No comments about Stanley 12-105 RB5 Plane.

1 comments about 48mm Reversible Replacement Blades for RALI 105PRO, 220PRO & 260L.

1. These blades are like the originals.Both edges of the blade are very sharp and easy to replace quickly. I like the idea of not having to stop in the middle of a project to sharpen my plane.

2 comments about Stanley 12-220 Block Plane.

1. I bought this plane simply for trimming edges to fit when I screwed up a cut. It does this fantastically...And much more than it was ever made to do.

   I recently found a sawmill that sells rough white oak for $2 a boardfoot. Nifty price, big pain, as I have no large hand plane or electric planer. I picked up 50 bdft in widths of around 24".

   I planed all 50 feet using this little plane. Took some time (about 30 hours with tons of sweat and some very sore hands), but with the proper edge on the blade, I didn't even need to sand the wood after building. It was all done. ;)

   To get the perfect edge to make this tiny plane a perfect finishing machine (throw away your power sanders!), visit http://www.shavings.net/SCARY.HTM.

   As for construction of this plane...It's solid. I've dropped it many times onto a concrete floor with no damage at all. It's a trooper of a plane.




2. I worked it so that I can see my reflection in the bottom and it does a remarkably good job for such an inexpensive plane. I was able to plane both across and even with the grain of some Cherry to the point that it didn't even need to be sanded. Good weight on it too for such a little thing. I liked that.

5 comments about Freud EB-090 Hand Trimmer for Edge Banding.

1. Easy to use. Does a perfect job. Works smoothly and doesn't require a lot of strength



2. I build cabinets as a hobby and use about 500 feet of edgebanding a year. I was getting sick of using a razor knife, router and sandpaper to flush the edges. So I decided to spend some money on "the right tool". But after trying the Freud EB-090, I would not recommend it.

   On the positive side, it is faster and safer (than the way I usually do it).

   But clearly outweighing those advatages are the following...

   - you need a good, sharp blade and these are not blades you can sharpen yourself. Replacement blades cost half-again the price of the trimmer.
   - I just can't get good results. Hand pressure and other factors affect the quality of the trim.

   I could improve results with more practice, but my decision is to return the gadget and spend the money on a good trimming knife and bandaids.




3. When I purchased this tool it worked fabulous! Now since I've had to replace the blades I cannot get the same results. There are no instructions on blade replacement setup at all, even on their website. Now it sits in the drawer and I'm back to sand paper and exacto knives.



4. Great little tool. I use a lot of plywood in my little projects. I like to cover the edges with banding and this tool is great for making it look smooth and natural.



5. I used to use the one sided trimmer. It gave terrible results. Now that I use this double edge trimmer, the banding comes out clean and sharp. It does not follow the grain of the banding as most of you may think. Just keep a consistent, snug squeeze and run it in one swift, quick movement. Nice crisp edge. A bit of sanding to break the edge and move on to the next one. This trimmer is worth every penny.

5 comments about Stanley 12-975 4-Inch Contractor Grade Bull Nose Rabbet Plane.

1. I was several hundred miles from home and my shop, helping a friend with a kitchen remodel. Got to a point in the cabinet portion when we really needed a rabbit plane badly. He ran down to the local hardware store and this one was all that they had. I have several older stanley planes and they are good tools. This one disappointed me quite a bit, as it is not up to the Stanley standards I have seen and used in the past. It's pretty roughly made, the adjustments are kind of a joke and the blade doesn't hold a very good edge. We finally got it to work and finished the cabinet doors, but halfway thru I was ready to drive home and get my Lee Valley/Veritas bullnose rabbit plane.
   I gave it 3 stars because it will work if you mess with it enough, and it is inexpensive. I think if someone bought it as their first one, they would probably never want to use one again. Save your money and buy a good one from Lee Valley or one of the other quality makers. Can't recommend this one.



2. Stanley Hand Tools from England are out standing. The Stanley Planes for England are made of top quality Steel and are worth the price



3. I purchased this plane to clean up and fit small tenons and rabbetts. It was inexpensive and I did not expect really high end tool when I bought it. It was delivered promptly and, as with all my planes, I immediately disassembled it and tuned it for use. The bottom is very flat and it didn't take much to knock down the few high spots. This blade is not even close to being ready to use out of the box so be prepared to start from scratch. The back of the blade wasn't too bad but it did take a little work to get it flat. A few minutes on my DMT stones gave me a surface that I could work with. I used a jig and worked my way from my coarse diamond stone, through the grits and finished with rouge and the leather strop and finally got an edge on the bevel that I was satisfied would work.
   
   As I stated earlier, this is a very inexpensive tool and it shows when you try to set the blade for work. It is clamped in place with a single thumb screw and you must be very carefull to make sure that the blade is square with the plane when you set the blade. To begin with, I set it on my table saw top and placed the blade so that it was level with the bottom. I snugged the retainer thumbscrew and proceeded to tap the blade down and test it until it would cut fine shavings from the surface of a pine board. I still can't say that I have it right where it should be but I can use it for what I bought it for. I keep it in my apron and go to it when I need to adjust a tight tenon or small rabbett. The blade seems to hold the edge pretty well and has only needed a touch up on the very fine stone and strop to keep it working.
   
   You shouldn't expect much from this plane and you won't be dissappointed. Be prepared to fiddle constantly with the blade position to get it to work. IMO if the mouth were tighter, and it had a machined slot to hold the blade laterally, it would be much easier to adjust and it would work much better. Lateral adjustment is completely by trial and error and it doesn't hold its position very well in hard woods. I only use it for very small tenons and rabetts. Anything over a couple of inches long is done with one of my larger rabbett planes.



4. While I'm not dissapointed enough to send it back, it is definately not as nice a plane as I expected, even for this price. I bought this one and a Stanley low angle block plane and there is no comparison between the two. This plane is beyond rough - there is a tremendous amount of work to do to get it even usable. The blade is misshapen, skewed,dull, and the body is rough. I'll flatten the blade and sharpen it and flatten the sole but for the work it will take, I should have bought a Lee Valley for this one.
   
   Sept 07 - I finally got around to working on this plane. Took a little more than an hour to flattent the back of the blade, then hone the bevel. I also lapped the sole of the body. It works much better now, but it's a very crude adjustment. With more work, I can get it to where it should be, but I felt it was more work than it should have been. It works now, but nothing to write home about.



5. This plane is an absolute piece of junk. It came with the blade looking like it had been sharpened on a brick. I spent a half-hour honing it to a clean edge, put it back in the plane, spent ten minutes setting the gap and adjusting the blade (it has no in-out adjustment screw, and the gap can't be adjusted with the blade in the plane), and after four passes over a maple board, the blade had nicks in it. The city of Sheffield should sue Stanley to make them take the city's name off the package. In addition to the difficulty of setting the plane up, the blade is over a 32nd of an inch wider than the body of the plane, so you must either grind or file the blade down to match the width of the plane body, or spend ten minutes resetting the blade every time you change directions.

3 comments about Stanley 12-247 Block Plane.

1. Great little plane. For the price it's a charm. Just needed some fine tuning in the sharpening dept. and it has done a fantastic job in my shop. I even got rid of a large plane due to this little plane.



2. I saw this plane at Ace Hardware and thought, what the heck, I've always wanted a block plane. I had a $5 off coupon if I spent $15, and the plane was $17. Wasn't really expecting much from it. Got it home, tuned it up, slapped a board up on the bench and tried it out. Boy was I shocked, this little gem out planed a planer I spent three times as much on. I was amazed at the long smooth planing strokes across the full lengh of the board, with not a single chatter. I would definitly say I got my moneys worth.



3. At $15, I didn't expect much from this plane. I bought it mostly as a "beater" plane that I could get banged up. Out of the box, the plane is horrible but after about 4 hours of fine tuning, it worked great. What took the longest was flattening the sole. The millmarks on the sole were deep and the sole was slightly concave.
   I flattened the sole, the front of the cap (where it meets the blade), the bed, and the back of the plane blade. Then I sharpened the blade and put a microbevel on it. I waxed the sole and was ready to go.
   Now it works great. I never had a plane I had to put so much work into. Maybe I just got a bad one but I did get it to work fine in the end.
   Can't complain for $15.

5 comments about Stanley 12-920 6-1/4-Inch Contractor Grade Block Plane.

1. Stanley tools will always be held in high regard.If you look after this equipment it give good service for years.



2. This is a solidly made plane at a reasonable price. Stanley has been making planes for many decades, and this, which is their latest version of a block plane is well made with the features most pros look for in a day to day plane. The construction is solid and it stands up well to work on the job site. It's not up to the highest standards of say, a Lie-Nielsen bronze plane, but if you are looking for a well ctafted plane that will stand up to the rigors of every day use by a professional carpenter...this is the plane for you.



3. It works very well. I sometimes expect a smoother adjustment on hand planes.



4. Bought it to throw into my helper's tool bag. Definetly not for precision work. Lock is flimsy, blade is thin, takes a lot of effort to set the blade depth to just where you want it. If you want a real block plane, go Veritas or Lie Nielsen!



5. With a little tuning this plane performs nicely. Sure you can buy much more expensive planes that will perform better out of the box but for the moderate user this plane is a great value. Trueing your plane only takes a little time and is well worth the effort. I'm sure those who have rated this tool poorly do not know how to tune a plane. The mechanism is not quite up to par with really expensive planes but with a little work can be made to perform within good limits. Microns do not necessarily good woodwork/furniture make...

4 comments about Stanley 12-101 Small Trimming Plane.

1. This little plane is more than a toy. It is a great tool for small jobs. Very controllable and easily adjustable, it fits well in your hand. I started using it to trim up some doors I was working on, but soon found it indispensible for any kind of trim work. Small enough to fit in any tool belt, it provides a great alternative to running back to the chop saw to take off a sliver of material. It slices clean and square (unlike sandpaper) and leaves a smooth cut end on even the smallest trim. Beats the heck out of a razor knife, too.



2. This little plane is not just a toy! It is a great tool for anybody doing trim work. Having this tool in your belt beats running back to the chop saw to take off a sliver of material. It cuts square and clean, unlike sandpaper, and can even plane end grain smooth. You can also back-cut crown molding and hand-cut angles to fit.



3. I am in the remodeling business and have recently been using this little plane on a cedar siding job. I am often up on a ladder and needed something small that would fit in my tool belt or pocket and this one does the trick.

   Size - While you obviously wouldn't use this for all your planeing needs, for the small detailed work, this is perfect.

   Blade - I have been using this extensively on this job and the blade has managed to stay nice and sharp. The blade was coming loose a little so I now just tighten it down with a pair of pliers and so far the looseness has ended.

   If you need a small planer, I would recommend this one. The Stanley name tends to be a quality hand tool.




4. Don't let it's small size (and price) fool ya. This is a serious little tool. Perfect size for those small trim pieces I sometimes use on my boxes. It does a superior job of trimming end grain on lids to get that perfect fit, and is more accurate than sanding sponges for breaking those sharp edges on the box. It works equally well on softwoods and hardwoods, even those super hard exotics. It takes a very good edge and keeps it quite awhile. I have made a small "shooting" jig for it, so I can shave off that silly little mm on mitered trim for a perfect fit, it really excells at this job. Though quite small it is easy to hold and control. I haven't had any problems with the lock down mech. or movement of the blade once adjusted.
   All things considered I am very pleased with this little guy and would recommend it to everyone.

5 comments about Stanley 12-951 SpokeShave with Flat Base.

1. I found this product very useful in the preliminary stages of guitar neck shaping, it did a good job in the roughing in of the shape, and I also found it good for shaping the guitar body as well.



2. This tool is a must have. Buy it. You'll never see these at the local stores at a reasonable price anyways. And, the kids at the stores will think you're from Mars if you ask for this. A great tool to have in the box if needed. Order the extra blade when you buy this. It's a lifetime tool.



3. The Stanley 12-951 Contractor Grade Spokeshave is a good first spokeshave. It is easy to fine tune and easy to use. I was a bit disappointed in the sharpening of the blade and it had a rough sole plate, but with a little bit of work it is a nice piece. If you are looking to do your first work with a spokeshave and don't want to spend a lot of money on it, this is the tool for you.



4. This is a nice, solid and well made tool. As other reviewers have noted, it wasn't terribly sharp, the blade had grind marks on it, and the sole is a bit coarse upon arrival. After some sharpening, and lapping down the sole and the cap it is really good. No need to spend more that is for sure.
   
   It is easy to find good illustrated guides to tuning up a spokeshave through a web search, and it only takes about half an hour to do.



5. I got this spokeshave to use in my bow making. It will take about 45-60 minutes with wet/dry sandpaper from 80 to 600 or 1500 grit to flatten and polish the bottom and to give the blade a good edge, but then it will really make some shavings. It even works decently on ipe.

5 comments about Stanley 12-960 Contractor Grade Low Angle Plane.

1. I purchase this Stanley plane to do edging and fitament work on a home remodeling project. After taking a few minutes to setup the plane I preceeded to plane all the corner joints and additional pieces of T-111, plywood, studs and finishing pine I cut. I am extremely pleased with the quality, size and perfromance of this plane.



2. I give five stars based on the cost and quality in relation to it. After reading many of the reviews, I fully expected to sharpen the blade first, but didn't have to. Granted, it would be better and I'll do it, but it came perfectly cabable out of the box. I also found the metal fit of the mouth much better than I expected. No, it's not a Lie or Lee Valley, but I paid only $34 and it works perfectly and it's all metal. In fact, just for fun, I ran it over a one inch thick piece of walnut after my long jack plane and got one nice long shaving time after time. Can't complain a bit.
   
   Edit 9/4/07: I finally took it apart and sharpened the blade by flattening the bacak and honing the bevel. After a few strokes of fine tuning on a water stone, I put it back in the plane and it will give me a nice long clean shave as far as I want to push it. Couldn't be happier with this plane.



3. This is a decent lo-pro for the money (considering what you would pay for a lie-neilson and the likes)and the fact it's manufactured in England. You will have to tune this lil guy to a fair amount if your using it for furniture work or other than general purpose.The only drawback I see is the minimal amount of contact there is between the blade and the tang that keeps it in place. The upside is it comes with its own lil carrying case/velcro to put on yer belt while working which is a pretty nice perc as well.



4. This is a Stanley, not a Lie-Nielsen. I was willing to save the $250 difference and work with the Stanley and I'm happy with the results. Overall it is a good tool and I would recommend it heartily.
   
   Positive aspects: The plane has a good working weight and all of the adjustments work smoothly enabling fine changes in the cut. It does a great job on end grain cuts and small finish or trim work. The construction is generally sound and it is a comfortable tool to use. It is well put together and I am satisfied with my purchase.
   
   Negative aspects: The sole and the cutting iron are not flat out of the box. You will need to spend time lapping the sole and iron in order to get satisfactory results. If you are interested, I put the process that I used below. Otherwise you can find a wealth of information on the internet to help you tune your plane.
   
   After lapping (I use a 12"x24"x1/4" piece of glass as a lap board and adhere the sandpaper with spray-on adhesive) the sole to a mirror finish and waxing it with turtle wax (any automotive wax will work), I lapped the cutting iron as well (same process moving from 150, 220, 320, 400, 600, 1800 and finally to 2000 grit sand paper) and then used water stones to sharpen the iron to a fine edge. Please note that you can also use the sandpaper method to sharpen the iron and it will yield similar results.



5. This is an inexpensive block plane which, with a little work on the blade, will do a satisfactory job without spending $150 or so for a high-end plane. The blade needs to be sharpened before the first use to get good results. The low angle of the blade allows it to be used in cross-grain situations. I make furniture and need a small plane for fine adjustments. When tuned up properly, this plane is a good value for the money.