LumberJocks Woodworking Forum banner

Update, With a Question - Hanging Holes.... What's the Tragedy?

7K views 48 replies 29 participants last post by  whitewulf 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
I posted this the other day, and now I have a question for you Stanley plane-typing gurus:

I pegged this as a type 6 initially. The frog receiver, and the construction of the lateral adjustment lever definitely match with a type 6, and not a type 5. However, all the dating sources I usually refer to state that the threading of the adjustment wheel was changed to left-hand on the type 6, and this one definitely has the older right-hand threading.

I know it's fairly common to see mismatched parts on an old plane, but I've never seen a single piece (the frog, in this case) that seems to contradict the type studies.

Any thoughts?

Type 5 lateral adjustment lever:


Type 6 and later lateral adjustment lever:


Here is the latest I just picked up from the post office:

Smoothing plane Plane Scrub plane Jack plane Block plane


It's a sweet little No.5, which, at first glance, appears to be a type 6 (1888-1892). It looks ugly as heck right now, but there is really not a thing wrong with it. Trust me, it will clean up beautifully. I was the only bidder, at a grand total of $20 with FREE shipping.

I see lesser quality #5's selling all the time in the $30-$40 plus shipping range, but I reckon the price on this one was killed by the dreaded hanging hole drilled in the sole. I see this all the time. Plane buyers seem to avoid these like the plague. Am I missing something? I realize any alteration hurts the value of a real collectible, but an old #5 is about as rare as a flea on a dog. So is there some practical reason for staying away from these that I'm missing?
 

Attachments

See less See more
4
#3 ·
I think it's a case of wanting a "complete" or "undamaged" specimen.

It reminds me of many years ago when I worked in a retail computer store - a customer came in one day and wanted to see one of those new fangled portable inkjet printers. We didn't have one on display, so I opened a new unit in the box and set it up and demo'd it for him. He wanted to buy one, just not THAT one, because it wasn't new in the box any more.

A hang hole wouldn't bother me, because I know it wouldn't affect performance, assuming everything else was in good shape.
 
#4 ·
Charlie…It seems practical to have a hole there for hanging it on the wall….but I am not in to the collectors mentality of nothing can be altered. I buy tools to use them…not display them.
Some woodworkers also believe that the hole will allow shavings to shoot up through it and hit you in the face. Ha!
 
#5 ·
I'll admit, I don't care for the hanging holes, but that wouldn't stop me from bidding on a plane with one. I had one plane (Stanley 40 Scrub) with two hanging holes, but I just filled them in with epoxy and painted the top of the sole black--didn't even notice the holes after that.
 
#10 ·
Hmmm… TopamaxSurvivor, you've got a point there…

I'd like to revise my answer to being: "Booo hanging holes! They're the worst thing ever, the plane doesn't work at all no matter how much tuning you put into them if they have hanging holes… everyone should avoid them at all cost, and shouldn't ever buy one…" ;-)
 
#11 ·
I can't understand the hole? why hang it like that when you have a perfectly good knob on the front to put a leather strap around? I guess that's why I am the amateur :)
And how can you tell what the number is? I can't tell anything except it's a pretty good looking planer! LOL.
 
#12 ·
wow, so thy dont buy them just because of that little hanging hole, gee, i guess im going to start watching for a few of these, well worth 20 bucks…i dont need a whole wall of planes but i do want to have the ones necessary for doing the work…nice plane charlie…i already know you know how to clean them up…so i look forward to seeing this one restored..grizz
 
#13 ·
Steve, I have never seen anything hanging on anything but nails or pegs when I have been in old shops. When that plane was in use, people didn't have garbage; everything was reused. Leather was probably saved for shoe and harness repair.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top