You often hear that a low angle block plane is especially good on end grain. That is partly true, but it requires that you can hone the edge at a low enough angle, and that is not entirely straightforward.
Hold on, here come a whole lot of angles. Take an ordinary block plane, such as a Stanley 60½. It has a bed angle of 12 degrees. The primary bevel is 25 degrees and you normally hone a few degrees higher, usually 30–35 degrees, so you can hone the edge a few times before it needs regrinding. Say a honing angle of 33 degrees. The wood then meets the edge at 12 + 33 = 45 degrees, exactly the same as an ordinary bench plane such as a Stanley No. 4.
Surely you can just hone at a lower angle? Well, that depends on the steel. Ordinary oil- or water-hardening steel copes with a 25-degree honing angle with reasonable edge life, while an A2 iron needs at least 32 degrees to hold up.
A while ago I borrowed a Veritas miter plane to test. The Veritas has a bed angle of 12 degrees and I honed the iron at 30 degrees, for a total of 42 degrees. I wanted to compare it with my Lie-Nielsen No. 9, which then had to be honed to the same angle. That is not easy, since the A2 steel needs at least 32 degrees and the bed angle of that plane is 20 degrees. That adds up to 52 degrees!
To get round the problem I ground the iron at 20 degrees, honed at 22 and also honed a 10-degree back bevel on the back of the iron. That gives a total angle of 32 degrees on the iron, but the wood only meets 20 + 22 = 42 degrees. The clearance angle, between the wood and the back of the iron, becomes 20 − 10 = 10 degrees, which is as low as I dare go and still have the plane work without problems.
The result was excellent. Both planes cut end grain in walnut and cherry easily and left a beautiful surface. Compared with the more classic Lie-Nielsen, the Veritas holds its own. It feels stable and solid with good weight. You may or may not like its more modern design, but it is more comfortable to hold. The O1 iron held its edge well, but I am curious to try the new PM-V11 steel.
See all our block planes, including the Veritas low angle block plane and the Lie-Nielsen 60 1/2.
Share this content
