Any wood workers?

[mold maker]

There was an era when carpenters and woodworkers carried all their tools with them to the job. Hand planes were as production as any. I enjoy living among several handmade pieces of cabinetry. Each has the tail tale signature of hand planed surfaces and hand forged fastners.
I doubt any of today's machine room products will survive the wear and tear of daily use for so long a time.

[AZ Pete]

To square a board: cut board to length plus 2 inches, join one face, then join one edge, plane other face, saw other edge, then join that edge. You have to know what face and edge to join, in general the concave one.... For bee hives, since the finished pieces are so short, the precision of joining is probably not necessary. If you are building furniture, then it
is.


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[Shopdog]

Hand planes are still "production" tools in repro casework(furniture).Semantics maybe?

[OS OK]

There was an era when carpenters and woodworkers carried all their tools with them to the job. Hand planes were as production as any. I enjoy living among several handmade pieces of cabinetry. Each has the tail tale signature of hand planed surfaces and hand forged fastners.
I doubt any of today's machine room products will survive the wear and tear of daily use for so long a time.

You could consider this angle...in the life of a hand plane and/or lifetime of the finish carpenter/furniture builder, a plane might see (take a guess) 10K foot of lumber? In the same scenario, in the lifetime of a modern planer/shaper/table saw (you name it) those pieces of equipment might see 10 times (or more) that amount of lumber.
I think the analogy is relevant to total production of work & both are repairable/rebuildable...so...how do you really determine which is best?
There are advantages on both sides of the isle, with one you plug in and turn on...the other you just add elbow grease...lots of elbow grease!

[gpidaho]

I'm certainly not arguing that the hand plane is not a useful tool. It's the artists brush of the carpentry trade. Any finish carpenter or cabinet worker knows their value and is proficient in there use. Yes' a hundred + years ago hand tools were what they had. Look at the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego as an outstanding accomplishment and a work of art built with hand tools. Also at that time they were plowing the HUGE farm of forty acres with the help of a Mule. To suggest that something like a Bee hive should be built carving rough lumber with a hand plane is ridiculous. Gp

[bangerjim]

You can NEVER have too many tools! I hae a least 2 of every hand and power (wood an metal) mankind can think of. It is nice, when planning and doing a project, to just grab the right tool or walk up to the correct stationary power tool!

I could not live without my my 3 jointers I own.

I even have 2 thickness SANDERS! Amazing tools for pro woodworking.

Banger

[mold maker]

I'm certainly not arguing that the hand plane is not a useful tool. It's the artists brush of the carpentry trade. Any finish carpenter or cabinet worker knows their value and is proficient in there use. Yes' a hundred + years ago hand tools were what they had. Look at the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego as an outstanding accomplishment and a work of art built with hand tools. Also at that time they were plowing the HUGE farm of forty acres with the help of a Mule. To suggest that something like a Bee hive should be built carving rough lumber with a hand plane is ridiculous. Gp

The mule might be outdated as a power source, but the plow has only been multiplied and a tractor used to pull it. Its the same method of farming that has been used since metal tools were invented.
We use what ever tool is at hand. If a plane and rough lumber is what ya got, and a beehive is what ya need, it's only elbow grease away.

[Shopdog]

Oooops

[MaryB]

Last door I had to trim I used my ez-track for the skil saw. Clamped it on the door and shaved off a piece you could see through! Perfectly straight cut.

[.45Cole]

Agreed with everyone, you probable don't need a jointer. Best to have a good tablesaw (probably cabinet saw) and a router/router table. With these you can get most things done. keep the blades sharp and spring for high end blades. Buy a second to last edition of a Fine Woodworking book on making furniture and you'll learn all about wood, grain, correct tools, and correctly using correct tools. As an FYI delta use to make a combination tablesaw jointer [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_tlD1dAM7k].

[shaper]

Wow.The knowledge and skill you guys must have to bring up answers to my simple question. I am in envy of it all. The way I was thinking was to cut four pieces of lumber, nail them together and I have a bee super. Not so. I have started buying wood working books. You have made me to think I can turn the carport into another bedroom. well, in time maybe. I have bothered the local carpenter shop so much they have decided to build me a real router / table saw, for some honey in the future. Not a bad deal there. Thanks for the information, keep it coming I have more pine, black walnut, ceder, oak, hickory trees waiting.

[bangerjim]

If you have all those "waiting" trees around to be processed, you really should consider investing in a QUALITY thickness planer AND a jointer! Not benchtop stuff. I brought 1,000BF of prime black walnut back from Iowa 8 years ago ( now well seasoned). The mill cut it to my requirements of 6/4 and various width from 6-10 inches. All are rough saw-mill cut and a hand plane is totally useless!!!!! ( I own nearly every style of hand plane made by mankind.) My stationary power tools are required if those very rough-cut boards are ever brought into useful condition for my antique repair/reproduction needs.

Yes the "olde tymers" used hand tools.......but that is all they had. Today they would NOT do it that way!!!!! There are some unique processes I still do that require specialized planes (Stanley #55) that cannot be done with power tools.

Your "tool base" depends on: 1) your quantity/quality of rough wood you have, 2) the amount you need for QUALITY cabinet/project work, 3) the depth of your pocketbook, 4) the pride you take in the finished products.

Good luck in your future woodworking. I have been buying and collecting wood and metal tools (big and small, hand and power) for over 45 years.

Banger

[Wayne Smith]

And a super is a lot more than a box. Get plans!