably going to get a wooden jointer from Steve Knight (beautiful things, and I figure it'll be cheaper to ship, looks the part, and by all accounts cut the part as well). I am also seriously considering a Veritas Bevel-up Smoother (the coffin-shaped one) with a couple of different blades so I can try tackling some harder to plane woods with higher effective-angle cuts. I really do quite love a good edge tool.

I use my block plane all over the place; trimming stuff, headblocks, tailblocks, headstock face, scarf joints (although I use the #4 for that as well). The #5 for larger areas, flattening/surfacing backs of fingerboards, neck fingerboard gluing areas. I prep bracing stock with the larger plane, trim with the block plane (ie, the basic radius, finish on the radius dish). I joint with the #5 and a shooting board. I use an IBEX finger plane (and chisels) to shape my braces.

Mattia- a recommendation. Consider the low-angle bevel up jack. The smoother body is wider, but the cheeks aren't flat/square to the sole . I have an(a) LN LA jack with a 25 deg. blade and a toothed and a blade micro-beveled to 40 deg(total 52 deg). Even though I have an LN 4 1/2 with high angle frog,I still reach for that giant block plane on some figured wood.The Veritas with the 38 deg accessory blade is essentially the same tool. And, with these, you can shoot when you want to use it that way.Don't think of it as another #5-totally different animal. Just my take on it.PS-you can't go wrong with a Steve Knight plane. I was fortunate enough to buy his most recent small plane design #1 signed by him.It is just such a pleasant little handful and with adjustable mouth,brass screw wedge,thick sharp iron lignum vitae sole,ipe body with ebony sides. I'll share a photo if anyone is interested. Cut gossamer thin shavings on figured walnut- a mini smoother-same result when I stroked some yellow pine.Miketobey38787.823287037

Does anyone else make their own? - I've made about twenty, everything from long jointer planes to small ones for shaping braces. You can shape them to fit your hands and your hands are much closer to the work than with a metal plane. You can make them with different bed angles, widths, etc. to fit the job. I use Hock blades and chip breakers that are three sixteenths thick and will take a great edge. For samll finger planes I use small blades without a chip breaker from Japan Woodworker. My favorite ones are east indian rosewood with bloodwood soles that show almost no wear after fifteen years of daily use - They're the first tools I reach for doing any kind of woodworking. And compared to building a guitar, a plane is pretty easy to make.

              Paul Harrell

Paul-I'm just getting ready to make some. Talked to Ron H. and ordered a plane kit and a 2" blade/cap combination for the larger clone I will make. Laminated walnut for the body-The Zoot is rounding up some 1/4" rosewood and ebony for soles. If the first comes out, then I want to do a similar plane without cross-pin-fitting the wedge to tapered mortises in the sides of the throat. Supposed to give more even wedge pressure and no pin to catch shavings. I've got so many things going at once,though, I don't know when I'll start. I'm not exactly short on working planes-but,if you managed to slog through my bio,you and all will understand. I will probably come to you for advice when I get to that point. Best regards

[QUOTE=Miketobey] Mattia- a recommendation. Consider the low-angle bevel up jack. The smoother body is wider, but the cheeks aren't flat/square to the sole . I have an(a) LN LA jack with a 25 deg. blade and a toothed and a blade micro-beveled to 40 deg(total 52 deg). Even though I have an LN 4 1/2 with high angle frog,I still reach for that giant block plane on some figured wood.[/QUOTE]

Hmmm....what I like about the look of the smoother is the extra-low center of gravity and the wide footprint. I'll have to see if I can try a couple hands-on (there's one store in NL that I know of that carries both) before committing.

Mattia-If I recall, the Veritas LA jack is wider and heavier than my LN-I'll look and compare stats.The Bevel up smoother is the only product I have ever returned to LV. Not because it wasn't all it was promised to be, but because it didn't have an obvious advantage over my LN62. I almost hate to think about how much $ I have spent with LV, but I enjoy every thing,small or significant, that I have purchased from them.And customer service is outstanding. Rob Lee personally monitors the Hand Tool section of the woodnet forum, and personally responds to questions there. So do Tom Lie-Nielsen(very occasionally) and Steve Knight regularly as well as many other custom hand tool makers and restorers. It's worth a look as is the "cian perez" site I referred to in another post. If I can, I'll PM you a photo of the Knight little plane or you can see it on the woodnet forum posted a little over a week ago. If you join, you can PM these people-Knight ,I think, only takes email through that site.Best regards,MT

I have been thinking that one of these would be nice for use in a shooting board setup. This one is sweet, but at 3000+GBP, totally out of the question for me!

Russ: yikes, them's nice planes.

Mike: I've just ordered a 2.5" bladed purpleheart jointer from Steve Knight, been emailing him for a while now. Figure I needed something with a wider blade for my electric solidbody jointing and prepping larger boards. I'll snoop around the woodnet forums, but I fear the additional HTAS (Hand Tool Acquisition Syndrome) that may bring on. I'll ponder the Veritas s'more. I'm graduating soon (well, getting my MSc in mid-April, and in a month or two, FINALLY starting internships), so I'm thinking I'll tell people I'd rather have a plane, not a gaggle of pens :-)

Mattia- I checked. The Veritas is 15", 6 lbs. and 2 1/4" blade. Considerably heftier that my LN62. With the ease of iron change and the availability of pre-beveled alternative irons, I think it would be perfect for you.One plane with so many valuable uses. I would buy one in a heartbeat if I didn't have the LN- and if I were not condidering entering a 12 step program for tool addicts.(Please,everyone don't take this as a sarcastic swipe at programs for life quality improvements-I believe in them and support them).I am hoping to expand the ranks of handplane users here-waiting for go-ahead from Lance.Have a friend email me-I'll make a small contribution to your graduation present! Best regards,