468273 Low Angle Block Plane with 12 Degree Bed, Ductile Cast Iron Body, Stainless Knuckle Cap, Blade Hardness 55-60 HRC

I'm a professional woodworker and I use power and hand tools every day to make a living. I didn't have a low angle block plane or a shoulder plane and wanted to add one of each to be able to work easier and cleaner. I bought both from Taytools and as soon as I got them in I did the basic inspection and found that both beds are ground out of square. The iron won't come out of the mouth evenly. One corner, no matter what I do is always lower than the other so it's impossible to take an even shaving with either tool. That defeats the purpose of the tool.All planes need some fettling but having to file the bed to square it up isn't worth my time. If you're a hobbyist, I don't think it's a bad value on the shoulder plane but for a low angle block plane, you can get vintage Stanley's in workable condition, not needing to be refurbished for the same money if not less. I've heard high praise from many in the woodworking community about Taytools planes and I may have gotten a pair of lemons but it put a bad taste in my mouth.Flattening the back, sharpening and honing the iron and flattening the sole of a new plane are all expected things without going Lie-Neilsen or Veritas and even then, you still have to hone the iron. Fixing a bad bed however, not worth the time and effort for me personally as I have work to do. Returning both for a refund and going another route. I might give Taytools another try in the future but it won't be any time soon.Good luck to you all and have fun in your shop!

!! UPDATE 10/26/2021 !!WTFFFFFF?! Nevermind. Buyer beware. BARELY used it. BARELY used it enough to even come anywhere near having an issue period… and this?! What a flimsy POS! I can’t believe this! I was worried about this piece but…(see photos) I mean… come on. It unscrewed!!! Don’t know where the pieces are, fingers can’t even get it in there if I tried. Cool.!! OG review !!Caveat : Had the first one replacedSecond Caveat : I’m not entirely certain it needed to be (eeek😅)First one I received had a chip in the side of the mouth, I’m too inexperienced to know if it was simply cosmetic or if it was of real concern. I am also at times, quite, ok… VERY petty. Lol. And there seemed to be some markings on it which made it seem used but after I received the replacement(which did look better, I can’t remember, OH OH there was a dent on the first one, but not a big, bad, ugly dent, just a dent…. I’m petty) both perform/ed beautifully AND I HAVEN’T EVEN done a single ‘ting to ‘it! (Or the original///first ordered(?) lol I mean, nothing, not a single piece of it nor the Vlad has hit the stones yet, bwahahah?! I know. Petty and a willful derp. It cuts surprisingly great OOTB, both did. Better than the two Stanley Sweethearts I bought a year ago(don’t do THOSE! I love em but they break, the main bolt breaks/snaps) anywhoLove ya Tay’

The sole is not flat, it took about an hour on a 400 grit diamond stone to get it flat.The blade was pretty flat only took about 10 minutes.It works great after the work you need to put in it. I would with hardwood and it will do the job.So I recommend the product if you want to do some work on it.Bit to say it is .001 tolerance is just a bunch of BS.

Had a large hollow in the sole. It took a couple of days, working off and on, to finally get the sole flat to where the plane was usable. The blade also had a significant hollow but was much quicker to remedy. Once flattened and honed, the blade seems to be holding an edge very well. So far, I have used the plane on southern yellow pine, hard maple, American walnut, white ash and padauk. I works equally well on them all.I guess the low price of this plane is a trade off with how much your time is worth. It will definitely take some work/time before it's usable. Lie Nielsen and Veritas planes are ready out of the box, but they also will cost four times as much. Your call.

The package arrived sooner than expected and the plane was well packed in a study box and form fitting foam. I was rather impressed with the build for this India made hand plane. The design is similar to the premium brands for half the price. The plane required about 15 minutes to flatten and get the anti-rust coating off. The iron is better than average. I spent 10 minutes honing and cleaning the iron up. After putting together and giving a first shot, I got good results. Time will tell how the iron will hold up, but for the price this is a good value.