A generation ago hand planes were used everyday. They were used for everything from flattening boards to putting the final polish on that tabletop. Today the hand plane has been replaced by modern day power machinery. With all the technology available today you may wonder why the modern woodworker would want to use a hand plane when you could get a power tool to do the job faster and easier.
Hand planes usually cost less than a shop full of power tools and will often plane boards that are much too wide for most home planers. You can slice off a small sliver of wood with a hand plane that is hard to match with modern machines and the most important reason of all is using a plane is a lot of fun. In this article we will look at a few reasons for using hand planes in today's world.
Hand planes often do not cost anywhere near what a power planer and jointer will cost. Often when you are starting out in woodworking money is kind of tight. Try searching the flea markets and you can get started with a basic set of hand planes for a reasonable price. You not only can find some real bargains, the hunt for planes can become an addiction if you are not careful. Not only will you save some money using hand tools try smoothing a tabletop or some other wide piece of wood your power planner. You will find your home planer is just not wide enough to get the job done.
Wide pieces of wood will make your hand planes shine. You have the freedom to work with any piece of wood around. No longer do you need to restrict yourself to boards under a foot wide. The woodworkers of old could use wood that fit the job not the other way around. You can smooth that baby down with a precision that is hard to match any other way.
The great thing about using planes is they have the ability to take a shaving so thin you can see through it and this is something I cannot match with a power tool. When you get it set up just right it is truly amazing. No matter what once you have removed too much wood it cannot be put back on no matter how hard you try.
Using hand planes is a great way to work with wood. They can help you discover what woodworking is all about. The sound of a sharp blade cutting the wood can give you a thrill no power tool can match. Give hand tools a try, and experience woodworking the old-time way.
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