Ancient plane identification

[Krysstel]

Can anyone identify these 2 planes which are for sale on our local version of E-bay ?
Especially the middle one's got me stumped !! Circular plane - what's that ?

Thanks a lot for any help
Mark

 

[bugbear]

Can anyone identify these 2 planes which are for sale on our local version of E-bay ?
Especially the middle one's got me stumped !! Circular plane - what's that ?

Thanks a lot for any help
Mark

http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/stan12.htm#num113

BugBear

 

[head clansman]

hi
stanley no 4 smoother , & stanley 113 . the 113 was or is used to plane the circumference of item various , the smoother what it says .hc

 

[Krysstel]

Hmm, interesting.
I've now been told by the owner that the smoother is a Siegley.
Can anyone put a rough age on it for me ?
And the circular plane (thanks for the info "bugbear"). Is it worth owning for anything - maybe a silly question, please forgive a plane novice !

Mark

 

[head clansman]

hi

it is a siegley on the box , cloan of stanley that all .hc

 

[Krysstel]

Ah yes, a little misunderstanding on my part. It's the circular plane that's the Siegley, which means the smoother is the Stanley.
Still wondering about the age.
It's a bit of a trip to go and see and the owner knows nothing !

Mark

 

[wizer]

Well, if you ever want to do any curved work then the circular compass plane will be very useful. I'd certainly like to own one.

 

[Boz62]

The No4 Stanley looks just like the one I inherited from my Dad, which he got in 1958 - 1964 ish.

Boz

 

[xy mosian]

As Wizer says, the circular plane with its flexible sole is for curved work. I have used mine very infrequently, especially since routing curves rather than sawing. However when I have used it I have been very thankful to have it around. If you can spare the space hang, on to it ... one day you'll need exactly that sort of plane and it will be a boon to you.

xy

 

[Krysstel]

The owner's trying to check for me but if the no. 4 proves to be of 1960's vintage then I've already got one of those, also inherited from my father.
It's pre-war age I'm hoping for. Am I right that pre-war is worth going for whilst later (50's, 60's or newer) is not ? - probably a gross over-simplification !
I'll probably buy the circular plane at the same time just for fun so long as I can get it really cheap.

Mark

 

[Ironballs]

I was trying to use one at the weekend and it was a dismal failure, some combo of user, plane and timber. Probably 1 and 3 as it worked on mdf

 

[Vann]

The owner's trying to check for me but if the no. 4 proves to be of 1960's vintage then I've already got one of those, also inherited from my father.
It's pre-war age I'm hoping for. Am I right that pre-war is worth going for whilst later (50's, 60's or newer) is not ? - probably a gross over-simplification.

A rough indicator of age is the shape of the frog (that supports the cutting iron) and the shape of the top of the cutting iron. If the top of the cutting iron is flat, with angled sides, then it's an older one (roughly pre-mid-1950s). If the top of the cutting iron is curved, with rounded corners, then the iron was made post mid-1950s and the marked deterioration in quality occurred within a few years of this change. Similarly if the top of the frog is rounded, it's an earlier one, whereas if the top is ogee shaped then it's a later one.

I hope this helps.

Cheers, Vann.

 

[AndyT]

Mark said:

I'll probably buy the circular plane at the same time just for fun so long as I can get it really cheap.

- on UK ebay the Stanley circular planes (also called 'compass planes') generally fetch about £100. The Record equivalent - which is a more robust design but less collectible - sometimes go for a bit less.

I'd be surprised if any plane like that went really cheap!

Andy