Shooting Board Plane Req'd

[Scott Horsburgh]

Hi Mark,
You are a beginner so keep it simple. You can spend a fortune on excellent handplanes that are ready to go straight from the box or you can buy a much cheaper plane like a Record and spend a little time and get it working properly. Record planes are cheap and if you are prepared to spend a little time not only will you turn it into a tool that will give you a performance to rival a handplane worth ten times the price, but you will also learn about how the tool works. A Record 5 1/2 is an excellent all round hand plane that you can use for many jobs including shooting. I use mine for general hand planing and shooting all of the time.
I have produced a dvd that shows you exactly what to do to turn a cheapish hand plane into a sensational, accurate tool. I have short clips on my website that will give you an idea of what I am doing. I explain everything in great detail. Go to my website and have a look Mark. You don't need to spend a fortune to have great tools. I have many cheap tools that I have worked on to improve their performance rather than spending ten times the money for a more accurate tool.
www.scotthorsburgh.com.
I am right now updating my website as I am releasing my second dvd which also covers shooting in depth. Good luck with your shooting it is a wonderful technique.
Scott

 

[bugbear]

I have just built my first Shooting board but I am lacking one important component. A plane. I assume I need a low angle plane for taking off thin shavings from the end grain of various woods.

I am only a beginner so Price is crucial. What can you advise?

Mark

If you can afford it, buy the Veritas Low Angle Jack, which is not only superb as a shooter, but a very versatile plane indeed - it will handle both stock preparation, and extreme smoothing (the latter would require a second blade to allow a high effective pitch).

Failing this, A s/h Record #5 1/2 is an excellent choice - it is also versatile, and has enough mass and length to work well on a shooting board.

I wouldn't worry about sides being square over much, since most shooting boards have minor errors anyway - shimming or adjusting the errors out is normal practice.

I normally use a #5 1/2 or #6 to shoot, despite owning a #T05.

The "ultimate shooting plane" is probably a Stanley #51, or the plane from a Millers Falls, as bragged by Rob Lee:

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=3016

"Back in the day" Preston made a 21" long wooden plane, with fully plated sole and a 3" blade, mounted on the skew, with a side handle.

That would have been pretty good too

However, the difficulty of shooting is often exagerrated, and the need for an "ultimate shooter" is correspondingly non existent. Does't stop me wanting one, of course, but telling the difference between "need" and "want" is a key skill for the amatuer woodworker!

BugBear

 

[bugbear]

I will probably want a No. 4 Plane and a No. 7 Plane eww and a no. 93 shoulder plane.

There are many more urgent tools than a shoulder plane, nice though they are.

BugBear