On 8/16/2011 5:42 PM, Larry W wrote:
It does not take much practice with a well tuned hand plane to get
a smooth, straight edge on a board or a surface that is narrower than
the plane blade and is already straight and square. Using one to square
or joint an edge, or to surface a wider piece of stock does require
some practice and instruction.

I'll bet. In junior high we were given a piece of wood maybe 10 long and
6" wide. We had to true up the 10 inch edges with a plane until the
teacher could run a try square over them without seeing any light. They
also had to be square to the ends of the board. Once our boards passed
muster, they were to be the bases of our napkin holders.

Suffice it to say that by the time most of the kids' boards passed, they
were too narrow to hold many napkins. My Mom still has mine, made in
1970.

That said, as far as board edges go, many table saw blades these days leave
a pretty good edge. If anything at all, a pass or 2 with a plane is
usually all that is needed to get them ready for finishing and is a whole
lot quicker than sanding, with better results IMHO.

That's exactly the kind of thing I might like to try my hand(s) at. Any
recommendation for an (affordable) kind of plane?