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WoodRiver No. 5-1/2 Jack Plane with Preparation Service

WoodRiver 5-1/2 Jack Plane
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Jack Plane
  • <iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/UqLolUMLluU" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Bench Plane
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Bench Plane
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Bench Plane
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Bench Plane
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Bench Plane
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Bench Plane
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Bench Plane
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Bench Plane
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Bench Plane
  • WoodRiver 5-1/2 Bench Plane

WoodRiver No. 5-1/2 Jack Plane with Preparation Service

Regular price $349.00 USD Sale

29 left in stock.

Sorry no U.S. orders on WoodRiver planes - See Woodcraft.

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Full Description
Customer Reviews
KITs

Sorry, our agreement with Woodcraft restricts us from shipping WoodRiver Planes to the U.S.

I own and recommend WoodRiver V3 planes. These planes are based on the reliable Stanley Bedrock design, are very well made, and have an excellent price point making them a "BEST VALUE."

 All of our WoodRiver bench planes receive our Cosman preparation service so they are100% ready to use out of the box.  See prep service below for description of what we do.

Jack planes are general-purpose bench planes, typically with bodies between 13 and 16 inches long.  As the name implies they are a "jack of all trades" and can perform most of the work of a smoother and on small and medium stock can perform as a jointer plane.

I use my WoodRiver No. 5-1/2 Jack plane for 85% of all my planing operations.  It is my "go to" plane and I recommend it as your first plane purchase.

Plane Description

  • No. 5-1/2 Plane size: 2-7/8" wide x 14-15/16" long with a 2-3/8"-wide blade

  • Heavy, stress-relieved ductile iron castings.
  • Fully machined adjustable frogs bedded at a 45 degree angle.

  • Thick (.125 inch) steel blade and chipbreaker dampens vibration making solid planing.

  • Rockwell 60-62 hardness blade
  • Lightly finished Bubinga handles provide comfort and control.

  • Soles and sides are machined flat and square within tightly held tolerances.

  • Sorry, our agreement with Woodcraft restricts us from shipping WoodRiver Planes to the U.S.

Plane Preparation Service: All planes require some preparation.  Our complete plane preparation service makes it so that no set-up is required by you. Your plane will be ready to use 'out-of-the-box!  Our Plane Preparation Service includes: 

    • Flattening the sole to within +/- 0.0015 of an inch (0.038mm) of perfectly flat.
    • Squaring the sides to within +/- 0.0015 of on inch (0.038mm) of 90 degrees to the now flat sole.
    • Flattening the bottom of the the rear handle (tote) and the front handle (knob) and their boss so they mate properly with no movement.
    • Chamfering / easing all edges and corners on the sole of the plane.
    • Tuning the lateral adjustment lever so it moves freely.
    • Applying a back bevel (Charlesworth ruler trick) to the back of the plane blade.
    • Sharpen the blade using micro-bevels. Final polishing is done using 16,000 grit ceramic waterstone.
    • Flattening the back edge of the lever cap so it mates properly to the chipbreaker.
    • Flattening the leading edge of the chipbreaker so it mates properly to the blade.
    • Testing the plane for proper operation and set-up.
    • Removing all of the shipping / packing grease and applying a light coat of camellia oil to all the metal surfaces to prevent rust.
    Sorry, our agreement with Woodcraft restricts us from shipping WoodRiver Planes to the U.S.

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      Customer Reviews

      Based on 49 reviews
      80%
      (39)
      4%
      (2)
      4%
      (2)
      0%
      (0)
      12%
      (6)
      M
      Mike Monks
      Just plane terrific!

      Several months ago I watched Rob sharpen a plane. The only plane I had was an old no-name block plane that would not cut cottage cheese when I found it. After giving it a treatment I could get beautiful curls every time. That led me to the conclusion that, if a block plane can be that good a tool, a bigger plane must be much better. After watching and reading reviews of various makes and models I decided to trust Rob's advice that a #5-1/2 jack would be a great plane to start with. I got it last week - love the little demo shaving! - and set to work to see if it was as good as advertised. I had a glued up panel for a cabinet top that had slipped a bit in the clamps. What better start than to jump right in and flatten it? After a few runs over a piece of scrap to dial in the thickness I was looking for I set to work on the panel. Did I say work? It was pure pleasure watching the long curls flow off onto the bench and floor. Before I knew it the top was dead flat and almost glassy smooth. I am a very happy customer. (The picture is of the first few heavy passes. The battery died before I could shoot the later fine ones - but they were beautiful.)

      A
      Anonymous
      Must have

      If you’re going to get one plane to start hand tool woodworking. This is it. Great quality. Thanks!

      M
      M Ward
      Not usable for shooting

      The plane arrived with the sides in quite poor condition. Instead of the nice surface ground finish shown in the photo, the sides were Blanchard ground and done so to a very poor standard. A very coarse finish resulted and of course being blanchard ground, the grinding marks were perpendicular to the direction of travel. They were bad enough that they acted like a rasp on my shooting board and immediately started abrading lots of material off the base of the shooting board.

      I sent it back and they were good about a refund, but I wouldn't buy another one. What I received was NOT what was shown in the photos or videos.

      A
      Andy Hewitt
      All issues resolved

      Following on from my previous review, I am now delighted to say that my issues have been resolved. I received a call from Rob himself on 9th November, and yesterday a new frog for my plane, and additional plane wax and additional Canadian syrup, arrived and at no extra cost to myself. I’d like to thank Rob and the team for making this happen, great customer service.

      A
      Andy Hewitt
      Disappointed with damaged/defective lateral adjustment lever and follow up customer service.

      I live in the UK, so ordering the WoodRiver no 5 1/2 jack from Canada, was always going to be expensive (costing an extra £180+ in shipping & custom fees), but with the RC Prep service I was counting on it being money well spent. So when the plane arrived with a broken rivet on the lateral adjustment lever, it was very disappointing - the lever falls off the plane when you remove the lever cap and blade. I can only imagine that the rivet was damaged in transit (the back-side 'mushroom' on the rivet on the rear side of the frog, is not there and I couldn't find it in any of the packaging?), as otherwise, it was missed when the plane was prepared before dispatch. The plane, however, is useable thankfully, but is not the high quality product I was expecting.
      Writing this on here is my last resort to having the matter resolved. I have contacted Rob Cosman's business directly and dealt with a lady called Gina who transferred the issue to the production manager, who I have not heard from. I have sent numerous pictures too, and I'm sorry to say, but it hardly seems important to them - Rob, please prove me wrong so I can write the glowing review that I thought I would be doing when I placed the order initially. Looking forward to a positive response, Andy.

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