This Old Stanley #5C is One of My Favorite Hand Planes

There are certain critical things about a plane that make it functional, and other features are just not that important.

This old Stanley #5c was given to me by a well meaning friend who knew that I liked old tools. This monstrosity was the worst ball of rust I'd ever seen when I got it. The tote was loose and in two pieces. The blade was unspeakably dull and misshapen. However, two things made me attempt to restore it. One, it was a gift and my friend expected me to do something with it. Two, the blade and tote had USVB stamped into them. I have no idea what USVB means, but it was interesting.


After a solid three day weekend of derusting, grinding, sharpening and gluing the handle back together, the final result wasn't too bad. It will never win a beauty prize. It has noticeable pitting all over it. But the bottom is flat, the blade beds well and it makes a good roughing plane. I find that I use it all the time when rough-truing stock. It's set to be almost as coarse as a scrub plane and can remove a lot of wood in a hurry. It just goes to show, looks can be deceiving.