New member in Swansboro

KurtB

Kurt
Corporate Member
Hello to everyone and thanks again to the folks who answered my initial question so quickly and thoroughly. I am out on the coast in Swansboro. Have been woodworking on and off since I was a kid. I got more serious about it in my 40's, building country pine style furniture, some from books and some of my own design. Now, at 69, I'm looking forward to something more refined and trying my hand at working with hardwood. Thus my question on the cherry vs oak for a Shaker Library table.

I've spent quite a bit of time over the last several years restoring vintage and antique hand tools. I love to bring the old gems back from a rusty existence to working once again. It's rewarding. I'm looking forward to enjoying this Forum and all the people and resources here.

Pics of a Miller's Falls #9 I did a while back.

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Raymond

Raymond
Staff member
Corporate Member
Welcome aboard, Kurt. There are quite a few members in your neck of the coast; watch for their occasional get-together announcements.
 

tvrgeek

Scott
Corporate Member
On your question, as much as I like the look of oak ( and price) I am getting petty tired filling the grain. Kind of liking maple and cherry more. Just built a new workbench of SYP, and would not want to use it for furniture.

I do wonder. The effort you took to do such a nice job on an old Miller Falls, it is still a really low end plane. You could put the same effort into a bedrock that then have a really super tool. ( I have some "Handyman" which are similar.) Not sure a Miller Falls is worth the price of a good Hock iron. I see them, and old Bailey or Records #4s as the basis for a great scrub plane. Though I guess if you had several, you could set the frog tight, medium, wide and still spend less than one LN.
 

mlzettl

Matt
Corporate Member
Glad to have you on board. I'm not too far, in Newport just before you get to Morehead City. We have a group, the Crystal Coast Woodworkers, that meet monthly. We have several members from the Swansboro/Cape Carteret/Emerald Isle area. We meet on the first Thursday of every month at 7:00 PM at the MARTEC shop on the campus of Carteret Community College. Anyone is welcome to come, no dues or fees, and all skill levels. If you are interested, PM me and I can give you more details and get some contact info.

Matt
 

Chris C

Chris
Senior User
Grossly incorrect! Millers Falls bench planes are every bit as quality as vintage Bailey/Bedrock. I'd suggest you pick one up and test it. If that proves problematic you are welcome to stop by here and put one through it's paces. And while here you can compare it with examples from Union, Sargent, Record, Ohio Tool, Buckeye and a few other manufacturers.


The effort you took to do such a nice job on an old Miller Falls, it is still a really low end plane.
 

tvrgeek

Scott
Corporate Member
Grossly incorrect! Millers Falls bench planes are every bit as quality as vintage Bailey/Bedrock. I'd suggest you pick one up and test it. If that proves problematic you are welcome to stop by here and put one through it's paces. And while here you can compare it with examples from Union, Sargent, Record, Ohio Tool, Buckeye and a few other manufacturers.
Every one I have seen is a Bailey, not a bedrock frog.
 

KurtB

Kurt
Corporate Member
Thanks guys. Actually, the Millers Falls was the second plane I restored. I picked it up on Etsy of all places for $17.00. Used it as a learning experience, but I had also read some of the Millers Falls story and wanted to see what their products were like. I'd also seen quite a few "good reviews" similar to Chris' in woodworking forums. I felt it performed as well as my Stanley 3 and 4 which are very early 1900's, at least at my level of experience. Have never used a Bailey/Bedrock, so I can't compare to one of those.
 
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KurtB

Kurt
Corporate Member
Glad to have you on board. I'm not too far, in Newport just before you get to Morehead City. We have a group, the Crystal Coast Woodworkers, that meet monthly. We have several members from the Swansboro/Cape Carteret/Emerald Isle area. We meet on the first Thursday of every month at 7:00 PM at the MARTEC shop on the campus of Carteret Community College. Anyone is welcome to come, no dues or fees, and all skill levels. If you are interested, PM me and I can give you more details and get some contact info.

Matt
Thanks for the invite Matt. I'll have to check it out.
 

bowman

Board of Directors, Webmaster
Neal
Staff member
Corporate Member
Just have to figure out how to PM someone here. Can't seem to locate it.
As a new user, that is restricted for 30 days. You also have to have 5 posts within that time. It seems extreme, but it had to be implemented after a spammer abused the system
 

KurtB

Kurt
Corporate Member
As a new user, that is restricted for 30 days. You also have to have 5 posts within that time. It seems extreme, but it had to be implemented after a spammer abused the system
Okay. Thanks Neal. I can certainly understand that.
 

bowman

Board of Directors, Webmaster
Neal
Staff member
Corporate Member
You can respond to PMs/conversations that others start, you just can't start one yet. Welcome aboard, the restoration looks great!
 

tvrgeek

Scott
Corporate Member
Granted, a well tuned "Bailey" with a good iron can cut as well as any fine prestige plane, but you have to remove the iron to loosen the screws to adjust the frog. That is the big advantage of the Bedrock design over the Bailey/Record and all the less expensive planes. This is why I suggested one could have several ( as they are dime-a-dozen) set up for different cuts. Many Bailey pattern planes the throat is not wide enough for a quality iron as they are thicker than the OEM irons. The iron does the cutting, so regardless of the care in tuning, without good steel, it is no better than a Buck. ( A step up from a Harbor Freight) My point is the effort and care the OP put into a $17 plane is the same if he had restored a Bedrock, but the end result is different. I have a #4 Bailey and a #4 WoodRiver. When set the same, they cut the same, but I can adjust the WoodRiver is seconds. I leave the Stanley wide open for "carpentry" jobs where tear-out is not a concern.
 

tvrgeek

Scott
Corporate Member
Kurt,
Hint, VHT epoxy in a rattle can makes a very good durable finish. Much tougher than any other rattle can I have tried. Comes in gloss black for sure, and I think red.
 

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