Woodriver Planes Review: Block, Jack And Bench Models

For woodworkers, hand planes are indispensable tools. You’ll need block planes, jack planes, and bench planes for the job, and for these you can just go with WoodRiver.

This brand is quite reputable, and the vast majority of their buyers have expressed satisfaction with the cost and the performance.

Here are some of woodriver planes review from their well-regarded planes that you can use for your own woodshop:

WoodRiver Bench Plane Reviews

WoodRiver #5 Bench Plane

Stanley Tool’s Bedrocks line is considered as one of the best set of hand planes you can get, and the WoodRiver #5 bench plane is based on that same design. This means you get heavy-duty ductile iron castings at 5 pounds and the adjustable frogs, along with the high carbon steel blade.

WoodRiver #5 Bench Plane, V3

Modeled after the Bedrocks, Stanley Tool's very best line
2-7-16" W x 13-7/8"L with 2"W blade
WoodRiver planes feature the same heavy castings (5 lbs) and fully machined frogs
Lightly finished Bubinga handles provide comfort and control
Soles and sides are machined flat and square within tightly held tolerances

But this new version 3 has been improved quite a bit. They’ve modified the shape of the rear tote and boosted the diameter of the wheel for blade adjustment. Now it’s even easier to advance the blade. They’ve also upgraded the lateral adjustment lever and put in a traditional style bearing so you can control the blade better.

The Bubinga handles have a light finish and its comfortable to hold and easy to control. The many changes to the castings also give you a solid feel for the tool, and you get lots of feedback as you work with it.

This is 2 7/16 inches wide and 13⅞ inches long, and it features a blade that’s 2 inches wide. The soles and sides are square and machined flat, within tightly held tolerances. The length makes it very effective in removing stock, shooting miters, smoothing, and even jointing smaller pieces.

WoodRiver #4 Bench Plane

Also designed after the Bedrocks, this also has a 2-inch wide blade and 2 7/16 inches wide. The soles and sides are of similar quality and you also have the great Bubinga handles, fully machined frogs, and the 5-pound castings.

WoodRiver #4 Bench Plane, V3

Modeled after the Bedrocks, Stanley Tool's very best line
2-7/16" W x 9-7/8"L with 2"W blade
WoodRiver planes feature the same heavy castings (5 lbs) and fully machined frogs
Lightly finished Bubinga handles provide comfort and control - Soles and sides are machined flat and square within tightly held tolerances
WoodRiver is proudly made by Woodcraft, America's leading supplier of saws, planes, power tools, hand tools, wood stain and paint, routers, sanding, wood, kits, dust collection and more. Our award winning family of brands includes WoodRiver, Highpoint, Woodcraft and Woodcraft Magazine as well as the greatest selection of woodworking books, videos, and plans.

But this is much shorter at 9⅞ inches. It’s great for light jobs and for smoothing, and the light 5-pound weight makes it comfy to use for extended periods. Still, you have the heft that lets you slice easily through tough grain.

The adjustments here are very precise, and the blade lasts long as the edge holds well. The finish is terrific too.

WoodRiver No. 1 Hand Plane Review

Lots of #1 bench planes are highly regarded by collectors, since they’re just so cute. You can say the same of this WoodRiver #1 hand plane, as it is just 5¾ inches long and 1½ inches wide.

But this is a fully functional smoothing plane that you can use for small-scale projects. You can whip it out to smooth out surfaces in tight places that bigger bench planes can’t work with, or to shave off strips so thin that even a sheet of paper is thicker. It helps that the 1 13/64-inch blade is made from T10 high carbon steel.

WoodRiver No. 1 Bench Hand Plane V3

Fully functional miniature smoothing plane
1-1⁄2" W x 5-3⁄4" L with 1-13⁄64" W T10 high carbon steel blade
Ductile iron castings with fully machined frog
Soles and sides are machined flat and square - Lightly finished Bubinga tote and knob
WoodRiver is proudly made by Woodcraft, America's leading supplier of saws, planes, power tools, hand tools, wood stain and paint, routers, sanding, wood, kits, dust collection and more. Our award winning family of brands includes WoodRiver, Highpoint, Woodcraft and Woodcraft Magazine as well as the greatest selection of woodworking books, videos, and plans.

You’ll note that the soles and sides are machined flat and square, to better help you to smooth out the wood surfaces accurately. To boost the strength and durability of this miniature smoother, it features ductile iron castings and a fully machined frog.

This isn’t a collectible that you just display. It may be cute, but it’s useful as well. If you have kids interested in woodworking, they may find the size very comfortable to work with.

WoodRiver #5½ Jack Plane Review

The Bedrock design is also very evident here, as you might guess. This is 14 and 15/16 inches long and 2⅞ inches wide, while the blade is 2⅜ inches wide.

Again you find the characteristic traits of the WoodRiver bench planes, including the fully machined frogs, the soles and sides that have been machined flat and square, and the fine-grained ductile iron castings.

WoodRiver #5-1/2 Jack Plane

2-7/8" wide x 14-15/16" long with a 2-3/8"-wide blade
Modeled after the Bedrocks, Stanley Tool's very best line
Features fine-grained ductile iron castings and fully machined frogs
Soles and sides machined flat and square - Tools require minimal tune-up prior to use
WoodRiver is proudly made by Woodcraft, America's leading supplier of saws, planes, power tools, hand tools, wood stain and paint, routers, sanding, wood, kits, dust collection and more. Our award winning family of brands includes WoodRiver, Highpoint, Woodcraft and Woodcraft Magazine as well as the greatest selection of woodworking books, videos, and plans.

You can use this for smoothing as well, and it’s great for flattening your boards. The blade is ⅜ of an inch wider than what you get with the #5, so your swath is wider with each pass.

The almost 15-inch length of the sole makes it ideal to use with a shooting board, though it’s not really long enough to joint edges as well as you would with a 22-inch plane.

WoodRiver #7 Jointer Plane Review

This is 2⅞ inches wide, 22 inches long, and its blade is 2⅜ inches wide. It also weighs 9.5 pounds, so it’s about the same weight as the Stanley #8. You can use this for truing the edges of your boards before the glue-up, and to flatten boards and table tops.

WoodRiver #7 Jointer Plane

2-7/8" W x 22" L with 2-3/8" W blade
Modeled after the Bedrocks, Stanley Tool's very best line; Commonly known as a jointer plane
WoodRiver hand planes feature the same heavy castings (5 lbs.) and fully machined frogs
Lightly finished Bubinga handles for comfort and control; Tools require minimal tune-up prior to use - Soles and sides are machined flat and square within tightly held tolerances
WoodRiver is proudly made by Woodcraft, America's leading supplier of saws, planes, power tools, hand tools, wood stain and paint, routers, sanding, wood, kits, dust collection and more. Our award winning family of brands includes WoodRiver, Highpoint, Woodcraft and Woodcraft Magazine as well as the greatest selection of woodworking books, videos, and plans.

The extra weight helps when you’re dealing with a tough grain. If you need a jointer (and of course you need one), you can get this and find out how easy it is to use. You can enjoy the very best of the Bedrock design and come up with terrific results.

WoodRiver #92 Medium Shoulder Plane Review

This combines the very best features of the plane designs from Edward Preston and Sons, though it does also have new WoodRiver improvements. This means that this is a fully functional tool despite its classic antique look. It’s meant to create joints as well as to clean up tenons, rabbets, and dadoes.

This has the characteristic features you’d expect from a shoulder plane. The body is narrow, the blade can clean corners, the sides are square to the sole, and the bottoms are flat. But WoodRiver has put in an adjustable toe to control the throat opening and help to minimize tear-out.

WoodRiver #92 Medium Shoulder Plane

For tweaking tenons, rabbets and dados
Sides square to sole
Classic look and feel
Adjustable Mouth for Minimizing Tear out -
WoodRiver is proudly made by Woodcraft, America's leading supplier of saws, planes, power tools, hand tools, wood stain and paint, routers, sanding, wood, kits, dust collection and more. Our award winning family of brands includes WoodRiver, Highpoint, Woodcraft and Woodcraft Magazine as well as the greatest selection of woodworking books, videos, and plans.

It’s very solid. It’s made of stress-relieved ductile steel, while the blade is made from Mn65 tool steel hardened to 60-64 Rc. The blade is tough, but it’s able to take a very sharp edge. You’ll also enjoy a smooth and precise blade advancement mechanism.

The body is 7 inches long, ¾ of an inch wide and 2½ inches high. The overall length is 8 and 13/16 inches, while the overall height is 3¼ inches. You have a 15-degree bed angle and a 25-degree blade angle, while the overall weight is 2 pounds 3.4 ounces.

WoodRiver Low Angle Block Plane Review

This design is based on the #18 standard angle “Knuckle Cap” and Stanley #65 low angle design. It’s commonly regarded as one of best block plane designs you can find and now you can find it here.

This is 7 inches long and 2 inches wide, with a low 12-degree bed angle. The high carbon tool blade sits at 25 degrees, and it is 1⅝ inches wide and ⅛ of an inch thick. While the blades are sharp, you’ll be better off if you sharpen the blades further before you use this block plane. This also features a knuckle style lever cap with its nice chrome plating.

WoodRiver Low Angle Block Plane with Adjustable Mouth

Based On A Classic Design
Knuckle Style Lever Cap
12 degree Bed Angle
High Carbon Tool Blade, 25 degree Blade Angle 1-5/8"W x 0.125"T - 2"W x 7"L
WoodRiver is proudly made by Woodcraft, America's leading supplier of saws, planes, power tools, hand tools, wood stain and paint, routers, sanding, wood, kits, dust collection and more. Our award winning family of brands includes WoodRiver, Highpoint, Woodcraft and Woodcraft Magazine as well as the greatest selection of woodworking books, videos, and plans.

While it looks much like the low angle block plane your granddaddy used, changes to the base casting improve the proven weak points of the original design.

You can also use the rear adjustment knob to easily make crisp blade adjustments, because of the upgrades to the blade adjustment mechanisms. You’ll find that you can smoothly operate the adjustable mouth, and you can fine tune the mouth to work even for super-thin shavings.

Conclusion

After doing this woodriver planes review, We can clearly say that the Bedrocks design is terrific, and you find that here with all the WoodRiver planes. But you’ll also notice that WoodRiver put in various improvements to make sure you get a more comfortable tool to use, while you enjoy the great results. The durability of these WoodRiver planes is also not in doubt. Try any of these planes, and you’re in for a treat.