I'd be more inclined to give Ray Iles a call and see if he has an older 60.5 in good order. It's not that a new Stanley is a complete pile of junk but the older examples - pre 1950's - are a little better. My 60.5 hails from the glory years of the early 1980's :shock: but it works OK. Knowing what I know now etc. I'd would have chosen an older plane. Ebay will get you a cheaper plane but it's also risky, you just might end up with something that's chipped or not quite as stated in the description. That's one of the advantages of buying a plane from someone like Ray Iles, in effect it's already been vetted by someone who knows about tools.
That's if you want or require a 60.5. Other sizes/types may be of more use to you, dependent on your needs.
Ooops! I've just noticed that you wrote 'new Stanley range'. That might be a very good option although I'd wait for the reviews.
That's if you want or require a 60.5. Other sizes/types may be of more use to you, dependent on your needs.
Ooops! I've just noticed that you wrote 'new Stanley range'. That might be a very good option although I'd wait for the reviews.