Combination Planes

Posted by Easy WoodCraft on

Dec 12, 2016

Unlike most planes that handle a single task, combination planes (often called multiplanes) were designed to take on many planing jobs. In fact, some manufacturers referred to these planes as "universal" planes. An old Stanley catalog I own (copyright 1909) touts their model No. 55 as a plane that "will do a greater variety of work than can be done with a full line of so called Fancy Planes." Two of the more famous combination planes are the Stanley No. 45 (top photo) and No. 55 (bottom photo). They can be used to cut grooves, dadoes, rabbets, beads, tongues, ovolos, molding, reeds, hollows and rounds, and nosings. Both consist of a cast-iron body with a wood handle. A fence attaches to the body with a pair of guide rails, and built-in depth adjustment allows for accurate repeat cuts.

Although I'm sure these planes sounded like a great idea to many craftsmen who were tired of lugging around a box of planes, there are a couple of disadvantages to a "universal" plane. First, these beasts require some serious setup time. Every time you want to switch functions, you have to change cutters, add or remove parts, and make some adjustments—not as convenient as reaching into the toolbox for a molding plane. Second, no chip breakers are used and the cutters aren't supported well. Combine these and you have a tendency toward chatter. When the electric router was introduced, combination planes fell by the wayside. Nowadays, they're sought after mostly by tool collectors and individuals who like working wood the old ways. Combination planes are popular with tool restorers because they leave the appropriate tool marks that a router or shaper doesn't.

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