I am so frustrated and haven’t a clue what I’m doing wrong! Bought an old Stanley No. 4 plane from Tooltique and it has been working great on my workbench build (first ever woodworking project). I sharpened the blade a couple of times and it has started skipping/jumping across the wood leaving horizontal lines. It happens both with and against the grain, and doesn’t matter how shallow I set the blade. So I’m thinking it’s either something wrong with my sharpening, or with the way I’m putting it together. I don’t have a honing guide so am sharpening freehand on 240, 600 and 1200 grit sandpaper taped to a flat bathroom tile. I wondered if the angle was too steep so tried to sharpen again really trying for 25 – 30 degrees but it hasn’t made any difference. Should I buy a honing guide and try again?

No. 4 Bronze Smooth Plane Lie-Nielsen Toolworks No. 4 Bronze Smooth Plane Lie-Nielsen Toolworks

Please get familiar with the names of the multiple parts of the tool using a Stanley diagram which I will summarise below. Look for the bed of the plane behind the frog. If you can see any patent dates cast into the bed, note how many are there. We’re jumping to a lot of conclusions here: On the face of it the plane looks OK from the pictures. At least the base seems to be flat and unmarked. Work through your problem logically. I think that this is a good little plane and it’s trying to tell you something……………

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Each type has features that distinguish it from the others, with parts and markings cast into the metal. The variation features are the aircraft number, patent numbers, or dates. Allow me to detail the steps to dating a Stanley plane. Steps for dating Stanley hand planes

Understanding Bench Planes | Popular Woodworking Understanding Bench Planes | Popular Woodworking

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Stanley Type 14 Handplanes date 1929-1930. It is from the USA and is now cast into the bed at the toe. A raised ring is cast into the bed to act as a receiver for the knob, and it prevents the splitting of the knob. The chances of splitting are high due to the raised ring and greater leverage capable of being placed on them than on the low knobs. The lateral adjustment lever is now two-piece construction. It has a circular disk replacing the straight portion where it engages the slot in the iron. The brass adjusting nut has a left-hand thread. “7-24-88” is also stamped into the lever. CLASSIC CHERRY WOOD HANDLES: Made from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified cherry wood, the handle and knob are shaped to fit the hand naturally and comfortably, providing comfort in extended or repetitive use.

No. 4 – what am I doing wrong? - Woodworking Topic: Stanley No. 4 – what am I doing wrong? - Woodworking

Iron tools are cast from Ductile Iron, a very strong alloy that will take a lot of abuse. We use Manganese Bronze for the bodies of Bronze tools. These castings are fully stress relieved, a process that removes inherent stresses and ensures that the tool will remain flat and true. Stanley Type 15 Handplanes date 1931-1932. They remove all patent info on the bottom casting. “BAILEY” is now cast behind the knob toward the rib, and the number is directly in front of the knob. I'd say the old stanleys look better.. but that's it. Put it on the shelf and use the modern one. As you've demonstrated, with an Illes Iron it cuts as good as the best of them.

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I used this plane exclusively on a recent project with great results. I think the number one thing in getting a plane to work is making sure it is sharp. Look for the depth-adjustment nut, and you should be able to tell if it has a diagonal knurling pattern on the outside or not. If it has, the plane is Type 18 and dates between 1946 and 1947.

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I very much agree with your opinions on the aesthetics of this plane. I guess I'll have to post some more pictures. The old one definitely is cooler and makes me smile more. I was only trying to make the point that the new one is every bit as capable of working as well as the old one on the wood. Before writing this blog, I tried to do a little research on when this plane was made. There really isn't a proper type study of Made in England Stanleys like there is with the US versions. The best I could come up with was this link by Time Tested Tools which calls this plane an English type 3, produced from 1945-1972 (Stanley first started making planes in England in 1937). To my eye it looks newer than that, but I'm not an expert. Please comment if you know anything about when English planes were manufactured.

I’d get an Eclipse sharpening guide and see what happens. My bet is sharpening. When learning Paul’s method, it is easy to give a little lift at the end of the stroke that causes the tip of the bevel to be at a steeper angle. You can make this error on the strop, too. The bulk of the bevel will be fine, but then the tip is too steep and there’s no clearance. If you use a protractor, you’ll see a bit of light at the tip. Stanley Type 11 Handplanes date from 1910-1918. The APR-19-10 patent date appears with the other patent dates cast behind the frog. There is a new trademark adopted, where “STANLEY” “NEW BRITAIN” “CONN.” “U.S.A.” forms a v-shaped logo. If the word STANLEY is on the lateral adjustment lever in a vertical script, the plane Type is 19 and dated between 1949 and 1961. As you measure the depth-adjustment nut, note if it is 1-1/4inch in diameter. That means it has three dates cast into the bed, and the plane is Type 12, dating between 1919 and 1924. If not, that means it is a Type 11 and dates 1910 and 1918.