Here is the summary of shooting boards, shooting planes, and steel:
Steel first ...
For many years I was curious why many stated that A2 steel folded with a 25 degree bevel and recommended 30 degrees. Lee Valley supplied the LA Jack with a 25 degree bevel and LN supplied all their BD bench planes with a 25 degree bevel.
The factor that become apparent in my recent comparisons of steels and shooting planes is that a BU shooting plane with a 12 degree bed works exceedingly well with an A2 blade ... far better than a BD shooting plane with a 45 degree bed. There is nothing wrong with LN A2 steel. However it could not keep up with the LV A2 steel
because of the bedding angle. The higher bed creates greater impact, and this damages the edge significantly - even a BU A2 blade with a 25 degree bevel will far outlast a BD A2 blade with a 30 degree bevel.
Comparing the LV and LN shooting planes essentially comes down to three factors: the greater ease of setting up the LV, the longevity of its cutting action (the low bed), and the availability of PM-V11 steel, which takes it further still.
In use it comes down to the extra mass of the LN, which I like, increasing the momentum to power through end grain. Versus the lighter LV, which slices better, especially after the point where the LN blade would have dulled and begun to create greater resistance to cutting.
If I could have only one which would it be? This is difficult in my case. I would keep the LV. In fact, I had cleaned up the LN to sell, and my wife said I should not. The thing is that I don't actually need to sell it for the space, and it is rather special to me since Tom Lie-Nielsen signed it (years ago, Thomas mentioned to me that there was a #51 in the wings. I said when he built it I would buy it - I have a Stanley #51/52 combination and, as David Charlesworth noted, the #51 is fragile owing to a poorly designed frog).
There is a review of the LN #51 (in a comparison with the Stanley) here:
http://www.inthewoodshop.com/ToolReview ... Plane.html
The LV also has a special place. I was sent the drawings when it was in design stage, and then got to play with a plastic mock up when I visited the factory in Ottawa a year ago. The shooter in the review was a pre-release version for feedback as part of development.
Now the interesting fact of shooting boards is that the LN and LV planes are something of a game changer. They both require side fences on the shooting board, ala the Stanley #52, otherwise will be difficult to track straight. This way they also are both easier to use than other shooters.
They both are better on a flat board than a ramped board since the ramp actually reduces the skew with which they cut. At the same time, however, the ramp does spread the wear on the blade, so the choice is yours.
My ramped board is now dedicated to a shooting plane I built. Why do I need more shooting planes!! I don't. And they are not even "necessary" tools (as I mentioned before). They are, however, a tool that can bring a sense of joy and pleasure to those that own them. The reason I built another shooter is simply that I was due to demonstrate plane building at a LN Tool Event, and I took along a few different types for demonstration:
http://www.inthewoodshop.com/ShopMadeTo ... Event.html
Regards from Perth
Derek
