Serious New be, what to buy??

[Serge]

Hello All. Just found the site and hoping you can help.
So I have been doing a bit of woodwork, mostly DIY stuff but enjoy it, so want to start doing some nice stuff, i have a good eye and so am pretty handy but currently i have a set of chisels, a folding work mate, a block plane and a compound mitre saw, thats about it really, mostly stuff i have been given,

So my father in law has a massive army desk table i plan to turn into a work bench, couple of good bench vices on the ends should help there, and i have just bought an SPI (i think that was the name) router as it was on special, now i am looking at planes and such, so what to get, everything is to a budget but what is faithfull like as a brand, or other comparative ones, i don`t want to buy total tosh as trust me i know how difficult it is doing even the simplist jobs ballanced on two dining room chairs. Is it worth getting 2nd hand tools? i saw that rutlands do a large line in wooden planes and such, are these good as they seem quite cheap.

all help and advice greatlfully received.

 

[woodbloke]

Serge - welcome to the forum. Second hand tools are usually worth a punt though a little care needs to be exercised when purchasing them, there are some good makes and bargins to be had but also stuff which is not so desirable. Rutland's do some incredibly cheap wooden planes which are worth having a look at...I've just bought one with a blade set at 60deg which will be useful for cleaning up timbers with tricky grain - Rob

 

[Waka]

Serge

Welcome to the forum, there are some seconf hand tool experts on the forum who, I'm sure wil be along soon.

 

[ajbell]

Hi Serge

Welcome!

I am also fairly new so no doubt others will be along soon with
more extensive advice.

I think you need to give some thought as to what items you would like
to make and then this may dicate what tools to purchase.

Do you want to work mainly with hand tools or power tools
or most likely a combination of both?

Andy

 

[Serge]

Plan is to work with both,

I have a good mate whos dad was into restoring boats in a big way, and has left behind a well equiped if somewhat over kill workshop, thickneser, planer, arm saw, etc etc, but this is at his mothers houes so acess is limited, but certainly available to get lumber down to rough sizes. but i can`t really camp out at his mums house into the long dark nights doing some planing and assembling.

My biggest problem is choosing what to buy in way of planes, I know the typr i would like, but it is difficult to get a feel for what the quality is like, spending £150 on a plane gets you quality but i would have one plane, what i want is either 2nd hand or a cheaper make, £30/£40 and get 3 for the same money, or even better £15 each 2nd hand.

are there any good lets say starter brands, i saw that Rutland did a line that didn`t seem to expensive, and those wooden ones looked interesting. annoyingly we have flebay baned at work. any mags have classified sections??

also need to buy all the measuring and marking out, tennor saw etc, but they are cheaper so not such a commitment.

and cheers for the welcome. Had a look in the project section, one day i to will be able to make an ornamental teak shoe box with the best of them!

 

[ajbell]

Serge

You should be able to pick up a second hand plane for
£30 - £40 pounds which will probably require quite a bit
of work (and possibly new iron etc.) to get set up correctly - but all part of the learning process OR pay loads more and get one to work
straight from the box (well almost)

But as you say you want a few planes so the expensive option
may be out!

If buying second hand then you want to have a good idea
as to the quality of the plane e.g. what condition is the sole in, is it slightly
concave or convex? This will all affect the amount of effort you need to
put in to get it to work!!

What particular planes are you looking for? Others may be able to help.

Andy

 

[Serge]

looking for a Jack, smoothing and would like a rebate plane, i plan to just start off doing the simple stuff, maybe make a little coffee table and picture frames etc, currently i tend to use an orbital sander to help get stuff smooth and flatish, but hand planing will allow greater accuracy and then i can enter the wonderful world of joints.

Thing is do i really want to start resharpening and getting the angles on blades, (whats the technical term for this in a plane) and lapping the bottoms of them, i know i could do that and get them flat as i have worked polishing optics by hand.

 

[ajbell]

Serge

I only got into hand planes in the summer but as you
already know there is a lot of set up required to get the
most from a plane.

I found David Charlesworths books and plane DVDs REALLY useful for knowing what to do to make a plane work as it was intended.

All the best!

Andy

 

[Serge]

A lot of work,.

Yes i found a 2 day workshop on just preping and sharpening your plane ready for use, and the course was ~ £250 quid!!

i am starting to think that 2nd hand at the moment may be a waste of time, what with the varied conditions, buying new irons and such when i could be off planing something with a new one,

oh its a dilema!

 

[MrJay]

A lot of work,.

Yes i found a 2 day workshop on just preping and sharpening your plane ready for use, and the course was ~ £250 quid!!

i am starting to think that 2nd hand at the moment may be a waste of time, what with the varied conditions, buying new irons and such when i could be off planing something with a new one,

oh its a dilema!

The classic must have plane is a No.4 smoothing plane.

Oddly, unless you're spending big bucks on top quality, a new plane will probably be more work than an old one. A new plane is still going to need fettling to get it flat and sharp; and, because the casting is green, will probably need doing again in a month, and again, and again.

The cast on an old plane will have settled, so if you do need to get it into shape at least it will only be once. I've never had to replace the iron on a second hand plane; you can certainly buy superior replacement irons - but every plane I've bought has had a perfectly acceptable pointy bit.

That course must be covering some special plane fettling voodoo. You can get started with much less.

Good planes don't depreciate much in value - expect to pay a not dissimilar amount for a good old plane as a new one.

 

[MIGNAL]

Rutlands have 2 categories of wooden planes: far eastern type and the horn handled European type. The chinese planes that have the 60 degree bedding angle are seen by most people to be a real bargain, they have high speed steel blades that are good but can be a little difficult to sharpen especially for people new to woodwork. I've not tried the Rutlands horn handled European planes so I can't comment on the quality-anyone know the manufacturer of these? I have tried many other European horn handled planes before and can quite confidently state that they are the most comfortable plane to use.

 

[Amateurrestorer]

Serge ,
Having been a collector of Stanley planes for a number of years I can identify with your dilemma. I have come to the conclusion this week that I would be better off ditching some of my collection and spending the money on a Lie Nielsen or Clifton or Veritas plane or planes. Most of my Stanleys sit in a cupboard and the only ones I seem to use are #7 for jointing ( even though I have a jointer planer) a 60 1/2 for end grain and trimming and a #92 for tidying up rebates etc. It is addictive tool collecting and certainly gets the wife going. Good luck and remember don't pay more than £20 for a Stanley #4 second hand , £25 for 60 1/2
and £50 for a 92 or 93. If you can get up to Doncaster on a Saturday The Old Tool Shop on Netherhall Road has a good selection of second hand tools both Stanley and Record and reasonable prices ,hence the figures quoted above (they are on the net as well - search for the name,but the prices are higher because the tools are top notch and aimed at collectors)

 

[Alf]

UK online tool dealers including The Old Tool Shop.

Cheers, Alf

 

[MIGNAL]

Of course there is always the option of Ray Iles who sells reconditioned Stanleys. Don't know how much they are but you can always give him a quick call. He seems to have a good reputation and it also appears that he hates selling rubbish - just read his comment on the Calvert Stevens plane he has listed :shock:

 

[Serge]

cheers all

I am looking at Old tools, and old tool shop, seems to be what i am looking for, pre loved tools that i can continue using, working to my skill level and not cursing the tools, or spending hours of whitling time lapping the body of the plane,