Appreciation post: picked a hand plane over a power planer for my oak table top

Had to flatten a 6 foot slab of white oak for a dining table. Everyone told me to just grab a power planer from Harbor Freight for 60 bucks. I went with a vintage Stanley No. 7 hand plane instead. Cost me 45 at an estate sale in Portland. Took me 8 hours over two weekends to get it flat. But man, no tear out at all. The finish was glass smooth right off the blade. Made one pass the whole way down and felt the shaving curl perfect. Anyone else prefer the quiet method even when it takes way longer?

2 comments

2 Comments

wrenstone4d agoMost Upvoted

Respected that choice. Power planers just chew up oak like a hungry dog. You get that clean cut curl with a hand plane, that's the real deal. The time spent is nothing compared to fixing tear out later. Quiet method every time for me.

tylerw724d ago

Watched a buddy spend three hours fixing tear out on a piece of curly maple last month. Swore I'd never touch a power planer to oak again after that. You got me rethinking a few things.