No holy war at all...

I know the post-war infills were supposed to be lower quality - I
believe they used stained maple instead of rosewood, for one thing (but
don't quote me...) That was in one of Ken Robert's books, I think.

The difference is between the mouth of the plane and the cutter
clearance. I quoted the width of the opening in the sole because it
looks huge, at .313", and that may be what Randy's seeing. At least he
can compare his plane to mine. If you stick a normal 1/8" blade in the
plane, the clearance is huge, and it may not seem to be a quality plane.
But the correct thickness of the iron is supposed to be 5/32nds,with an
untapered blade, and with that, the planes (at least pre-war) are so
nicely built, the clearance should come down to those magic numbers that
users love. I haven't measured the clearance on my plane, 'cause I'd
have to get out a large pack of brass shim stock that's buried in a
toolchest. But the results are wonderful. There is that theory out there
that people kept second blades in thinner material to hog wood down.
Again, all anecdotal kinda stuff. But Randy may just find that a 5/32nds
blade is what his plane needs.

Would be interested in knowing the final result. A 5/32nds slip if wood
should be all that's needed to slip into the plane and check the
clearance.

Regards,

Matt