Spokeshave advice

The lie spokeshave is nice but probably not the best one all around.  That spoke shave has a very narrow throat and makes fine cuts very well.  The reason I do not care for that much is you really can not take band saw blade marks of with that spoke shave because of the fine cut it takes.  I prefer the ones from veritas that look like the old stanleys.  They have adjustment screws at the top that holds the blade in places can take a heavier cut.  Also, if I remember correctly they include shims so you can move the blade out and make the opening in the throat small, like the boggs, to make fine cuts.  You could open the the throat on the boggs but the way the blade is held in place does not allow you to take a heavier cut the blade just slides.  As far as round versus flat if you are going to go with one I would go with a round bottom.  You can do everything flat bottom can do with a round it just takes a little practice.  Also pay attention to the radius of the round bottom the boggs round bottom has alms no radius get something that has some radius to it.

Hope this helps
JJ
 
Hey Mac

I have an old Stanley spokeshave which is round faced.  It works quite well on concave or convex curves.  I dont use it an awfull lot but it is in-valuable when you do need it.  I tend to use the compass plane for larger stuff.  I have had my eye on the Boggs spokeshave for some time now so would be interested to hear your thoughts on it if you pull the trigger.  I dont think you will go wrong with any Lie Nielson stuff.

Woodguy.
 
Rick

I have both the curved base and flat based LN spokeshaves and they are great tools, the thicker blade being the key to its brilliance, no chatter or jumping on those bends.

Hard to choose between the two but if it is mainly curved work then I would plump for the curved base.

If you are doing larger curved section I would suggest you have a look at the Record 020 Compass plane, you can pick up a good one off Ebay for about £75.

 
Hey Rick!  Once you start making curves, you will never go back to boring square stuff. ;D

I have the Lie-Nielsen/Boggs flat and round spokeshaves and they are a delight to use!  The blades are mounted to a friction fit and then adjusted with a tap or two on the handles - very easy to adjust and you can get just the right amount of blade or angle for that task.  Wavra was right that the mouths are small, tuned for fine/finish work.  Doesn't mean that you can't do coarser work, but you will need to clean out shavings often.  You can open the mouths wider with a file, but I haven't done that.  I might break down some day and get yet another spokeshave to tune for coarse work.

I also have the Lee Valley low angle spokeshave, which is a gem on end grain work.  In any substantial shaping activity I wind up using all three, plus rasps and files.  They are great fun to use and probably my favorite non-Festool tools.

If I had to pick, I would probably start with the flat LN, then add the round one.  Compared to Festools, they are a bargain.

By the way, if you get the round one, first task should be to use it to cut the profile on a piece of hardwood.  Then you can stick some sandpaper on the piece you made and sharpen the blade.

Let us know what you decide!
 
haasjetik said:
Some time ago I went for a Veritas round spokeshave. Nice tool and capable of bothe fine and coarse shavings.
Click to expand...

The round base on this page is my favorite.  I also have the lie nielson small brass shaves they are very nice as well but not as versatile as the veritas. I wish I could put pictures on here but never seem to be able.  I could send one to you in an email if you would like.  I have the boggs flat,  veritas round, veritas low angle and lie nielson concave.  Let me know.
JJ 
 
Wow, even now I'm still surprised at how generous you all are with your advice. I'll respond in more detail when I get a bit of time but wanted to say thanks for your thoughts so far.

Thanks again.
Rick
 
Rick, i know the Stanley is not what you are after but i can post it down to you to have a play with if you want ?
 
Woodguy,

This is a truly generous and kind offer, and I'll gladly take you up on it.

But wait...do they have a post service up there..?  [smile]

I'll PM you, my friend.
 
Mac ,

Your correct. They dont have a postal service that far up north.

Once a week a trusty volunteer sets off with his pack of trusty long haired haggis by his side and runs barefoot across the Highlands . The wind and rain blowing in to his face, his kilt chaffing his legs and the rain dripping off the horns on his helmet. To bring news and goods to the south. [big grin] [big grin] [big grin] [big grin] [big grin] [poke].

Sorry woodguy could not help myself.

Cheers John

By the way Woodguy, I was right I hate the new Job.
 
Jeez John, sounds like you are writing the script for Braveheart 2  [tongue]

Pretty funny though  [big grin]
 
Those dam long haired haggis can give you a nasty bite [eek].

Just think yourself lucky woodguy, You could live in Yorkshire like JRB [eek] [eek] [poke]. Thats it, war of the roses II about to kick off.
 
windmill man said:
Those dam long haired haggis can give you a nasty bite [eek].

Just think yourself lucky woodguy, You could live in Yorkshire like JRB [eek] [eek] [poke]. Thats it, war of the roses II about to kick off.
Click to expand...

I'll pretend I didn't see that.... [mad]
 
Well, I picked up the round Boggs Spokeshave at the weekend, and so far it's wonderful. Great balance, comfortable, and no chatter; that blade must be twice the thickness of the Stanley 151.  Will post more after a bit more use.

Cheers, and thanks for all the advice.
Rick
 
So, here are some pictures.

Here's the little beauty. Ain't she (yeah, that's right, she's a she) shiny.
[attachthumb=1]

The mouth's very tight, as you can see.
[attachthumb=2]

Nice and chunky blade.
[attachthumb=3]

Silky smooth shavings, straight from the box.
[attachthumb=4]

A comparison with my Stanley 151 (thanks for the tip, Woodguy  [thumbs up]  [wink])
[attachthumb=5]

And a comparison of blade thickness, if you can make it out. This really is a totally different tool. Great balance, obvious quality in every way.
[attachthumb=6]

Cheers,
Rick

(EDIT- sorry, pictures are much larger than I anticipated!)
 
Mac said:
Hi all,

I'm going to try making some more challenging pieces...chairs, cabinets with curved legs (big fan of Krenov) and that sort of thing.  Could any of you recommend a spokeshave that would be a good all rounder? I was looking at the Lie Nielsen (see below) but then wasn't sure if curved or flat base would be better...?

http://www.axminster.co.uk/lie-nielsen-lie-nielsen-boggs-spokeshaves-prod19963/

Thanks in advance.
Rick
Click to expand...

My advice is to go to an auction or second hand store and get an old one to try out before you buy a real keeper,remember guys used to make a living with the old tools too.I picked up a couple of old one at auction for 10.00  and they work just fine.Now taking a square piece of wood to round you should start with a Drawknife,the spokeshave was for clean up work to smooth to finish.
 
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