I’ve got some bits of strip wood that need planing down

They need to be as neat as possible, with an even amount planed from the whole length

I don’t have a plane, so I’m going to buy one hopefully tomorrow

Would I get better results with an electric or manual plane?

manual IMHO

IME electric ones are much quicker and much less accurate

I am some way from a woodwork expert though

Generally takes about 20 minutes using the manual before I plug in the electric one.

If you don’t know what you’re doing (and if you have to ask this question…) get an electric planer.

If you don’t know what you’re doing (and if you have to ask this question…) get a manual planer.

(To expand on the above^^…)

Electric planers are fantastic at chewing off loads of material, but tend not to be very accurate – it’s easy to get them to dig in at the beginning or end of the cut, and/or plane a taper into your workpiece.

A properly set up manual plane is an absolutely awesome tool. A decent manual plane is much better at self correction (IMHO), so that although it may be slower, you will end up with a much smoother, flatter end result (which I guess you might be after). Trouble is, that any off-the-shelf plane is likely to need it’s sole lapping flat before you use it (unless you go for Lie-Nielsen, etc.) and will require sharpening regularly (a roller guide and carbide paper on a sheet of glass is the way to go IMHO).

A manual plane can be set to remove material very gradually, so that you can track what’s happening and correct it if necessary.

So: For the best result at the expense of some effort in fettling & a slower process = manual

For fastest results, with some risk (especially to thinner / narrower work) = electric

Dad gave me his cheap electric one. I hate it. I want his manual one.

Noisy and messy before you get into the results. I prefer to set up a fence and use the router for most jobs instead.

I always worried about what would happen if my hand got under the electric one

Electric one for the bottom of doors and removing lots.

Manual ones for finishing. I always end up with wavy finish though 🙁

I have a little one I picked up in France that uses a Stanley blade which you replace every so often and is actually better than my ‘proper’ hand plane because it is easier to make sure you have a sharp blade.

A properly set up manual plane is an absolutely awesome tool. A decent manual plane is much better at self correction (IMHO), so that although it may be slower, you will end up with a much smoother, flatter end result (which I guess you might be after). Trouble is, that any off-the-shelf plane is likely to need it’s sole lapping flat before you use it (unless you go for Lie-Nielsen, etc.) and will require sharpening regularly (a roller guide and carbide paper on a sheet of glass is the way to go IMHO).

A manual plane can be set to remove material very gradually, so that you can track what’s happening and correct it if necessary.

Trouble is, if you don’t know what you’re doing, you won’t set the plane up properly, unless you’re extremely lucky!

Hand planbe every time,less risk of you geting hurt, as both hands should be on the plane, and easily sharpened, can be set to a smidge off to a bit more, get a stanley or record no 6, a sharpening stone and some thin oil or turps, and practice or take down to your nearest woodworkers and ask them.

I bought a manual hand plane, having never used one before.

No information with it about setting it up and although I looked at loads of YouTube videos, I found it a nightmare to set-up. Don’t think I have it right.
Tried it a few times, but always given up. Need to have another fiddle with it…

Summary – manual planes are a tool that you can’t really just pick up and use…(well, not for me anyway).

…manual planes are a tool that you can’t really just pick up and use…

Unfortunately, I don’t think that most planes are useable ‘off the shelf’ (unless you’re looking at really high end stuff). They need a couple of hour’s work to transform them.

This video has the jist of what needs doing (but I think sharpening stage is easier with a honing guide and wet’n’dry paper on glass).

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kURYRhTDzMg[/video]

Once the sole is flat and the blade (“iron”) is sharp and evenly clamped, a manual plane becomes much, much easier to set up and use.

Undoubtedly the quickest way to removing wood is an electric planer, though! 🙂

Sounds like you need to go down the hire shop and get yourself a thicknesser?

How much do you need to take off? Microns? Millimetres? Centimetres? METRES?

For even 1mm, I’d just run a plunge saw along, or use a router. If you’re ‘needing’ to plane down several mm, then you should be cutting the excess off, not planing it. The purpose of a plane is to smooth and square off material. Planes are to remove fractions of mm’s, not huge amounts.

Electric planes are nasty, dangerous and for the kind of ‘carpenters’ you find on cheapo new build sites or to rough plane large chunks of wood. They are not precision tools. Some very good advice above, about using a manual plane. If you have the patience to set up and learn how to use a manual plane, you can get much better results (and often quicker than plugging in and setting up an electric one).

Generally takes about 20 minutes using the manual before I plug in the electric one.

Sounds like you’re more interested in getting a job done quickly, rather than properly. 😉

Borrowed my Dads electric one. I can only get it to work going across the bottom of the door, not along it and it just unevenly rips chunks out. I hate it.

Electric planes are scary, but depends on what you are doing, taking an edge of a door is quicker with an electric plane, but I don’t use it that often, only site work, my hand planes are probably better.
I also have a portable thicknesser which is a lifesaver.
ALL woodwork tools are dangerous, and in this case I would say the most important thing to think about is how to hold the work-piece securely.
I am not sure a plunge saw is the safest, as not all have a riving knife and my Makita has climbed out of an oak worktop before.
And a router is even more dangerous as the spinning bit has no guard of any sort and can easily get out of control.
It takes a lot of time and effort to get the best out of a hand plane.
If in doubt just take it to any carpenter who can do the work for a beer token.

jools where do you live anywhere near chester or the wirral

I’be taken some fairly messed up edges of wood, chipboard, and whatever they make windowsills out of back pretty accurately with an electric plane.

I really wouldn’t have got around to the jobs with a manual plane, let alone getting around to setting it up just so.

As all said above, depends on how big the bit of material is and how much you want to remove from it.

A thicknesser might be the better tool for the job. An electric plane is a quick way to turn material into firewood and sawdust in inexperienced hands.

For even 1mm, I’d just run a plunge saw along, or use a router.

Sorry, for some reason I imagined you’d be wanting to trim a door to fit. Hence my suggestion. I don’t know why I thought that, other than that’s one of the jobs I’ve seen an electric plane used for (it didn’t turn out well).

I’be taken some fairly messed up edges of wood, chipboard, and whatever they make windowsills out of back pretty accurately with an electric plane.

I really wouldn’t have got around to the jobs with a manual plane, let alone getting around to setting it up just so.

Fair enough, but I’ve seen skilled people square off and smooth a rough piece of wood in just a few minutes. It does take a while to become that skilled though.

An electric plane is a quick way to turn material into firewood and sawdust in inexperienced hands.

😆

Been watching this one with interestand IMHO, bartyp has it with the right tool for the job ethos. I like the cut of your jib sir 8)

So, OP, may I suggest you consider furnishing us with a bit more info as to what your project includes and the desired outcome, please? Which, I have no doubt would enable the oracle of the STW collective to provide you with a full on how-to with the most appropriate methods. 😀

Possibly..

At least two anyway 😉