Great vid! Thanks for taking the time to make it. I actually work at L.N. I can tell that the management team is the best I've worked with. Its amazing that such a small work force acomplishes so much. Many times at our morning meetings it is expressed to us quality first- in every step. Every tool- the amount of pride we carry daily is awsome- L.N. tools are certainly are pricy out of the gate. However they are made for the wood worker that makes a liveing with them, one and done- If your ever in the little town of Warren, Maine you should stop by and ask for a tour and meet the folks at L.N. Great folks-

I bought WoodRiver #4, #5, #7 on sale several years ago, and was never very happy with them. The soles were flat at least, but the blades were more warped than a potato chip, and impossible to flatten (even just the leading edge). I ended up eventually throwing out the blades and buying some lie-nielsen replacement blades. Should've just bought the whole lie-nielsen planes instead. Also, the extreme play in the adjusting wheel was enough to drive me to distraction. Glad to see i'm not the only one.

It's fascinating how differently each person approaches their woodworking and tools they decide to purchase and I think there is no wrong answer. I'm essentially a weekend warrior hobbyist, and for that reason I typically buy the best tools available. I prefer to spend my time using great tools that I rarely have to make modifications to use. For me, it makes my limited time in the shop more enjoyable. Thanks for the review, I'll be going with the Lie-Nielsen.

I own the WoodRiver #4 and I love it and recently I’ve been able to use the #4 Bronze and what a difference but for 200 dollars more I would hope so and with my 2 cents I will say this after I get a #7 or 8 I will be upgrading to the #4 Bronze. Awesome video

If I were in a production shop, the Lie-Nielsen would definitely be worth the money. As a hobby wood worker, the Wood River is by far a better deal for me. I don't mind playing with the plane. To me, that's half the fun.

The fact that the Woodriver even came close to comparing to the Bronze Lie-Nielsen is impressive at that price point! Thanks for the video!

My work will never be of a standard or quantity to warrant a Lie Nielsen, but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate its beauty and quality. If I was in better health and I had long enough ahead of me to achieve the standards the Nielsen deserves I wouldn’t hesitate to buy one. To me that was an extremely fair comparison, and you pointed out what you had or hadn’t done. A brilliant video and that’s me subscribed.

I have the WR 5 1/2 and its very to use. But I can't wait to get my hands on LN as well. I have vintage stanley planes that do the job just fine and are my goto's.

WOW, great video dude, answered all my questions. Watched the Lie-Nielsen start to finish hand plane manufacturing video. It looks to me like their planes are worth every penny.

Have many planes, Lie Nielsen have lasted me over 20 years of hard use and still perform day in and out, worth the money. Made in Maine then hope they are still.

I just ordered the lie Nielsen bronze # 4 plane. I'm glad your video agreed with my purchase, can't wait to start working with it.

Good video and thanks. I own Lie Neilson planes and they worked straight out of the box and a joy to work with. I'm a pro woodworker but understand the average woodworker going with the Wood River due to price.

Hello, I have a No. 4 Wood River plane. What I noticed upon comparison with the Lie-Nielsen plane is that the Wood River blade is thinner and generally of a lesser quality than the Lie-Nielsen blade. So I slapped a Lie-Nielsen blade in my Wood River plane, and I’ve been quite happy with the results to date.

I'm of the school of thought that a good hand tool is a multi-generational tool. I prefer to amortize a Lie-Nielsen over that period of time. I get that budget is always an issue. But, I hate buying a tool and then upgrading the same tool later as my income allows. I'd much rather just save a bit longer and get exactly what I want.

Interesting comparison. I do have both those planes. Well, close. I have both the Woodriver 4-1/2 and the LN 4-1/2 (not the bronze). The LN needed the edges of the sole honed slightly due to the sharp edge, just as the WR did. Both needed the blades sharpened. The adjuster of the WR had more backlash than the LN, but it really isn't an issue for me personally. The weight difference between the two, if any, was insignificant. The chip breaker on both needed a tiny bit of work to make it flat to the blade, we're talking less than a minute for each. The blade of the WR had a small area in one corner that required me to take off about 1/64 from the front edge before first use. The LN blade was pretty flat, but the front edge of the back was low by about .001" for 1/32 or so that required me to spend quite a bit of time on the back to flatten it. (yes, I'm well aware of how many will say how insignificant that is, but so be it) Bottom line (for me) after getting both planes is the condition I'm happy with, the surface finish of the wood, the ease of use, and the thinness of a shaving I can take is identical between the two. I'm sure I'd be able to sell the LN for pretty much what I paid for it, and not the WR, but other than that and what I outlined above, either is capable of top quality work for generations.

When you buy what l consider the best ( Lie Nielsen)you have a heirloom quality product that you'll have the rest of your life as well as the next generation. I've used my father's planes quite a bit these last few months and it always brings me a sense of satisfaction knowing I'm carrying out his tradition of fine carpentry work sence his passing.

Wood River planes are great. Varitas planes are great. Lie- Nielsen planes are great. Go with what you can afford, or wait a little longer to save for the better ones. Either way, it’s YOUR tool and you can purchase whichever one you please. They’re all good tools worthy of ones shop.

Thank you for your review. I know price concerns are valid. One makes a choice. A woodworker must decide on the trade offs between the two and the use of the tool. Each of the two has its own value.

Many years ago, when I didn't know much about hand planes, I purchased a Clifton no. 5 plane. It was advertised as being ready out of the box, and this was true. Since then I now have more than a dozen hand planes, all are original Stanley-Baileys. I have learned how to refurbish them, some now have Hock blades. This is a viable alternate to both saving money and having a proven quality tool as well. Along the way you will learn all you need to know about hand planes.

Just finished honing the iron on a Stanley No. 4, its okay but I want a LN. I have multiples of 3,4,5,6,7,8 and made a nice till for them. My next shop project is a nice tool cabinet so I plan on thinning the heard. I think I will sell all and get a LN 4 1/2, 5 1/2 and a 7. I never use the 3, 5, 6 and 8 Stanleys anyway. Thank you for the review!

Excellent review, Mathew.

It may prove me tragically, irredeemably nerdy or weird, but I find a great amount of satisfaction and time for reflection in doing meticulous tasks like honing, sharpening, or polishing. I could probably make a business of dressing/sharpening planes, chisels, and saws if there were a market for it. I'd probably go for that Wood River over Lie-Nielsen.

The world of planes is a fascinating one. Personal experience and expectations play the leading part in buying just the right tool. Video,s on this topic are very handy and can just give you that push in making the right decision to purchase "your tool" For me the Lie Nielsen planes are simply the best in every aspect, performance, construction, finish, appearance and last but not least "the right feel" They are a joy to use and .......... more. One,s definitely not getting a factory-made feel in using their heirloom planes. They almost have personality which is what I"m also trying to achieve in making my woodworking projects. I think that's the ultimate goal for us all. Until now I have never regretted the purchase of any Lie Nielsen plane I own. Definitely love them over my other makes of planes.

I've seen several KZfaqrs compare these two planes but no one ever includes a vintage Stanley #4 to see how it stacks up. Many woodworkers have had some experience with the Stanley's and adding one to the mix would give them a good point of reference. Especially comparing the Stanley to the Wood River in areas like depth and lateral adjustments, ease or difficulty in sharpening, and edge retention.

I never had any LN but I have a few Stanley Bailey, Veritas, and WR. Never had to do any fine tuning on the WR or Veritas. I am very happy with both brands and will buy more of WR and Veritas. I have heard about a few issues with WR so I don't think the quality control is as good but so far I haven't had to deal with it. As you said there is a lot of backlash with the adjuster but it doesn't make it any harder to dial in the depth of cut I want, just remember that the wheel is bigger so you don't have to turn is as much.

I bought L.N. And have never had a problem in 10 years. Cuts like a dream and feels good in the hand. I never have a problem getting the blade to cut .001 or thicker if I want. I own about 12 planes of varying sizes and each is an investment that makes pay back easy. I’m sure Wood River is well worth the money but when you plan and save you can eventually get the best. I can see the care that went into making my planes and I want to buy from an American company that takes pride in their products. I’ve never looked back.

Thanks for running this comparison. I'm a hobbyist, and I'm not very interested in overspending - most my tools a inherited or vintage and restored, but this helps me feel good about my plan for my jointer to be a LN. I'm in no rush to get one and if I buy new tools, I like them each to be the last of its kind that I ever buy. If I needed one sooner, I'd get an old no. 7 or 607 and restore it, but only in the service of ultimately saving towards the LN.

I love that kind of tools So nice to use

Thanks for the comparison. As I write this in early 2023 the Wood River #4 is up to $215 and the Lie-Nielsen #4 (iron version) is $340, so the difference is down to $125. Another difference between them is the iron in the Wood River plane is "high carbon" steel whereas the L-N plane has better quality & harder A2 steel. You can buy an A2 iron for the WR plane, but it will add another $70 to the price. If the difference in irons is significant to you it may make the decision easier.

Looks like right now the wood river is $200 for a China plane, veritas is $230 (Canada), and a lie nelson in Iron is $300 (usa)

Considering the LN in the top notch category I prefer you support workers in the USA.

I have a wood river #4 it is my primary plane. It works perfectly fine once I made some adjustments. I noted the sole edges were very sharp and would scratch the wood. I ground them down. That fixed the problem. Other than that I is a great plane and I don't see any need to upgrade it. I sharpen to 1000 grit and it planes ash oak and cherry without issue. I certainly have seen worst planes. The wood river is a professional grade tool and will get the job done. I make 30,000 a year before deductions and work in a shed without air conditioning or heating and a red mud floor. I can't afford to drive a Mercedes-Benz but my beat up 2000 Buick drives just fine. So if you do something for society more important than me and you somehow make enough money to burn get a lie Neilson by all means get yourself one. But if you are like me get a wood river and get to work.

Merica! Nice overview. I love my ln stuff.

Curious if you have tried the Bridge City 12 inch plane. I can't get it to work as well as my Lie Nielsen planes. I am far more familiar with wood lathes than hand planes....

I have a Qiangsheng which I believe comes from the same factory. It’s the best plane I have and the tote is so comfortable. I have Veritas tools which are all great. Backlash in the Qiangsheng is a lot less than a Stanley. I use power tools so spending even more on a plane is not justifiable. What do most woodworkers use a numbe 4 for? They probably buy wood ready thicknessed or use a thicknesser. I view the Qiangsheng as a Stanley to better tolerances, and a Leigh Neilsen as a luxury item.

I own the Woodriver #6 and 4 1/2. Never had a days problem with adjusting to get a fine shaving from either plane.... here is Aussie the Lie Nielsen is worth $700 + for the # 6 and the Woodriver is $430 so a #300 dollar difference I was then able to get the # 41/2 woodriver also.... if I could have afforded the LN there yeah I would but it but the WR do a great job and give a great result and I can buy two for the price of one and have a big smile on my face :)

Is that a wooden faucet over the top of a sink for your stones?

My grand fathers 70 year old Stanley #4 has been such a work horse it's whole life, I've never even thought of replacing it, of buying any other plane.

I bought the WR a couple years ago to start my collection, then found a LN on craigslist a few weeks later. I sold the WR and now all of my planes are LN. The WR planes are really decent, but I hate tuning tools. If I wanted to tune hand tools I'd buy vintage stanleys. I'd much prefer to work wood.

Great video! Thank you. The difference between the China planes, like Wood River, and those like Lie Nielsen, Veritas, and Clifton is the following: A) The China planes, like Wood River, are created with an accountant mindset leading the way from design to materials and production. The rationale here is "How can we make hand planes that will maximize profits while competing with the gold standard planes of Lie Nielsen, Veritas, and Clifton?" B) Lie Nielsen, Veritas, and Clifton planes by contrast are created with a craftsman mindset leading the way from design to materials and production. The rationale here is "How can we make the best hand planes possible?" It's not that Lie Nielsen et al are unconcerned with making a profit or reducing costs when possible -- every business on the planet must make a profit to exist. The difference is that those concerns are not the primary motivation for Lie Nielsen et al in creating their products, so much so that they will not compromise quality for the sake of reducing costs. China planes by definition have already made those cost-reduction compromises to quality by having them made in China...because it's always cheaper to produce pretty much anything in China. The drop in quality necessarily follows, which is then offset through marketing. It's all by design. And that is the accountant mindset. Thankfully, we have choices. I choose to buy my tools from companies that produce their products from beginning to end with the craftsman mindset.

I think the most important questions to ask are, What was the quality of the surface of the board after it was planed? To me I could care less if I am taking .001 or .0015 shavings.

Your gear page is #404 error. Curious about that honing guide you use. Which model? Amazon link?

Nice comparison, Matthew

Stanley No. 4 with an L-N Iron.

Great review Matthew, as you mentioned LN comes in ready, and is fine tuned. I don't own either of the two models, but I believe both will top an old Stanley.

Have many LN tools . WR is a good way to go if one is on a budget . I/ve had their metal low angle black spokeshave for 11 years and it is an excellent tool for the %$$

When you say play do you mean backlash? Because thats not an issue always wind the blade up to set. If you are taking too thick a shaving wind passed and then wind it back up to the desired set.

Would you be willing to do a comparison with one of the wooden handplanes you made? I have always wondered how good they are compared to a ironplane... Someday I would like to make some of those you made.

Because of my circumstances, I have access to a lot of very difficult wood, so I got a Lie-Nielsen #5 with a middle-pitch (55 degree) frog. Without touching up anything other than the iron, and with the mouth set somewhat wide, I can plane end-grain with ease. And I'm a long, long, long way from being a hand-plane pro, and my sharpening is probably pretty sketchy, too. Because block planes can cause my hands to cramp up really badly, I'm thinking of getting a #1 or #2. I keep looking at the Woodriver #1 on Amazon, and I just can't bring myself to do it. Why drop $170 for something that _might_ work, when I can bite the bullet, spend the extra $100, and get something that I know _will_ work?

Hi! It is well known that the Wood River planes have to go through a kind of "Set-Up-Procedure" when they come from factory. There is a video about it on the web. These 40 minutes (i just got a 51/2) are a one-time-procedure that also helps you to get into the mechanics of the tool. Once recognized how many play there is at the "blade-screw" (deepness), it is easy to change quickly between in and out - ok, a little bit of time for getting familiar with it is needed. It is known as well, that Lie Nielsen try to sell their planes to work right out of the box. But as well a LN plane needs to have a little bit of play on the deepness screw. it would have been nice to watch the difference in that play on the video. At my WR 51/2 it is about 1/3 of a round and never changes. The LN are outstanding perfectly machined and finished tools and they even look awesome; but if you remember that, after you have plained, the surface of any wood will start working again and winter-years will come out time after time, so i ask myself if the difference of 1/0005 is worth the price of two WR-block-planes? (But - if i would earn lots of money with creating mostly handmade furniture - i would surely go for LN) - Ahhh ... i see that this article is 2 years old, WR have changed the design of their planes up to V3 now. Could make a difference!

The play in depth of cut adjustment doesn't come from insufficient tightness of the adjustment screw, that isn't what causes the slack. The slack comes from the top end of the yoke which engages the blade. In Stanley planes you can't eliminate this slack, it is an intrinsic deficiency of their design.

I bought a WR # 4. There was a gap of .0.06” in between the chip breaker and the cutter. I believe WR should have better quality control if they want to compete with LN. What’s your thoughts?

I love the Lie-Nielsen.

Jesus, man, the Wood River #4 is $200 today. Should’ve started earlier!

Wood river is made in China, that is all I need to know. Some well known teachers & Utube presenters use Woodriver products. I personally have may Lie-Nielsen hand planes and find the value and results are what I like and works foe me.

These WRs are up to $215 now. I was going to pull the trigger on one, but for $75 more, I might as well just get the LN.

I think the same as other comments here, If the tool was used for a massive amount of production day in and day out, I would spend the extra money. But most people here are hobbyist at best, so it's the more affordable tools we usually go for. From your video it also sounds like the wood river is a pretty decent and worthy tool to have, so why not go for the cheaper option? this probably won't be a first time purchase for most with the number 4 planer, we still have to save money to buy more planers. With the $200 I save here, I get a pretty decent Jack plane for that amount. We all want more for less money, no? :)

I bought the wood river #4 right before it went on sale I would’ve had no idea it went on sale the next day If I didn’t get a letter in the mail with a gift card to the store

I have had Stanleys and Records over the years but a few years ago bought a Veritas. Ductile iron and way more quality than the old planes. More costly of course but its working right out of the box. And its made here in Canada. However up here a Lie Nielsen is twice the cost of the Veritas and toe to toe they are easily equals. Either is an axcellent plane but the cost does not justify a Nielsen plane as pretty as they are. After all the whole idea is to plane wood as efficiently as possible with the least amount of work.

I have flea market Stanley planes that I've spent hours tuning, still don't compare to a lie Nielsen out of the box. I have the LN smoother, and the huge LN jointer, along with the LN chisel set, NOTHING compares well, maybe the Veritas PM-V11 Bench chisels, they're pretty nice too... edges even outlast LN chisels when chopping out dovetails.

Lie Nielsen - made in the US and superior quality. If the budget allows it there is no question. I own a couple of Lie Nielsen planes and there is no comparison.

Tuning up the WR plane takes less than one hour so unless you value your hobby time at greater than $200 an hour then on a pure cost to value comparison based on function and set up alone I don’t see how LN wins this. I agree there are many other good reasons to buy a LN that make it worth the additional cost for many people (myself included), but comparing a WR vs LN straight out of the box is a straw man argument. They can be set up to work exactly the same with fairly minimal effort. If they couldn’t then you certainly wouldn’t see top craftsmen (eg Phil Lowe) still using old Bedrocks and Baileys.

$200 is a big differnce for me in the amount of wood of tools I can purchase for my hobby. With my latest bonus, the planes I buy will be all Wood River. Rob Cosman plays a big role in this.

I bought a WR plane that works better after putting a LN iron in it. After that I switched the LN planes. They are worth the difference in price IMHO. WR has had a large price increase recently so the cost difference is much less.

que tipo de piedra de afilar es y que grano es.

I have the LN 4 bronze and use it often. For those who can not afford a LN plane, the Woodriver may be a good option. On the other hand, LN is made in Maine and I've never had any quality issues with any of the many LN planes I own.

If you wanna get seriously fine shavings upgrade the blade to the cosman ibc Plane iron. It made the difference you wouldn’t believe. I can easily get 1/4 thou shavings and still $125 less than Lie Nielsen. Btw I own Stanley’s, Veritas and woodriver planes and they all work amazingly well for me. I have used a LN plane and they are indeed superior quality but not any better than the planes I have already. I think it al comes down to budget.

It’s really simple, support America or China....it’s a choice I make to support my country whenever possible.

I’ve struggled so much with cheaper planes trying to make them flat, square, sides 90° etc. to avoid all that I’ll have to save some $ and go with the Lie-Nielsen

I think I'll stick with my second hand Stanley planes here. For $350 a plane had better push itself!

I have the LN bronze. It's a nice plane, but it's too heavy for a serious hand tool woodworker. The Woodriver plane states that it's a half pound heavier yet. I know neither is selling most of their planes to dedicated hand tool users, but 5 pounds is a weight that even the heavier vintage infill smoothers of the same size didn't touch. Stanley 4s were 3 pounds, and infill planes of that size were 3-4, generally (if you've ever had the good fortune to handles something like a Norris no. 2). I don't even think the norris no 13 that I have is 5 pounds, and it's a larger plane. The nonsense of overly heavy planes is a modern phenomenon. If you're asking why I have the Ln bronze? I like to support LN. It's also a bit nose heavy, but a good feel comparison when I make an infill. I need to be able to make a plane at least as nice and at least as capable as a LN bronze 4 (but less nose heavy). In day to day heavy work, I use a stanley 4, though. Until or unless the wood being worked is rosewood, and that is a rare thing for the average hobby woodworker.

My grandfather told me when i was just a kid that he had never once said, "I wish i had bought the cheaper one, even though this one is better." Decades later, I feel the same way. If you, conservatively, keep a tool for ten years, that $200 difference is less than a cup of coffee (at McDonald's, no less!) per month.

I own a WoodRiver #5. Paid $175. It's a fine tool, and it ticks all the boxes for me. I see no reason why it won't still be in use 50 years from now (though not by me). I'm sure the L-N is a fine plane, but that last ounce of perfection comes at an extremely steep price. Why pay double for good tools, when I don't have to?

What kind of bench you using?

I think that if we talk not about one plane, but about a set of different planes, you can save not $200, but more than $1500, which for an individual craftsman can be a decisive factor, because the rest of the difference is not significant. and with the saved money you can buy a good power machine. bandsaw for example

I can only find the wood river for $200 or more so I think I'm mote likely to buy the lie neisen at this time.

Having established some superiority of the $350 Lie-Nielsen over the Wood River, the question in my mind is how does the well-tuned Wood River compare to a comparably tuned old Stanley or Stanley clone available on the used market for $20 or so. My own cabinet is full of 80 to 150 year old Stanley tools with which I have no complaint though I admit to replacing several original blades with thicker Hock or equivalent blades. I realize your purpose was to compare these two offerings but the third alternative is one for novices to consider.

You know what burns me up, and gets me hot under the collar. People who would pick a Chinese made tool over the American one, which will feed American families; because.....its too expensive they say. People that usually say such, I wonder about them. How? Are these the one's who spend a great deal of money on cigarettes, or spend a great deal on buying lottery tickets every week. Pay for cable channels they never see. People who keep throwing parties on weekends, and barbecues where they feed their "friends", and spend gazillions on beer and soda, and food to guzzle in the weekend football parties. The ones who buy tons of clothing they will never wear, to pack-away with the tons of clothes they already have. And spend money 3 times a week on the wife's hairdoo and nails. Or need to take vacations, no matter what. They also have to take cruises every year and keep buying crap all years long, that they either pack away, or throw out fast. But....they never seem to be able to find enough money to buy quality tools that will practically last forever.

My 40 dollar restored WWII era Record plane gives me the same result. Enjoy spending your money guys :).

In my mind, not fine tuning a fresh plane is like playing a guitar right out of the box... 99% of the time the neck is slightly bowed so you need to adjust your truss rod to your liking, you need to adjust the action after adjusting the truss rod, they always need to be properly intonated, pickup heights are placed in a rush... so on and so forth. I spent a month flattening and straightening my Woodriver 5 1/2 Jack plane because there's a delivery team that is destroying packages that are on their way up here. My plane was bent and twisted out of shape... Wouldn't have mattered if I had purchased it with the optional tuning service. I had to hammer and sand things flat. Lie Nielsens are professionally tuned and sent ready to use out of the box, others are factory set... That's the comparison I see here.

I'm just saying- a considerable % of that extra 200 dollars on the Lie Neilson plane is paying for all the hand finishing work you didn't do to that wood river plane, the final sole flattening, the blade flattening, dialing in and flattening the chip breaker and throat/blade seats...thats generally a few hours of work to stone those surfaces and Lie Neilson just does it for you and tacks it onto the bill. The screw precision is a valid point, if a bit nitpicky I'm joist pointing out that if you didn't do the final finishing work on that plane you arent doing an apples to apples comparison

Stanley #4 from e-bay for $50 required just cleaning and sharpening. It can do everything if your hands are in place and will serve you for the next 50 years, then you can sell it again. Boom, saved you $300!

I struggle with a humid basement shop and difficulty keeping iron in good condition over time, especially when I have long gaps between projects. I’m headed towards the bronze LN vs the WR with upgraded IBC iron based on the bronze’s ability to resist rust.

For the price of one LN I can buy two WR planes. Given that the WR planes perform so well, I will stick with WR. I own two so far (5 1/2 Jack and low angle block). And by the way, I am still supporting American workers by buying WR, even though the planes are made in China. Woodcraft is an American company that employs American workers, and by buying from my local Woodcraft store I am supporting workers in my local community.

I have 3 different lie nielsen planes and 2 wood river planes yes lie Nielsen planes are superior however if you flatten the sole fine tune the blade & chip breaker you have an awesome plane, yes it's made in china but believe me dont ever let that discourage you they make a fantastic plane.

Im fine with my $5 Stanley No 4 :)

No plane should be expected to work 100% right out of the box, this guy is lucky he got a Lie-Nielsen that is pretty much perfect but many are not. Half an hour of fettling on the Wood River can get it cutting every bit as good as the Lie-Nielsen. Personally I think the Wood River planes are over priced at the moment because they are after all made in China but they are an example of the best China is producing and that is a pretty high standard. The only real difference between the two is the amount of backlash in the adjustment mechanism but this is not a limitation to the quality of the work that can be produced using them.

You think a little bit a sole flattening and work on the chip breaker is worth $200? Sounds pretty lazy to be honest. Think it would be worthwhile to make those adjustment, note the real time it took, and how it compares after that.

Must of had a price change I was just at wood craft store and they are $200

I have a Dictum No.4 plane, it's the same thing as Woodriver, just with another body color and grips. I can say, It has good geometry out of the box, clean flat sole and 90 degrees sides. Obviously, it can't reach Lie Nielsen quality, but I believe this plane is a great option for beginners, who can't spend a lot of money on their first tool. As for me personally, I was not quite satisfied with the durability of the cutting edge. In general, the quality of the blades varies a bit from plane to plane (China is China). I got out of the situation by switching to a japanese blade for Stanley planes, it's an amazing piece. Another thing that its' body is made of steel, which can be less stable than cast-iron or bronze.

I know guys that spend $200. on beer weekly, I use cheap mechanics tools because I'm not a mechanic but if I was I would buy the best tools in the market, How ever I'am a wood worker I don't think twice about buying the LN over the WR, it will pay for it self the first time you use it.

But that price difference is gonne ad up when you buy multiple planes and to be honest I have a old No4 Stanley handyman and old beat up Stanley Bailey No5 and I am getting great results Whit them although I want to upgrade them to a woodriver mostly because of the weight difference thanks fore the vid

Another fact. Wood river is made in china, LN is 100% made in U.S.A., in fact, the bronze is casted in Lewiston maine, and the rest is made, assembled in Warren maine. Even the wood for the handles are a maine wood. But both are nice.

Nothing even compares to Lie-Nielsen.

Lie Nielsen all the way! I have 3 LN planes and I am a professional woodworker.Go USA made, always the best and you will never regret the extra cost! Plus I can sell my planes on ebay for more than I paid...tells you something.

Considering that rob cosman uses wood river planes and constantly gets fine shavings less than yours. It must be the user and not the plane

I have a LN #4 1/2 with a 50 degree frog, a #4 and a #5 WR, and LV low angle jack. I use the WR's for rougher work. I use the LV for shooting and some smoothing. I use the LN for smoothing. Truth be told I feel the WR's flex when I use them. I've also seen it when I had some else plane with them to see if I was correct. I have a #605 Stanley bedrock that I basically never use anymore. It has an original blade and a Hock replacement. It works great with the Hock blade but looks better in my tool chest. So I don't use it much.

Does not address stress in the metal causing distortion over time. If budget is the issue buy a vintage stanley

With the experience you have with wood planes, after you flatten the sole, modify the breaker, adjust the frog, sharpen the blade to perfection, and properly adjust everything.....i'd bet you can definitely get the wood river plane to perform just like thed L.N. and maybe better, and save $200, plus keep it for 30 years. Unless you're just be partial to the L.N.

Does the woodriver speak Mandarin?