Greetings to all, First post... I'm putting together a little shop in my basement, and I have a limited amount of cash to spend. So, in an effort to save come coin, I go for the #4 Record smoother from LV. I put the rosewood handles on it and sharpend the blade and it performs quite poorly (my Clifton # 5 is a mucho better plane). Would a Hock blade and chip breaker on the Record improve it to a useable state? Am I throwing away good money at this point? Should I just bite the bullet and spring for the Clifton # 4, or an old Stanley?
I replaced a standard blade and chipbreaker on a new (1999) Stanely No. 4 with a Hock blade and Clifton Sta-Set chip breaker. The improvement was marked and made the tool quite useable (after the normal sole flattening, etc.). On the other hand, I've had some great luck and some not-so-great luck on E-Bay. Its a crapshpoot in my judgement.
Give it a try; if you decide to bite the bullet later, the blade and chipbreaker will still be useful.
Do some Googling. This isn't an FAQ, it's a beaten-to-death question.
Jeff Gorman's web site will teach you how to tune it and use it.
Original Stanley irons work fine, they just don't do it for so long. Save your money until you need to spend it. Equally, don't buy new planes when you have to count their cost. eBay is full of the things.
And a modern Record is one of the dumber ways to waste money, especially if you then fit it with fuzzy dice. Read before spend.
Are you really sure you've sharpened and tuned it correctly? Or are you using it for a really challenging task? I've got a Record #4 (about 5-6 years old) and (after proper tuning), it works great.
"Kevin" wrote in news:BJZnb.41802$mZ5.235924@attbi_s54:
Greetings... If funds allow.. you won't go wrong with the Clifton, I have the #3 and love it..you could get a Steve Knight smoother or make one of your own...just buy the iron..and make the plane... the Hock iron and chipbreaker will improve the plane, as would a general tune-up, I have a newish Record #5 that I tuned up and its my main user for general stuff...
: Greetings to all, : First post... : I'm putting together a little shop in my basement, and I have a : limited amount of cash to spend. So, in an effort to save come coin, I go : for the #4 Record smoother from LV. I put the rosewood handles on it and : sharpend the blade and it performs quite poorly (my Clifton # 5 is a mucho : better plane). Would a Hock blade and chip breaker on the Record improve it : to a useable state? Am I throwing away good money at this point? Should I : just bite the bullet and spring for the Clifton # 4, or an old Stanley?
On my web site - 'Planing Notes' - 'Coping With Gnarly Grain' is photographic evidence that excellent results can be obtained with a fully tuned perfectly standard Stanley #4 - That's what the site currently says, though I think I should have written that the results came from the cheapest Record (ie the SP4), whose sole is also illustrated on the site.
I greatly doubt whether a change of chipbreaker will make the slightest improvement.
Jeff G
-- Jeff Gorman, West Yorkshire, UK Email address is username@ISP username is amgron ISP is clara.co.uk Website
You already know Lee Valley. Get their brand. Nice machining, and you get a thick A2 blade to boot. I've got their junior jack, and it's lovely. Low angle looks a promising addition if you're going to fiddle (fettle) to try and keep the Record.
Else, grind a crown on your blade and open the throat a bit and use it as a scrub/jack.
Good question. I seem to have no problems fettling and shapening the Clifton # 5. Perhpas the low quality Record takes a bit more know-how then I have. Thanks.
BTW, thanks for all the great resources on your website. Your article on sharpening carbide has made be brave enough to try it on a blade that is in desperate need of cleaning & sharpening...I'm looking forward to it :>
I've been under the mind set that a lot better furniture was made with the old Stanleys then I'll ever make. But a lot of people have reccommended the change over.
I'm playing with a #4 right now, getting the hang of this whole hand plane thing (and yes, I've printed out most of your web site, bound it on my comb binding machine, and I have a copy out in the shop... thanks for putting all of that together! :)
I've come to the conclusion that the factor which determines how far I can set the cap iron from the edge is a question of mechanics. If I set it
1/32" or less away, then I can't adjust the blade projection down far enough to ever take a shaving. I'm screwing on that knob until it feels like something will break soon, and still no projection.
I have to move the cap iron out to almost 1/16" back from the edge before I gain enough leverage with the adjustment lever to *comfortably* move the blade far enough to project. Running like that, I can vary it from whispy thin to shavings almost 1/16" thick in poplar, so the adjustment side of it "feels right."
It's just that having it that far back feels like the wrong thing to do. Is there something else I need to fiddle with in order to make that work out right? I already considered that I might be trying to shove the blade into something, and that's not the problem. It's just that the actuating lever is at the end of its travel and no projection.
That's probably clear as mud. I can try to explain better some time when I'm less exhausted if you can't understand what I'm blathering about.
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