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More than a century ago, Stanley introduced a new plane, and I’ve wanted one ever since. Well, no — I’m not that old — but it was still in production when I was born and would continue to be [...]

Once you understand the anatomy of a handplane, you’ll be well on your way to using it with success. [View the full-size exploded view of a handplane here] Handplanes are the king of woodworking [...]

For the cost of one large piece of machinery, you can set up a complete shop with hand tools. Here's what you need to get started.

Welcome to The Splinter Report, where I gather the assorted interesting and amusing things I’ve seen in the woodworking world. This week we’re looking at hand plane shavings, the [...]

Cutting rabbets by hand can quickly and easily be done with vintage and modern planes alike. Both just take a little know-how. I would consider a rabbet joint an essential woodworking joint to [...]

A craftsman makes the argument that bevel-up planes are easier to tune for end grain and difficult woods. I can clearly remember my first experience with bench planes. I was in high school shop [...]

Tool: Router Plane Shop Now  Manufacturer: Blue Spruce Toolworks MSRP: $269.99 One of the benefits of being in my position, is that I sometimes get to see tools that are in the works before [...]

Learn to set up and wield one of the most useful (and inexpensive) handplanes. Also check out: A primer on adjusting wooden planes. Kevin Drake, a furniture maker who trained under James Krenov, [...]

Below you can see pictures of the restoration of the rosewood knob, which belongs to my Record SS plane (read part one here and part two here). After gluing a piece of rosewood onto the knob’s [...]

As I mentioned in the previous post, one of the primary reasons for a missing knob base is a traumatic fall that results in the bending of the knob screw (or threaded rod, depending on the plane) [...]

As a collector and restorer of numerous bench planes, all stemming from the classic Stanley Bailey design, I can confidently say that the two components most prone to breakage or damage over the [...]

Match the size to the job–that’s the key Hand planes come in a bewildering variety of sizes. Why are there so many? I’ll help explain this mystery by dividing the field into four groups, in order [...]