As you can see it's a very handsome looking thing indeed, with very clean and elegant flowing lines.
The next thing you notice is the mass, at nearly 1kg (just over 2lb) this plane has quite a presence. That said, I'm used to using a narrower 60-1/2 and this is nearer to the proportions of a 9-1/2, so that may be why it's so noticeable to me. It feels wonderfully planted on a big endgrain surface, and if you have larger hands prepare to be enraptured!
The body is vacuum cast bronze, a process where the mould is evacuated of air and the liquid metal is literally sucked in. It's a comparatively expensive way of going about it, but every last detail is captured perfectly with no voids, so they gain a bit back by having nothing to reject when the castings are ring tested.
The bodies are individually machined one at a time (mention gang milling at Clifton and the room goes silent) and carefully hand finished. This is an important point, a Clifton is very much a handcrafted object, you will find minor asymmetries, hand tooling marks and no two are exactly identical, they are made, by one craftsman for another, rather than produced.
The blade is beautifully thick and I noticed on the wholesale price list that they are listed as '25 degrees', read into that what you will...! I absolutely love the way they have incorporated the adjuster at the back and the fact that they have included the bumps in the sides of the bed to align the blade and provide a fulcrum for the adjustment - this is exactly the way Thomas Norris intended this adjustment system to be used.
Some people will squeak and hurrumph about the price being nearly the same as a No.4 smoother, viewed another way you might draw the conclusion that the bench planes are 'still remarkably cheap at the moment'. In either case, I'm glad that Clifton are sticking to their guns, concentrating on making handmade tools beautifully, and letting everyone else respond to them.
Great job Clifton, this one really hits the mark!
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I was shown one of these by the manufacturer last week & regarding the cost, I must admit that I baulked at it being twice the cost of the Lie Nielsen 60 1/2. But on reflection there is no inherent reason that because the object is physically smaller that it should automatically cost less to produce with materials being a small proportion of the overall cost. The only thing I would like more is that the edges be polished like on the bench planes. I cannot justify one now, but will put it on the wishlist!
ReplyDeleteThanks Sam, I will pass your suggestion on to the factory.
DeleteCheers, Matthew
To a collector or a woodworker with a deep pocket, it is reasonably priced. To the rest, it's of course overpriced. This plane offers no other advantages compared to a similar LN or Veritas plane.
ReplyDeleteRichard
Have you used one? I have not, but it is not a 60 1/2 clone, being wider and perhaps a little longer. Perhaps a good small smoother, which 60 1/2s are rarely used. Pricewise it's on par with the Veritas NX series. It's a niche plane, for sure.
DeleteBuying one now. Simple as that
ReplyDelete