Antique British Metal Planes & Infill Planes at The Best Things

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Infill & Other British Metal Planes

British Metal Planes, commonly referred to as infill planes, represent the pinnacle of refinement in cabinetmaking planes. These planes came into vogue during a time when industrialization allowed products of remarkable precision to be made for a wide market, but at the same time fine hand work was still being done. Infill planes proliferated in the second half of the nineteenth century. While production lingered on until the early 1950s in a few isolated cases, The Great War really sounded the death knell for this type of tool. Today, these tools are avidly sought by both users and collectors. Their elegant lines and unequaled performance stimulating interest in both groups. When perusing the planes in this section, it must be remembered that the very nature of these planes meant that production would be relatively small. Today, the supply of good examples is very limited. We do sell quite a few Norris and Spiers planes, but it must be borne in mind that these planes are far too scarce to maintain a constant stock of good planes at a reasonable price. Planes by lesser known makers, while often of similar quality, are typically much easier to acquire, simply due to their lessor fame.

In our New Tools Section you will find a complete selection of parallel irons for infill planes custom made for us by Ron Hock.

for more of a discussion of infill planes.

BM90456 Norris, London This is a nice honest as found Norris A5 smoothing plane. The original iron has about 2 inches left, which is pretty near the full original length. The blade is 2 1/4" wide as opposed to the more common 2 1/8" size. The finish on the rosewood is worn but it still better than 50% remaining. There steel body has never been heavily cleaned and has no rust. It is a nice crisp sole with a tight mouth. The only negative than I can say, and it is an old honest repair, is that the front bun was split off and glued back on. It was so carefully done that you really will not notice if you don't know to look for it. This is a great example of a pre-War A5 for a discerning user at a price point that is comfortably below the price of a top tier collector's example. G+ $1295

BM90159 Unmarked This plane is one of those times when a tool collector becomes a sleuth. The plane is not marked, but is too well made to likely be a craftsman made plane. It is dovetailed, and the dovetailing is done as a first class maker would do it. You don't see craftman made planes that are dovetailed very often, and they are never dovetailed this well. The plane is beautifully made mitre plane, but with an unusual form. The front bun looks like a Norris front bun of the period. The period, I peg as 1893-1898 because the blade, which looks original to the plane, bears the mark of Ryan, Euston Rd. which would date to this period. The bridge looks like a London mitre plane bridge by a maker like Smith or Gabriel. Since these are earlier makers, it even occurred to me that this was an earlier plane that has been refilled later. It looks too undisturbed to give that theory credence. I just don't know but I would not be surprised to hear that this plane was a special order from a major maker like Norris. Ryan was a dealer for Norris. Whatever the story, this is a fantastic mitre plane in wonderful as found condition. G++ $1295

BM90137 Norris, London This is a nice clean gunmetal Norris 50G smoothing plane. The level cap retains its original bright lacquer. The side of the plane are still clean with nice color. The blade is numbered to the plane and has about 80% remaning. The number is marked on the underside of the lever cap. The rear tote has nice original finish. The finish on the front bun shows some where and an original seam can be seen where the infill was built up. In the photo the mouth does not look tight. That is because the blade is not set properly. It has a very tight mouth. The blade does need to be reground as there is a bit of a crown on it now, which is proper for a jack plane, but not a smoothing plane. The sole looks like it was lapped on a diamond plate and has some freckled rust spots. Nothing that matters as a user, and this is a penultimate user plane, a pre-War adjustable Norris in gunmetal. The connoisseur's user. G+ $2245

Hock Parallel Irons for Infill Planes
We have a full selection of Hock irons custom made to our specifications in standard and A2 steel. These are all listed in the new tools section. Hock Blades