How we work

Specs and history

We checked everything on each tool page (sizes, years made, dating features, maker’s marks and the stories behind them) against sources we could cite. Those include Patrick Leach’s Blood and Gore notes on Stanley tools, the Stanley type studies, the Disstonian Institute’s saw histories, maker histories and catalogs, and collector and woodworking references. When we couldn’t confirm a detail, like an exact year, we left it out or wrote it loosely. Makers changed their tools as they went and parts got swapped over a century of use, so use every page as a starting point and check the marks on the tool itself.

No guessed prices

We don’t publish price ranges from memory. A price shows on a tool page only when it comes from a dated snapshot of that tool’s eBay listings (more below), and it always carries the date we checked. Asking prices aren’t selling prices. Before you make an offer, look at eBay’s sold listings (filter to “Sold items”) for the same model in similar condition and base your offer on those.

Finding listings

Tools without a snapshot link to a plain eBay search for the model. It’s a plain keyword search, so expect some modern tools and loose parts mixed in, and run each listing through the checklist on the tool page.

Complete and sound first

A century of use leaves cracked castings, broken handles, worn-out irons and planes put together from the parts of several others, and sellers don’t always say so. The checklist on each tool page starts with the faults that can’t be fixed, and our guide to user and collector grade explains what you’re paying for. We want you to pay the right price for what a tool really is, and never overpay for a parts-bin build described as original.

Tool photos

The big photo on a tool page and its cards is a representative image, not a photo of any tool for sale. We make it with an AI image model from several real seller photos of that exact model, then compare it with those photos before we publish. Every tool gets the same plain studio backdrop so they look consistent side by side.

So the photo shows what the model looks like, not the condition of any one example. Handles, finish and wear vary from tool to tool, and some small details may be simplified. Judge condition from the seller’s own photos, and ask for close-ups of the maker’s marks and any cracks before you buy. Wherever a representative photo appears large, it carries the caption “Representative photo, made by AI from real seller photos. Every listing differs.” Tools without one show no photo.

Market snapshots and picks

For each tool with a buying guide, we go through the matching eBay listings on one date. We record how many there are, the price range, where most asking prices sit, and a set of listings with their price, shipping, format, seller feedback and condition. The date sits next to the listings, and by the time you read it some will have sold or ended. The “See every listing on eBay” link always opens the live search. When a snapshot has listings, the tool’s typical price on the page comes from it. When nothing was listed, the figure is labeled an estimate.

Then we tag the listings worth a look. Cheapest is the lowest delivered price for a complete, sound tool. Best value is a tool with some evidence it’s sound, at a below-typical price. Best for beginners and Easiest to get working go to tools that are already cleaned up or shown working. Collector’s pick is a sought-after variant or year at a sane price, and Project piece is a cheap tool worth restoring. Two warning tags flag listings to approach with care. Check the seller means little or no feedback, and Priced high means well above the typical range with no clear reason. These are judgment calls from the listing text and photos. We haven’t handled the tools, and nobody pays for placement.

Words you’ll see in listings

Type (Stanley Type Study): Collectors date Stanley's Bailey bench planes by Type, numbered 1 to 20 from 1867 to 1967. Each Type is a run of years with its own mix of features, like patent dates cast behind the frog, the knob's height and the shape of the lever cap. A listing that says "Type 11" means the seller read those features. Check them yourself.
Frog: The casting inside a bench plane that holds the iron at its cutting angle and carries the depth adjuster and the lateral lever. It sits on a machined seat in the body, and on a Bailey plane it can be moved forward or back to open or close the mouth.
Iron, cap iron and lever cap: The iron is the blade. The cap iron (or chipbreaker) is screwed to its back to stiffen it and curl the shaving away. The lever cap clamps both to the frog with a cam lever. Replacement irons are common, so a maker's mark on the iron that doesn't match the plane isn't unusual.
Tote and knob: The rear handle and the front knob of a plane. Stanley used rosewood on most of its prewar planes, and cracked or broken totes are one of the most common faults. A repaired or replaced tote is fine on a user if the price reflects it.
Japanning: The baked black finish on the inside of old Stanley castings. Stanley used it for about a century, then painted castings blue from Type 20 in 1962. Worn japanning is cosmetic, but fresh paint over it usually means a restoration.
Sweetheart: Stanley's logo from about 1920 to 1935: the word STANLEY in a notched rectangle over a heart with S.W. inside, for the Stanley Works. You'll see it stamped on plane irons and chisels from those years, and sellers use the word for the whole era.
Frankenplane: A plane put together from the parts of several others, often from different Types or even different sizes. It can still work well, but it isn't what the label says, and it shouldn't be priced like an original.
Corrugated sole: A sole milled with lengthwise grooves to cut friction. Stanley sold corrugated versions of its bench planes alongside the smooth ones, marked with a C after the number, like 4C.
Rip and crosscut: Rip teeth are filed straight across like little chisels and cut along the grain. Crosscut teeth are filed at an angle so their points slice across the grain. The same Disston model was often sold both ways, so check the filing, not just the model name.
Points per inch: Disston stamped a saw's tooth count near the heel of the blade, on the etched side, as points per inch. It's the filing, not the model number. Lower numbers cut faster and rougher, higher numbers slower and finer.
Medallion and etch: A saw's medallion is the round brass maker's badge in the handle, and its wording dates the saw. The etch is the maker's mark and model name etched into the blade, which wears off with cleaning and use. A readable etch confirms the model.
Socket and tang chisels: A socket chisel's blade ends in a cone that the handle fits into, so the handle can take mallet blows and be replaced easily. A tang chisel's blade ends in a spike driven into the handle, usually with a ferrule to stop the wood splitting.
Sweep: How curved a carving gouge's edge is, given as a number. Low numbers are nearly flat and high numbers are deep U-shapes, and the edge width is given separately. Makers' numbering didn't always match, so check the edge against the number in the photos.
User grade and collector grade: A user-grade tool is complete and sound enough to work but has wear, replaced parts or a common date. A collector-grade tool is original, clean and often an early or rare version. Most woodworkers should buy user grade.

Independence

No affiliate links. We earn nothing (see the disclosure). We’re not paid by sellers and we’re not affiliated with any of the makers we cover or anyone who owns those names today.