Block & Specialty Planes

Because the Millers Falls Company entered the hand plane business relatively late in the game, its product line never grew to the size of that of Stanley or Sargent & Company. The initial rollout in 1929 concentrated on those models with the greatest sales potential—block and bench planes. By the time the line was established, the popular acceptance of power tools and of pre-milled, pre-shaped lumber had made the introduction of limited application hand planes a risky affair.

The company was never to produce a circular, match, dado, plow, shoulder, or combination plane. Its more successful specialty planes included a double end block plane, a duplex rabbet/filletster, a skew rabbet/block plane, and a pair of routers. Millers Falls also manufactured scraper, scrub, and weatherstrip planes. For the most part, these latter models did not sell well and enjoyed life cycles of perhaps a dozen years. The Millers Falls specialty planes were copies of Stanley products.

The Millers Falls Company produced a complete line of block planes with various combinations of the cap, depth adjustment, blade pitch, and finish. While the minor details of Millers Falls block planes may differ from their Stanley equivalents, there are several differences worthy of note. One is the company's preference for 1 5/8 inch cutter widths in situations where Stanley would have used a 1 3/4 inch blade. Another is that the copy of Stanley's No. 118 low angle boy's plane was manufactured for perhaps a dozen years with a standard 20-degree pitch instead of an angle of 12 degrees.

No. 07

Adjustable Block and Rabbet Plane

Features a screw-operated cap clamp and depth adjustment. The removable right side allows for conversion to the rabbet plane. Skew iron is bedded at 20 degrees. The body is black-enameled and the cap is nickel plated.

1. early production—model number cast into the back of bed; cocobolo knob.
2. later production—model number no longer cast into bed; tropical hardwood knob.
3. by 1956—the knob is attached to the body by an externally visible screw.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 07	No. 140	7 inches	1 3/4 inches	1929	1970

No. 3

Non-Adjustable Block Plane

A small, squirrel-tailed block plane favored by model and instrument makers. Screw-operated cap clamp. Sides are not milled. Iron is bedded at 45 degrees. Body and cap are black-enameled.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 3	No. 100	3 1/2 inches	1 inch	1929	by 1944

Nos. 4, 4-01, 4-02

Bull Nose Rabbet Plane

A small plane for working in close quarters and up into corners. Non-adjustable, with screw-operated cap clamp. Iron is bedded at 45 degrees. Body and cap are black-enameled. Renumbered 4-01 in 1969. In 1971, it was renumbered 4-02 and production switched to England.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 4	No. 75	4 inches	1 inch	1929	1974

No. 5

Non-Adjustable Block Plane

A small plane with a screw-operated cap clamp. Sides are not milled. Iron is bedded at 20 degrees. Body and cap are black-enameled.

1. early production—manufacturer's name cast into bed around the front button.
2. later production—manufacturer's name no longer cast into bed around the button.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 5	No. 102	5 1/2 inches	1 3/8 inches	1929	1964

Nos. 9 1/2, 10 1/2

Scrub Plane

A non-adjustable plane with a screw-operated cap clamp. Designed for the rapid removal of stock. Sides are not milled. Heavy-duty iron with rounded cutting edge is bedded at 20 degrees. Catalogs indicate body and cap are black-enameled and that handle and knob are mahogany-finished hardwood. Models with red caps and cocobolo handles and totes have been observed. The red-capped models appear to be of later production.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 9 1/2	No. 40	9 1/2 inches	1 1/8 inches	1929	by 1944
No. 10 1/2	No. 40 1/2	10 1/2 inches	1 1/2 inches	1929	by 1944

No. 16

Adjustable Block Plane

Equipped with an adjustable throat, cam-lock cap, lateral adjustment lever, and Bailey-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twenty degrees. Body and cap are black enameled.

1. early production—manufacturer's name cast into bed around the front knob.
2. later production—manufacturer's name no longer cast into bed around the knob.

The Millers Falls Company used the illustration of the No. 17 to depict this plane. The author has done so as well. Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 16	No. 9 1/2	6 inches	1 5/8 inches	1929	1971

No. 16-CG

Adjustable Block Plane

Equipped with an adjustable throat, cam-lock cap, lateral adjustment lever, and screw-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twenty degrees. Body and cap are black enameled.

Produced under contract for United States government.

Author's photograph.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 16	none	6 inches	1 5/8 inches	ca. 1966	ca. 1971

No. 17

Adjustable Block Plane

Equipped with an adjustable throat, cam-lock cap, lateral adjustment lever, and Bailey-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twenty degrees. Body and cap are black-enameled.

1. early production—manufacturer's name cast into bed around the front knob.
2. later production—manufacturer's name no longer cast into bed around the knob.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 17	No. 15	7 inches	1 5/8 inches	1929	1964

Nos. 26, 27

Adjustable Block Plane

Equipped with an adjustable throat, cam-lock cap, lateral adjustment lever, and Bailey-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twenty degrees. The body is black-enameled. Nickel-plated cap.

1. early production—manufacturer's name cast into bed around the front knob.
2. later production—manufacturer's name no longer cast into bed around the knob.

The Millers Falls Company used a single illustration to depict both planes. The author has done so as well. Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 26	No. 16	6 inches	1 5/8 inches	1929	by 1944
No. 27	No. 17	7 inches	1 5/8 inches	1929	by 1944

No. 33

Non-Adjustable Block Plane

A small plane with a screw-operated cap clamp favored by model and instrument makers. Sides are not milled. Iron is bedded at 45 degrees. Body and cap are black-enameled on earlier production. Beginning ca. 1952, the body is gray-enameled, the cap is red. Shipped in a box with the V-Line (Value Line) label from 1956 to ca. 1960.

Illustration from 1949 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 33	No. 101	3 1/2 inches	1 inches	1929	1974

Nos. 36, 37

Adjustable Block Plane

Features an adjustable throat, lateral adjustment lever, and Bailey-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twenty degrees. The body is black-enameled. Fitted with a nickel-plated, knuckle-joint lever cap. Jointed lever caps, prone to unlock with careless use, were referred to as "knuckle busters" by generations of woodworkers. Identical to Nos. 16 and 17 save for model number and knuckle-joint cap.

1. early production—manufacturer's name cast into bed around the front knob.
2. later production—manufacturer's name no longer cast into bed around the knob.

The Millers Falls Company used a single illustration to depict both planes. The author has done so as well. Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 36	No. 18	6 inches	1 5/8 inches	1929	by 1961
No. 37	No. 19	7 inches	1 5/8 inches	1929	by 1961

Much of the information provided below is derived from a study of Millers Falls catalogs. Please realize that the collection used as a resource is not comprehensive and that the M-F catalog copy could be astonishingly inaccurate. Understand that the Stanley equivalents listed are what might be termed "close matches" and that some details of the planes are not necessarily identical.

No. 45

Adjustable Block Plane

Non-adjustable throat, with cam-lock cap and screw-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twenty degrees. Body and cap are black-enameled. Earlier production features cocobolo knob—tropical hardwood comes later. A smaller version of the no. 75.

by 1956—the knob is attached to the body by an externally visible screw.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 45	No. 203	5 1/2 inches	1 3/8 inches	1929	1964

No. 46

Adjustable Low Angle Block Plane

Equipped with an adjustable throat, cam-lock cap, and screw-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twelve degrees. The body is black-enameled. Although catalog illustration depicts black enamel, the cap is nickel plated. Identical to the early no. 56 save for model number and plating on the cap.

Millers Falls used the same illustration for the low-angled nos. 46 and 56. The author has done so as well. Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 46	No. 60	6 inches	1 3/8 inches	1929	by 1944

No. 47

Adjustable Low Angle Block Plane

Equipped with an adjustable throat and screw-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twelve degrees. The body is black-enameled. Fitted with nickel-plated, knuckle-joint lever cap. Jointed lever caps, prone to unlock with careless use, were referred to as "knuckle busters" by generations of woodworkers. Identical to no. 57 save for model number and knuckle-joint cap.

1. early production—manufacturer's name cast into bed along the front edge.
2. later production—manufacturer's name no longer cast into bed along the front edge.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 47	No. 65	7 inches	1 5/8 inches	1929	by June 1948

No. 55

Adjustable Block Plane

Equipped with screw-operated cap clamp and lever depth adjustment. Sides are not milled. Iron is bedded at 20 degrees.

1. early production—black-enameled body and red cap; manufacturer's name cast into bed around the front button.
2. later production—body, and cap are black-enameled; manufacturer's name no longer cast into bed around the button.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 55	No. 103	5 1/2 inches	1 3/8 inches	1929	1960

Nos. 56, 56B (Low Angle)

Adjustable Low Angle Block Plane

Equipped with an adjustable throat, cam-lock cap, and screw-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twelve degrees. Body and cap are black-enameled. By 1976, the knob on the depth adjustment is made of plastic.

Millers Falls used the same illustration for the low-angled nos. 56 and 57. The author has done so as well. Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 56	No. 60 1/2	6 inches	1 3/8 inches	1929	1976

No. 56 (Standard Angle)

Adjustable Block Plane

Equipped with an adjustable throat and cam-lock cap. Iron is bedded at 20 degrees. Early production features screw-type depth adjustment. Body enameled blue-gray and cap dull red. Beginning 1979, fitted with lateral adjustment lever and Bailey-type depth adjustment.

When the company introduced this version of the no. 56, it referred to it as a "high angle" block plane so as to distinguish it from its low-angled predecessor.

Illustration from 1979 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 56	No. 9 1/2	6 inches	1 3/8 inches (1976) 1 5/8 inches (1977)	1976	198?

No. 57

Adjustable Low Angle Block Plane

Equipped with an adjustable throat, cam-lock cap, and screw-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twelve degrees. Body and cap are black-enameled.

Millers Falls used the same illustration for the low-angled nos. 56 and 57. The author has done so as well.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 57	No. 65 1/2	7 inches	1 5/8 inches	1929	1964

Nos. 64, 65

Scraper Plane

Features an adjustable cutter holder. The body is black-enameled. Earlier production with cocobolo double-grip handle; hardwood handle comes later. No. 65 is identical to no. 64 but features a rosewood bottom.

The Millers Falls Company used the same illustration to depict the nos 64 and 65. The author has done so as well.

The Millers Falls Company used a single illustration to depict both planes. The author has done so as well. Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 64	No. 12	6 1/4 inches	2 7/8 inches	1929	by 1944
No. 65	No. 12 1/2	6 1/4 inches	2 7/8 inches	1929	by 1944

No. 66

Adjustable Low Angle Block Plane

With a non-adjustable throat, cam-lock cap, and screw-type depth adjustment. Iron is bedded at twelve degrees. Body and cap are black-enameled. Earlier production features cocobolo knob—tropical hardwood comes later. Was re-introduced, ca. 1956, as the no. 1455.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 66	No. 61	6 inches	1 3/8 inches	1929	by 1944

No. 67

Open-Throat Router

Includes an attachment to close the throat for use on narrow surfaces. Cutter can be reversed for bullnose work. Earlier models shipped with 1/4 inch and 1/2 inch cutters. Shipped with additionally pointed cutter (1/2 inch wide) and fence by 1949.

1. early production—nickel-plated frame.
2. later production—frame is black-enameled.
3. by 1955—frame is painted gray; hardwood handles are lacquered black.

Illustration from 1938 catalog.

Model	Stanley Equiv.	Length	Cutter	Start Date	End Date
No. 67	No. 71	7 1/2 inches	N/A	1929	1964