We take the stainless steel version of the CT-14 whenever we travel. We will be at both the Chicago and Cincinnati events.

–John

We these stainless steel planes be on displays at any of the shows you attend?

Speaking of, will you be attending the Lie Nielsen Hand Tool event in Cincinnati Ohio June 4th & 5th at Popular Woodworking? Pretty Please =)?

The HP-7 preceded the CT-14. It was inspired by my first sighting of a fox–l got within about thirty feet of the critter and it was so cool it permeated my thinking for months. (When I get these images in my head, they almost always influence my designs. Right now I am obsessed with crashing my model helicopters and you will soon see this influence…)

The CT-14 is wider and the market for wider shoulder planes is small. Both our shoulder planes work great, but the biggest difference is in the ergonomics. In our forum “Design Showcase” I posted a pic of a coffee table I designed over thirty years ago (yikes!) that employed a lot of shoulder plane work. After this job, I hated my shoulder plane because it was just awful to hold for length of time I needed to use it. The vast majority of shoulder planes available today in the USA reflect their European heritage and when it came time for me to consider making one, I knew there must be a better way if I was ever going to use it. Thanks to a chance encounter with a fox, my vector got bumped.

Data on run quantities is planned for our book and will involve much work for me to ferret out because we started without a computer system in 1983, added one in 1984, again in 1989, changed it in 1995 and again in 2008, and we will have a new in place in 2010…

Numbering began when we started the Founder’s Circle in 1991. There were thousands of members and it soon became apparent that people wanted their unique number on each tool. At first this worked out fine, but then we were soon besieged with requests for unique numbers (one guy wanted all his tools engraved with the number 1,000,000) and it became burdensome for us. And, there were many costly mistakes. I am glad we made the decision to abandon that aspect of the program.

That said, on small runs like the stainless steel shoulder planes where there are only 50 of each being made, these in fact are sequentially numbered.

–John

When you said you only had 2-3 of the HP-7 left, I ordered one. I am excited to get it. I am looking for a little history on this plane. Which came out first, the HP-7 or the CT-14? Also, between the two are there any differences besides the width and aesthetics? Do they function the same?

For those that collect, can you tell us how many were actually made and sold? From what I’ve read and seen, some of the tools you made were numbered. I own quite a few tools or yours and not one is numbered so you obviously stopped doing that. Why is that?

Thanks John.

Aesthetics is a function to me–it looks better in my/our opinion. It is clearly more expensive to do, and worth it from our perspective. I like the original form because it blazed a new trail in plane mechanics and ergonomics for us. That said, I like it even more because it led to the new design–which of course will lead to something else someday–but not for these two planes.

–John

- Peter

Beautiful new shoulder plane, Since I’m fortunate enough to have gotten an ASP-25, I absolutely had to get the companion to it. I told Natasha that there was nothing she could have called me or said to me that would have been offensive enough to stop me from ordering it, I feel like I was set up! FYI, even with that knowledge she was as polite as usual.

-Rutager

Megan fell for Rutager’s profiles so I had to man up with the HP6v2. Next up, another KM-1; it apparently has “just the right” pressure

The savings you will incur will allow you to be a BCTW customer for life. What is not to like about that?

Listen to what I say, not what I do.

Buy more.

-John

Dennis