Thrift store wooden planes: total restoration, perfect shavings.

Is that wooden plane one for the woodpile, or your next great tool?

Tools from this Video (affiliate):
(These have doubled in price since I last reviewed them. They're still a good value, but I'll look for something more affordable.)
(This is a big, expensive can. I suggest getting the little can from the Home Center.)
(My most-used finish.)

Videos I mention:

Become a member of this channel!

Wood Work for Humans Tool List (affiliate):
*Cutting*
(Winner of the affordable dovetail-saw shootout.)
(Needs tune-up to work well.)
(Works out of the box)
(My favorite affordable new chisels.)
(I use these to make the DIY specialty planes, but I also like them for general work.)

*Sharpening*

*Marking and Measuring*
(For marking and the built-in awl).
(Excellent, inexpensive marking knife.)

*Drilling*

*Work-Holding*

Follow me on Instagram: @rexkrueger

[criswilson]

Decades ago I bought a cheap wooden plane and my grandfather helped me restore it. He first had me make a working copy of it. After multiple attempts to make a copy of it, I finally got it right. He then asked me if I wanted to still restore the one I had bought that had cracks, a body twist, a broken mouth, and a wedge with bad legs on it. I said no and he asked me to explain why. After I went over all of the faults in the original purchase, he said "now you know what to look for when you purchase a plane." It was a sneaky, but valuable, way to teach me what to look for in a wooden plane. So for beginners looking to restore their first wooden plane I suggest that you make a working replica of it first and enjoy learning from the mistakes that you make along the way.

[phasegeo]

Rex’s channel is second to none. Fantastic information and well presented. Easy to understand and follow.

[kryptoniterazor]

Cherry: I am fully figured and reversing grain in multiple directions. Just try and plane me, weakling
Rex: "This isn't even my final finish"

[HermanVIII]

You make me wish I spent more time with my grandfather. He was a wood worker and we have inherited a lot of his old tools, but I only have a vague idea of what all of them are for. Your videos are wonderful in helping me understand what it was I used to see him working on as a small child.

[FilipeMVicente]

You’re slowly making me fall in love with hand tools...

[martingenzow]

A word on CA glue: When you want to use it to repair cracks, sprinkle on a little baking powder. The baking powder instantly cures the CA glue and also acts as a filler, so you can fix even slightly wider gaps than with CA glue alone. You can sand off the excess. Maybe experiment a bit on some scrap wood. This little trick comes in handy quite often for my projects.

[shadowmage]

"That's either a great deal, or some very expensive firewood."

OR... and hear me out on this... it's some bone-dry turning stock, probably beech. Not a bad deal, either!

[hartleymartin]

Suddenly, I have to go out and re-restore the set of Mathieson planes (Smoother, Fore and Jointer) that I got a year ago. Thanks Rex, I think this is best video on wooden plane restoration because you go into the details of what to look for BEFORE buying and AFTER initial restoration.

[williampace]

Rex, thank you so much for this. I just discovered your Chanel today while I was looking for bench videos. I have two planes that are very special to me, which I never thought about restoring until now. They belonged to my Great Great Grandfather in Laconia, NH. They are stamped with his name. They likely date about 1845 when he returned from the war with Mexico. I ran to my office where I have kept them and took them apart ( a joiner plane and a large Jack). All original. One iron has a maker’s mark. Cannot wait to bring them back. They look like I might be able to use them in my boat building. I will send pictures when I am done. One handle is slightly loose-I’ll use your veneer tip.

[StreamHugger]

My maternal grandfather was an amateur woodworker. The shop he set up in his basement was probably state of the art for the 1920s. Massive work tables that each had 2 or 3 bench top electrical power tools that were all driven by a central driveshaft on the table top. The driveshaft was driven by a leather belt directly connected to an electric motor under the bench. Unfortunately, my grandfather died in 1954, eight years before I was born. After my grandmother passed away 4 years later, I was happy to have my parents give me my grandfather's old wooden coffin plane, which I can imagine him using as a boy growing up on his family's farm. It's got his initials carved into the side. Rex's post has inspired me to sharpen the iron on my grandfather's plane and to use it on my next project. I'm not honoring his memory by letting it collect dust as a curio on a living room shelf. Thanks, Rex!

[arnoldkotlyarevsky]

Hey Rex, do you think you would ever take on the task of making your own wooden hand plane with all of the traditional abutments? That could be a neat thing to show how to do! As literally always, great work!!

[MikeCreuzer]

Thanks for this video.

My dad had a big wooden plane with a broken handle sitting on a shelf in his shop as decoration. I pulled it down, sharpened it a touch to get the rust off the iron, and gave it a try while I had the handle off for repair.

It flattened a small table top I was making.

This video brought a plane out of retirement and into use and likely will cause a new plane to be made.

[jkmcdonnell]

That piece of Cherry would sure make a fine looking acoustic guitar body

[philhowes]

£4 for two wooden jack planes this weekend at a car boot sale, a few more pounds for wet/dry paper and boiled linseed oil from Amazon and I’m hoping to have some great tools for years to come. The streaks of paint on their underside suggest door trimming in their past. Keep up the your great work Rex 👍🏻👍🏻

[brendanlangord]

Great video!!! I have 6 or 7 old wooden planes that I acquired very cheaply (I payed $10 for all of them), and really haven't known where to start on restorations of them. This is a great way for me to start. Thanks.

[seanporter]

Fantastic video brother. I hate to see vintage tools become decoration. Love to see them brought back to service. Very well done instruction

[-IE_it_yourself]

the hide glue is repairable.

thanks for the rabbit hole. whooow...

[chuckfinnley]

Thank you for all your hand planing videos from one Clevelander to another. I pulled out my grandfather's planers and have slowly (thanks to your videos) started incorporating them. What a difference it makes!

[joeolejar]

Thanks for this video. This will enable me to restore the wooden plane my grandfather made and brought with him to America in 1897.

[heyryanramsey]

After watching this on Saturday I went to a local Antique store, found an old wooden plane, and am going to put it back into service! Thanks for your help!