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273901 Chuck Taylor 2021‑06‑10 Re: Stanley 71 #photo-notice
Dan, you wrote:

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I came into possession of a Stanley 71 router. Although it came with a blade, it
was a beat-up and I had some gift cards to Lee Valley so I bought some new
blades for it (1/2" straight, 1/2" spear-point, and the 3/4" blade). It says on
the Lee Valley website that these blades fit the Stanley #71 router planes...
with the height-adjustment nut inverted. Therein lies the rub -- my 71 doesn't
have a height-adjustment mechanism. And the new Lee Valley blades are just a
hair too thick.
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The Lee Valley blades fit fine in my Stanley 71-1/2 (Patent date 10-29-01),
which does have a height-adjustment mechanism.

My recommendation (probably heretical to some) is to buy a new Veritas router
plane from Lee Valley to go with the Veritas blades you already bought. While
Stanley router planes are fine tools, I find that the Veritas router plane in
practice simply works better. The adjustment mechanism is more precise and is
easier to use. With the Veritas, it is easy to set a max depth and then sneak up
on it.

The height-adjustment mechanism, although nice to have, is not really necessary.
My wooden router planes do not have a height-adjustment mechanism other than a
hammer and a wedge, and they work fine. A nice workaround to a screw-driven
height-adjustment mechanism is to use two router planes: one set for the final
depth and one to sneak up on that depth. Just another reason why a Galoot needs
more than one of each tool.

Cheers,
Chuck Taylor
north of Seattle USA

Recent Bios FAQ