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Gentlemen, I have come into a little extra money from some overtime at work and am looking to add another Lie Nielsen Plane to my collection. I currently have the LN 62 LA, LN 4 ½ Smoother and the LN 60-1/2. I am going to add the LN 100 model maker and a larger Bench Plane. Based on what I have currently, what would make more sense, the LN No. 5 Jack Plane or the LN No. 5-1/2 Bench Plane? I will eventually get a No. 6 Jointer Plane down the road. I know that I probably won’t use either of these for guitar building, so this is more of a general woodworking question. Any opinions?

Thanks,
Scott

Scott I own 10 Ln planes plus at least another 30 . I would chose the 5 1/2 with a shooting board, and a no7 or 8 jointer the number 6 is too close in size to the 5 and 1/2 another jack plane I really like is the ECE high angle british style jack plane with lignum sole and a 50 deg angle . The dealer is in crystal lake ill. It is great plane for prepping hdwds like ebony rosewood , etc.

I always reach for my old 5 and 1/2 bedrock, even though I have a lot more 5's- I think I like the heft- but honestly, also my mentor used his 5 and 1/2 for most general woodworking and I am really only following his example. He always said the 5 and 1/2 was more useful, buit alas, I can no longer ask him why. I probably did ask at the time, but he has been deceased about 9 years and I can't remember.

Just as a note, the LN 62 LA will be used for shooting edges.

If you get the 5 1/2 the blade should also fit your 4 1/2 and the 6 or 7 if you get them in the future. Can be handy. If you want to really hog off wood, get the the 5. You won't be able to push the extra blade width of the 5 1/2!

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Trevor Gore, Luthier. Australian hand made acoustic guitars, classical guitars; custom guitar design and build; guitar design instruction.

http://www.goreguitars.com.au

The LN 5-1/2 isn't necessarily for guitar building. It was a general woodworking question. I have the DVD "Coarse, Medium, Fine" from Lie Nielsen and was trying to get a plane for the "coarse" work. That is where I was trying to decide between the No. 5 and the No. 5-1/2. I think I am leaning towards the No. 5 unless someone can convince me otherwise.

Also, in my first post, I meant I will eventuall get a No. 7 Jointer, not the No. 6 foreplane.

I got the high angle frog (50°) with the LN 4-1/2.

On thier website, for the LN 4-1/2, The sell all three configurations. The 50º and 55º are listed as HAF. I got the one in the middle the 50º HAF.

If I go with the 5-1/2, do you think I should get it with a 55º HAF and then swap it out with the LN 4-1/2 50ºHAF? Therefore, the LN 4-1/2 would have the 55ºHAF and the 5-1/2 would have the 50ºHAF.

Thanks for your input Todd, your knowledge is greatly appreciated.

Now this is just my opinion so don't get too worked up, but I would order the book "The Anarchist's Tool Chest", read it and then make the decision which tool you really need. This read may help you decide what you truely need rather than what you think you need. It made me think about it anyways.

My opinion is this:

If you got more than 3 planes (a block plane, smoothing, and jointer plane) then you got too many planes, unless those other planes you have are cheap/crap planes that you no longer use, in that case send it to Craiglist or Ebay. You really only need two planes, a block plane and a jointer plane for luthiery. The block plane is good for shaping the side after it's glued to the blocks, as well as shaping the neck, and the jointer plane is for truing the edge. You can use your drill press and the Wagner planer for the surface planing.

Try and do as many on one tool or machine as you can... which means using the bandsaw to not only shape parts, but also make straight cuts like bracing, neck blank, etc, using your drill press not only for drilling but thicknessing parts, sanding (with a drum), and even finish polishing (with a buffing wheel mounted in the chuck). It would save a lot of space for other things like a workbench if space is tight. A surface sander takes up a LOT of space and costs a lot, so unless you're in the business of selling guitar woods to other luthiers, its pointless to have them.

Stick to building guitars, not collecting tools or starting a guitar factory... there are too many of those out there.

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Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

I'd so put that money away if it was just me. I'm only saying this because others already have, but if you already have a few fantastic planes of various sizes, you don't really need more. Get more blades if you want. From being a human for almost 20 years I can say that it is very likely that there are better uses for the money. Anyway, if you can call yourself a woodworker, why not make like six really nice wooden planes for the cost of one LN?

Well some of us don't have a drill press so we do need more than 2 planes. Fwiw, when I thin a plate I use 3 planes simultaneously: I push with a Jack, pull with a Japanese smoother (this way I don't have to unclamp and rotate the piece following the grain) and from tiem to time pick a high angle Chinese smoother for working the extra-trouble spots, or the cramped spots where the Jack doesn't fit. Also 3 blades means 3 times more continuous work time and 3 times less trips to the sharpening station. I know how it was when I had less planes and I'm not going back.

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Build log

You can buy a 14-16" drill press and a Wagner safe-T-planer for the price of one L-N plane. I am not saying it's a substitute but you could just have a drill press which allows you to do so much more for the price of one. That is unless you live in a place with no electricity.... but if that were the case you wouldn't have internet either.

_________________
Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

Have you thought about picking up a #5 Stanley on ebay (they're plentiful and popular) and replacing the stock blade and chip breaker with a Hock blade and chip breaker? It's a much cheaper alternative with pretty much the same performance as a new LN. If the #5 doesn't suit your fancy, you're not out much and can sell the Stanley in a heartbeat.

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Forever a student, always learning.

I can't believe the OP doesn't have a drill press. Not a Safe T Planer fan myself, so I too prefer to have a larger plane instead.

Not sure this guy is interested at all in an old No. 5. He obviously wants the best and I can commend him for it

Well, then he should consider a Brese - http://www.breseplane.com/ As far as performance goes, an old Bailey #5 with a Hock blade will give the same results as a #5 LN.

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Forever a student, always learning.

Peanuts really, a Holtey infill is 7k+

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Build log

totally off-topic, but if we´re comparing sizes, i´d go with a stephen thomas: http://spehar-toolworks.com/planes.html (just out of pure awesomeness, of course i´ve never tried one myself).
to the OP: get the LN 100 (or the cheaper Veritas squirrel tail palm plane); if you still want more and have the dough, i´d go with a LN bronze smoother. how easy it is to recommend stuff when your own money is not on the line...

cheers and good luck,
miguel.

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member of the guild of professional dilettantes

Ahhhh, but is it the best?

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Forever a student, always learning.

Yeah, I saw those Holtey's. They are nice but I am about $1.5 short so I will have to go with the Lie Nielsen

But seriously, I am still trying to decide between the LN No. 5 and the LN No. 5-1/2. The more and more I read up on planes, it seems as though all of the bench planes can be used in different roles depending on how they are set up and blade curvature...

I would split the difference and get a 5 1/4.

...but then I like narrow planes

-jd

Nope... Don't fool yourself about the "Quality" of those old planes.... The most out-of-square plane I own is a Pre-WWII Stanley #5... Literally, nothing on the entire plane is square.... The "Best" old stanley I own is actually one of those cheap, blue "Handyman" #4 deals.... Dead square and true... The new Stanleys I have seen are about on par with the old steel I have seen - if not actually a bit better....

If you already have one and want to make it better - definitely go with an aftermarket iron and chip breaker....

Now... You won't go wrong with the LN...

On the number of planes - More is better than fewer.... I took that old, out of whack #5 and swapped out the sole... Put on a toothing blade and a hock chip breaker and it now does duty for roughing down stock.....

Size wise - I really like a big plane for doing plate thicknessing... The extra weight seems to make the work that much easier.....

Thanks

Drooling too after a 4 1/2 bronze haf even I should actually get a Veritas BUS for interchangeability with my bevel up Jack
I think that in 1.5y from now I'll conclude I have too much wood and get back on suffering from TAS.

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Build log

for me, planes are definitely the worst TAS offenders...

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member of the guild of professional dilettantes

I found a plane with snakes on it...

_________________
Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com