Although my first block plane, Stanley 6-1/4 in BAILEY® Low Angle Block Plane, seemed to be OK, i wasn’t sure if I could flatten a wide plate with it. So I started to think a bench plane would be necessary.
Many violin making superiors says Stanley was the most popular back in 1980s, now replaced by Lie-Nielsen, as I asked in a violin making forum.
There are so many bench planes such as 4, 4 1/2, 5, 6, 7 and so on… It sounded No.6 would be the best though I can’t really tell until I try all of them. Anyway, I chose No.6 this time.
I also got No.102 low angle block plane and a chisel. They are more like for test use. I wanted my Stanley block plane compared with them because I was so curious which one is better since I watched so many wood working tools reviews on YouTube.
Unpacked tested even without sharpening. The No. 102 Low Angle Block Plane was so smooth! Chisel was incomparable to a home center chisel. I had a thought that a technician should not rely too much on the quality of tools because good works are done by hands. I realized that was a stereotype. However, it is also true that I have seen many technicians who boast about expensive tools but are unable to do a good job. I want to restrain myself so that I don’t become that kind of people.
Some more tools are expected to arrive. I will forward violin making before that. I’m trying to make a violin out of tools, not just collecting them!!