Working No. 3s

[Mike G]

Does anyone have one? What do you use it for? I've got 2 (or maybe 3), which need restoring, but can't imagine when I'd pick one up in anger.

 

[Cabinetman]

Well I know what a Nr 1 and 2 are but I’m confident that’s not what you’re referring to, sorry you’ve lost me, so probably I don’t have a nr3 whatever it is.
Oh I see Planes, no only ever use a Nr 4 and never felt the need for any others.

 

[Trevanion]

No 03 Planes, Ian. Not bodily evacuations :lol:

The question of what a No 03 and also the No 02 and No 01 are commonly debated so you’re not the only one. My personal thoughts were that the No 03 and No 02 were of a smaller size for smaller hands such as children in woodworking classes in school, others will say there’s a particular way of holding them and they work similar to a block plane, but why not just use a block plane in that case? The No 01 just seems to be a novelty item.

 

[toolsntat]

Yes Mike, in my daily work kit for easy removal of unwanted thickness on suitable stock I use a moderately cambered one.
It's a real joy to get rid of all that excess without resorting to power planing.
As a qualifier I will say this is accompanied with a block plane and No 5 size (straight grind) the rest of the work, even inside properties, is covered by a Makita belt sander and Mr Henry....
Cheers, Andy

 

[AndyT]

I've got one, a Stanley, probably made in the 60s. Bought in good nick, for a very low price, so I could see if there was any advantage.

Unlike the semi-mythical No 1 or 2, they are not very rare. They can also be held in ordinary sized hands. I've used mine from time to time to give it a turn at being useful or to save breaking off to sharpen, but to be frank, I probably could have used a No 4 instead. Here's some old photographic evidence you might remember:

 

[Dr.Al]

I've got one I picked up in junk shop for £10 but beyond sharpening it, I've yet to do anything with it

 

[Doug]

Yes I’ve one predominately used to swipe over the edge of internal doors after they’ve been cut down with the track saw when hanging them, it gives a nice finish to the cut edge & is compact & bijou fitting easily in the door fitting tote tray.

 

[Vann]

When it comes to smoothing, I have a damaged Record "warfinish" No.04ss for general work, and a Clifton No.3 that I keep well honed for extra fine work. I love the No.3 - and I have large-ish hands.

These are my workhorses
Top: repaired Record No.05 jack;
middle: Record No.04ss with chunk missing from side;
bottom: Clifton No.3.

All three are good planes.

Cheers, Vann.

 

[AJB Temple]

Once you get below No 4, block planes take over for me. I do like to have a few block planes set up slightly differently. I was once given a Lie Nielson No 1 and sold it to a pro woodworker on UKW. He obviously had a use for it. I've not missed it. Think I have an unused LN No 3 in the shop.

 

[Woodbloke]

Once you get below No 4, block planes take over for me.

Same here; I could never see the point of a No.3 but I have a few nice block plane including a Clifton which is now my 'go to' - Rob

 

[HOJ]

I have an old no 3, I generally prefer to use it instead of a block plane, purely on the basis I struggle with my grip and holding capability.

 

[Alf]

Don't understand the question. Firstly "Does anyone have one?" Huh? They come in singles? Secondly, you already have more than one (See? They don't come in singles) so 'tis a simple matter to find out if you'd use one by making one available to use. QED, Checkmate, etc etc.

 

[Mike G]

Don't understand the question. Firstly "Does anyone have one?" Huh? They come in singles? Secondly, you already have more than one (See? They don't come in singles) so 'tis a simple matter to find out if you'd use one by making one available to use. QED, Checkmate, etc etc.

Well, indeed. However, the "simple matter" still requires a couple of hours of effort, which I was seeking to justify.

 

[Alf]

Needing to justify cleaning up an old tool so that it may live again? Nope, you've lost me again, Mike. :eusa-think:

 

[Mike G]

You know......time working on a tool versus time working with a tool. My workshop is for woodwork. If I'm cleaning up a rusty plane I'm not chopping mortices.

 

[spb]

I have a #3 which I bought because I didn't have one. It came with a substantial back bevel on the iron, so rather than spend hours grinding that off I kept it and that plane is now for use when I need an especially high angle. Intuitively it feels as though the narrower blade is nicer for small spot clean-ups, but I can't honestly say there's any empirical evidence behind that.

 

[Alf]

You know......time working on a tool versus time working with a tool. My workshop is for woodwork. If I'm cleaning up a rusty plane I'm not chopping mortices.

Well, no. Obviously you'd need to clean up a rusty mortice chisel to chop mortices. #3s definitely no good for mortice chopping. *aside* This boy's a fool - © E Morecambe */aside*

I suppose I should try to be constructive; from memory I recall the #3 being a handable plane. It's manoeuvrable enough to, as Stephen says, get into those little areas. And there probably wouldn't be that many of them around if they weren't worth having, because curiosity will only sell so many before word gets out that it's a pointless purchase. If this were not so we'd be knee-deep in #444s.

 

[AndyT]

In case it's any help to Mike or anyone, here are some side by side shots of my No 3 next to a No 4. You can see that they are very similar. The 3 has an iron which is 1 3/4" wide rather than 2" and its body is about 1/4" shorter. Other than that it takes a very dedicated plane spotter to tell them apart.









And just to confirm how helpful I am, if anyone does have a surplus of 444s, please PM me!

 

[PAC1]

I have one and only one, that I use for very difficult grain. A job it does quite well. I would not use a No3 as a general smoother as it is not sufficiently different to a No4.

 

[thetyreman]

never felt the need to own a no3 here, some people swear by them though.

 

[thetyreman]

I have one and only one, that I use for very difficult grain. A job it does quite well. I would not use a No3 as a general smoother as it is not sufficiently different to a No4.

why is it good for difficult grain?

 

[PAC1]

It is slightly narrower so similar weight but narrower cut, should be easier to push. The main reason is in the set up. I have the 55 degree frog, very close set iron and incredibly sharp blade.
It does work in that if I hit awkward grain I swap to the No3 and the tear out disappears. You could argue that any one of the four factors would deal with tear out but my thoughts were not to debate just provide a solution to tear out. My No 3 does that.

 

[spb]

Most answers to difficult grain involve raising the cutting angle in one way or another, and all other things being equal that makes the plane harder to push. The #3 being lighter and narrower offsets that effect. It's also easier to target a small patch of tearout because of the narrower iron than the #4, while being easier on the thumbs than a card scraper.

 

[johnward]

I bought one off ebay many years ago but have never used it. It's a lovely looking plane, in good nick, and strangely saddens me to see it lying idle.

 

[Mike G]

It didn't require much work, and there is precious little in the way of parts to this thing anyway, but I've tidied the best one up and got it working:







It's a funny little thing. Disconcertingly light, and with no natural place for your fingers. It works beautifully, though. Obviously without a cap iron you have one less string to your bow. I'm sure it will get used, if only for those odd occasions when you have to plane over shoulder height.

The other one is German, and requires more work. One day, Alf, I promise........

 

[AJB Temple]

Nice job. Nice shavings.

 

[AndyP]

I’m confused, that doesn’t look like the #3s in the earlier images. Is it some sort of mutant?

 

[Mike G]

I haven't posted previous images. People with nice ones had done that. This is an el-cheapo modern one, worth about £10 on Ebay, and part of a box of planes I picked up a while ago. It's nothing special at all, but .........and here's the thing......it works really nicely (and yes, that's exactly how it is supposed to be). I've never had one of these odd planes with twin nut depth adjusters, but still only took seconds to set it up to work really well. If something like this can be made to work well, then almost anything can.

 

[AndyT]

You won't be wanting a £34 after-market adjustment knob from that nice Mr Cosman then Mike!

 

[Mike G]

:lol: :lol: Erm, no, perhaps not.

 

[Alf]

...worth about £10 on Ebay...

Good grief, tool prices must have skyrocketed.

Must admit, Mike, had I known it was an SB3 I'd have probably come over all Nine-fingered and advised door stoppage. As it is, if it's working okay, happy days. Although you've got me wondering about the other one now.

 

[Mike G]

Well, you'll be pleased to hear, Alf, that I have reduced the number of crap tools on the planet by 3, as I took 3 of those ghastly things with little sliver blades which you don't sharpen, but replace, to the dump a few days ago. Those were proper door-stops. They made my SB3 look like a Clifton by comparison.

 

[rxh]

I have a Quangsheng No.3 - it works fine but I have not used it very much. As others have mentioned above, the size of a No.3 is not very different to a No.4 and I use the No. 4 more out of habit. There is a much bigger length difference between a No.4 and a No.5 than there is between a No.3 and a No.4.

 

[MrH]

I can vouch for the ease of the mistaken plane identity. My Dad mistakenly bought me a No.3 when I started work. Highly skilled carpenter and joiner he is too. Others took much amusement in my child's plane!

Seriously though, I think they are perfectly viable. There were enough of them that they were useful for something. Enough of them that a used one doesn't fetch much in the scheme of things.

The SB3 however, not much fun there.

Sent from my Pixel 4a using Tapatalk

 

[Phil]

My little Stanley #3 purchased in 1972 for ZAR7.50



I had a new box made at work and cut out the top and end bit from the old box.

I used it to trim the beehive floor after the fence moved (some other thread).



BUT, I first had to find a stone & oil.
The stone is slightly dished, but it did give a bit of an edge.

 

[Mike G]

My little Stanley #3 purchased in 1972 for ZAR7.50......

Nice, Phil. That wouldn't buy the box these days!