Quality built furniture tools | the handplane

Fine woodworking hand tools can be works of art in their own rights

While often superseded by modern machines, the humble hand plane can still have a place in the custom furniture shop. Some makers revel in using only hand tools.

While absolutists can have their place, utilizing precision crafted tools is a joy, and having them as part of the arsenal allows flexibility for the craftsman.

Hand Crafted Home Furniture |Out of respect for those tools, a proper home is essential.

Much like building a traditional cabinet maker’s bench can be considered a rite of passage, having a proper place for hand planes to live is much the same.

Creating a plane till, as it’s called, allowed for using up some leftover hardwoods and honoring the tools themselves, all the while keeping them close at hand and safe from harm.

Many fixtures in a woodshop are completely utilitarian or made from a hodge-podge of materials to save on money and waste. But that doesn’t mean some design and flair shouldn’t come into play as well.

A place for everything, Everything in its place.

• How is your chosen shop laid out and fitted?

• Are the tools and fixtures cared for?

• How does that influence the quality of the work?

We pride ourselves on quality pieces and that means having quality tools that are clean, well cared for and for some, very sharp.