$129.99
The WoodRiver Block Hand Plane is based on the venerable Stanley #65 low angle and #18 standard angle “Knuckle Cap” design, generally considered one of best block plane designs around. With the widely recognized comfortable chrome plated Knuckle Cap, these block planes look like the...
Items You May Need
Details
- Based On A Classic Design
- Knuckle Style Lever Cap
- 12° Bed Angle
- High Carbon Tool Blade, 25° Blade Angle 1-5/8”W x 0.125”T
- 2”W x 7”L
Articles & Blogs
The Essential Block Plane: How To Choose And Use Woodworking’s Most Popular Trimmer
It’s no secret that I love hand planes and own way too many of them–about 250 at last count. Many of them perform highly specialized tasks and don’t see use very often. But there’s one type of plane that’s a stand-out exception: the block plane. In fact, when I’m asked by beginning woodworkers what plane they should start out with, that’s the one that always tops the list.
Argentinean Lignum Vitae
The original “Lignum vitae” (Guaiacum) is Latin for “wood of life”, and derives from its medicinal resin used to treat a variety of medical conditions from coughs to arthritis, and chips of the wood can also be used to brew a tea. Lignum vitae is one of the numerous durable, hard, and dense woods referred to as ironwood. On the Janka Scale of Hardness, which measures hardness of woods, lignum vitae ranks highest of the trade woods, registering at 4500 lbf.
Father’s Day Sale & Gift Ideas from Woodcraft
As a woodworker, novice or professional and anywhere in between, Woodcraft has the right presents for Father’s Day to fit every budget. To show you just some of the items from Woodcraft, we had Scott Phillips, host of The American Woodshop choose his top picks for this Father’s Day.
The WoodRiver Low Angle Block Plane Presented by Woodcraft
George Snyder and Nancy Miller show us the WoodRiver Low Angle Block Plane.
Woodcraft Magazine’s 2013 Gift -Buying Guide
Tools every woodworker can use, whether they’re starting out
or stepping up.
Gift Ideas for the DIYer
Finish your holiday shopping early this year with help from Woodcraft.
Make Mother a Gift to Remember with Help from Woodcraft
Give the mothers in your life a unique gift this year – one you handcraft with assistance from Woodcraft.
Woodcraft Offers Ideas for Holiday Shopping
Avoid the crowds and do your holiday shopping now at Woodcraft, where you will find quality brand tools, accessories and supplies for the woodworkers and DIYers on your list.
A Home Remodeler's Tool Kit
You can’t bring your workshop to the jobsite. The next best thing is to bring a useful selection of tools.
Choose “Anytime” Gifts from Woodcraft That Make Woodworking/DIY Projects Easier
If you have woodworkers and DIYers on your year-round gift lists, check out these products that will make many of their tasks easier and their overall work experience more successful. Plus Sharon has included the last gift idea just for fun – an intriguing wood model.
Joinery: Handmade vs. Machine-Made
Woodworking comes in all shapes, sizes and varieties. But no matter what your woodworking passion might be, eventually you’re going to need to join together two pieces of wood. And that opens up a world of joinery options.
Whatever method you choose, the question is—do you make your
joinery by hand or by machine? Here’s what our experts had to say…
Reviews
-
Pleased
it is a great tool. Took it out of the box sharpened the blade and worked flawlessly. Great buy
-
Handy little plane.
It is what it's supposed to be and does what it is supposed to do. If you use this as it is supposed to be used, you will have no problems. I stropped to iron and put it to work the day I got it and haven't been disappointed yet. I did have the same issue a couple other reviewers had with the cap, but I was probably biting off more than this plane is meant to chew.
-
No 65 Copy
I've had this about two years and it is good for the money. This has a much better iron than my old Stanley. The mouth opening knob must be tightened very hard to keep it from loosening when using. The blade cap is OK and opens no more frequently than the old Stanley. This is really a user issue. I bought it on a whim and am satisfied. It is the best of the Woodcraft planes I have purchased without adding an aftermarket iron.
-
Very Good Tool
I haven't used planes in a long time because I didn't understand how to use or sharpen them. So to me they were useless. Since I have recently got back into wood working, came to a situation where I needed one. So I went to a big box store and bought a junk block plane for $10. To my surprised it worked well and performed the job it was intended to and renewed my curiosity for planes. I went to Wood Craft and the internet and started researching planes. With a little knowledge I realized the one for &10 dollars would have to have a lot of work to make it perform correctly. So I returned it and bought the Low Angle Block Plane and the 4-1/2 Smoothing plane and a sharpening stone. It was ready to go out of the box, sole was on the money and blade was sharp but wanted to tweak it. After sharpening the blade It works like a charm. Haven't unboxed the smoothing plane yet, but the box plane works great. Only gave this a four because I don't really have the experience to compare them to anything.
-
WoodRiver Low Angle Block Plane
The WoodRiver block plane is a wonderful tool to use and own. Out of the box it came adequately shap for softwoods and some hardwoods. A little honing on a stone got it beautifully sharp and the steel holds an edge well. The sole is not perfectly flat, it is cupped just enough to see light under the stright edge. 15 minutes if that on a lapping plate will take care of it. Personally I don't think it's enough to get bent out of shap over, it's only a block plane. The sides were square to the sole and nicely machined. As for the depth adjustment, it's smooth but stiff and the mouth opens and closes easily. The lever cap is really the only negitive thing I can say about the plane. It can start to open if your not careful or if you take to deep of a cut. Honestly if you use it for what a block plane is designed for you shouldn't have a problem. Even with the lever cap issue I wouldn't let it detour you from this plane. Overall for the price it will be hard to beat.
-
nice tool
nice plane. lapped quickly.nice adjustable mouth. blade sharpened to a fine edge. 100 times better than my box store block plane.
-
Very good out of the box
Out of the box it shaves end grain off dry cedar, syp and khaya. I put a 5 degree additional microbevel on the A2 blade, which seems to dull slower than a regular steel iron - but I have no proof. It hasn't needed any maintenance other than the occassional lever cap adjustment, which can be a bit fiddly. Machining quality is excellent: it's square and smooth.
-
Great little plane for the price
I have been very impressed with this plane. I bought it to trim end grain cleaner than my #5 Groz jack plane. A few reviews talk about the cap popping off. I've had it happen a few times but it's usually when I'm taking too big of a bite. All in all, for the price, it works better than expected. Out of the box, the sole was flat, and the blade just needed some touching up.
-
Very Nice Right out of the box
Reminds me of my old Stanley. I've always loved this style of block plane. I've taken a very nice plane and made it AWSOME recently by upgrading the blade to Veritas' PM-V11 blade. I now have a superior block plane and it's one of my prized hand tools.
-
Nice clean plane
This plane does have a tendency for the blade holder to pop open. You do get used to it and that can effectively eliminate that as an issue. It came fairly sharpe but I put it on my fine diamond for a couple of pulls and it came out beautiful. I did the back also. Value wise it is way up there for the dollar.
-
Good quality product
Great plane for the price. Did a lot of research before purchasing my first block plane and this was the best one for the best price.
-
Returning Plane to Woodcraft
Opens unexpectedly while planing. Lock mechanism does not remain locked. Very difficult to make adjustments. The #5 Jack Plane i bought at the same time is an excellent tool. Unfortunately, the block plane doesn't meet even my basic expectations.
-
Not very useful
The only way to keep the lever cap on this plane during use is to tighten up the cap screw to a point that is so tight, you can't adjust the blade. Under normal tension which would allow you to adjust the blade, this cap will pop off routinely during use. Also, the milling of the plane bed directly under the blade isn't the best. You can see the tool marks with peaks and valleys which causes my plane blade to be ever so slightly higher on one side than the other, causing you to need to skew the blade. I'll have to pull out the files and work it down to get it flat, but just another annoyance.
-
Disappointing
I am disappointed with this Wood River low angle plane. I've repeatedly had the lock mechanism pop open while planing which causes the unit to pretty much come apart while under load and tear deeply into my wood. Maybe planing pine would be ok but that's not what I need. Unlike some older planes I've used, this unit only allows left/right adjustment by releasing the locking mechanism and I find it very difficult to get an even depth from side to side. I wish I were as delighted as some reviewers seem to be but I need to return this unit.
-
Great product and well worth the money
I bought this product last night and it was worth every penny. Right out of the box it cut .002 off a beat up 2 x 4...cant wait to really get the iron sharp.
-
Great Plane
Works very well. Sharpened the blade up and could shave very thin amounts of wood off.
-
Right out of the Box
I am retired and do woodworking as a hobby. I just got the WoodRive Low Angle Block Plane for Christmas and it is the only bladed tool I have ever used that does an accetable job right out of the box The sole was dead flat and square with the sides. The iron was sharp enough to cut a fine shaving with the grain on maple and did an almost acceptable job on the end grain of the same board,but it will need some fine honing to peel off a thin shaving.
-
Terrific Value (and service, too)!
A short while ago I bought a Groz low-angle plane on sale and was horribly disappointed with it. In short, it was useless and couldn't be made useful, and I made my views known in my review of it. Without going into a lot of details, Woodcraft's Customer Service people noted my review (good for them!) and suggested I try this plane instead. I took that suggestion and am sincerely glad that I did. The Wood River adjustable mouth low-angle block plane is a derivative of the venerable Stanley Sweetheart block plane of years past, and a very good one, I must say! Out of the box it functioned perfectly satisfactorily and I can see that I will have only the very most minor tune-up to do to make it a truly superb piece of equipment. The sole comes machined flat and *very* smooth, and will only take me half an hour to bring it to a mirror finish. Likewise with the plane iron - it cuts fine as is, but I will take a few minutes to finish honing it to a mirror polish with my own preferred back bevel. I would do that with any plane, even a Lie Nielsen, so this is not at all a criticism of the Wood River plane. You can buy one of these, take the unopened box to the job site and know that you'll be able to use it just fine, right out of the wrapper. Well...after you wipe off the rust preventative, of course. (grin) When it comes to professional tools, you generally get what you pay for, so if you want high quality you have to be willing to spend the extra money it takes. This Wood River plane is certainly not an economy-priced tool, but it is not at the very high end of the price spectrum, either. At what I would call the upper-middle price range it delivers even more than what one might expect in the way of quality. A very good value, indeed. I must commend WoodCraft's Customer Service people. They went out of their way to take note of my dissatisfaction with a product and make it right. I didn't call them; they contacted me, unsolicited, and offered to make me satisfied. They certainly did, and I am very favorably impressed. In these tough economic times, this is the level of customer service that will keep them in business and keep their employees working. We need more of that in this country!
-
Disappointed again
The adjustable throat plate did not move smoothly and ended up not level with the rest of the bottom. This is being returned for a hopefully better made version. Some metal swarf from milling was left in some recesses. I believe this corrupted the nice grinding of the bottom and throat plate and when the swarf was removed the throat plate was no longer level with the rest of the plane. I hope this was a manufacturing/quality control accident and that another plane will be just fine. I like this larger size and I could see using it instead of breaking out a larger plane. I find setting the left/right blade adjustment to be difficult. It seems you have to knock it with something, kind of like an old fashioned wood plane. Adjusting the depth of cut is a bit tricky with the knuckle lock cap. I wish they had stuck with the screw tension cap. I gave WoodRiver another chance due to very good reviews on this plane after returning a V2 #5 that was actually bowed and have been disappointed again. Hopefully the replacement will be better otherwise, no more WoodRiver plane purchases.
-
Great Plane
The blade clamp sometimes lifts during use. Probably a user issue, but sort of distracting when it raises in the palm of your hand. Still a well made plane that was extremely sharp out of the box, only needed a little commissioning.
-
Awesome block plane!
This is truly an amazing plane. Works great with just a little bit of honing on the blade.
-
Works well, good value
It's a nice little block plane that works pretty well on a variety of woods and grain directions. My one functional complaint is that the handle, which is used to lock down the blade, will sometimes pop open during use. If I tighten it up to prevent this, I can't adjust the blade, so I have to be careful. It's not a major issue, just an annoyance. I also wish there was a small case or felt bag included [...]
-
Best plane I've ever owned.
Up till now, I've always made use of some old Stanley plans that were hand me downs, flea market finds, etc. The only really nice one I had was a Bailey #7. And unless your jointing or facing a table top or something like that,... it spends most of its life on a shelf. Well, thats all changed now due to this purchase. Out of the box, the sole wasn't real bad, but I did take half an hour to flatten and polish. And for the blade, they give you a nice head start with sharpening / flattening,... as the tool marks weren't half as bad as other manufacturers. So after about a hour of tune up, (but I'm really picky.), this plane is a thing of beauty ! Nice heft, great feel, adjustable mouth really lets you fine tune to the current application. I've only owned it for less then 24 hrs, and I love it. Cant keep it out of my hands. Great tool at a great price. Cant say anymore about it, other then... if ya need a plane, feel assured that this wont be a waste of money.
-
Great plane at a great price
I bought this because it seemed to provide the quality of the popular high end planes but at a reduced price. When it arrived I was a bit disappointed with the cardboard box because previous versions seemed to come in wooden boxes. It was a really sturdy box though and it came well packaged... it just wasn't wooden ;) It could take end grain ash shavings straight out of the box and after a quick hone, it took end grain shavings on maple etc. The body was perfectly square however the mouth was slightly off and the sole was very slightly concave. Both were easily fixed and with that done, I could take extremely fine shavings off end grain hardwoods. Cons include the casting mentioned earlier and the burrs left on the toe. The knuckle cap was also really shiny which I didn't really care for. Overall I really love this plane and it does have minor issues but all are very easily fixed and once fixed, it performs exactly as I would expect a high quality plane to perform.
-
Great tool
Made a great gift. I really like the adjustable throat, perfect for hard wood end grain. Thanks.
-
Excellant plane, but not perfect
Excellent value very similar to the LV plane (the extra available blades on the LV are a plus but not a $55 plus). Sole flat and sides right angle out of the box; blade usable but sharpening recommended. I like the cap release, very handy. The LN is a bit better built but not $65 better. I wish that this had an available holster. A bit larger than the competition which is good and bad.
-
would deffinately purchase other woodriv
sole was flat right out of the box.blade required very little honing.works great
