GreatNeck C4 Bench Hand Plane (9 Inch), 2 Inch Cutter, Adjustable to Control the Blade, Cast Iron Body, Quality Plastic Ergonomic Handles

This plane is a quality product--especially for the price. Like other reviews have stated, you have to understand what to expect out of the plane fresh out of the box. When I took it out of the box it is immediately obvious that the machining is a bit rough--60 or so grit I am guessing. However, even though it was rough things looked relatively flat and was what I expected from the factory.I immediately began prepping the plane to bring it up to higher standards before making use of it in my wood working projects.The first thing I did was I flattened the sole and the sides. Using a 1x1ft granite tile I bought from Home Depot for $5 as a flat surface, I clamped sand paper to it in order to sand the sole and the sides dead flat. I started with 150 grit and for the last hour of sanding used 120 grit. I honestly would recommend going straight to 100 or 120. I have uploaded pictures of the bottom of the plane showing the sanding progress. One photo is after about 1 hour of sanding at 150 grit. You can see the bottom was cupped in the middle and to one side while the rest was hitting the sand paper. The next photo is of the plane all done with sanding and dead flat. It took about 5 hours of sanding in order to get the sole and both sides perfectly flat with no dimples in the surface. This is a bit overkill as you can have a minor amount of cupping without it really affecting your work--but after investing 3.5 hours of sanding I figured why not go all the way?After sanding (5 hours total) I was able to check for square with my Combination square and the results looked great and are included as an image in this review.Last but not least, like any plane iron, its got to be honed. I honed it using grades of sandpaper and eventually making it to my japanese water stones rated at 1000/6000 grit. The blade takes a good edge and seems to keep it as well.Paul Sellers, a well known master woodworker, has a youtube video that shows the process of restoring a plane which can be applied to any new plane as well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYyV6IUpsYkAfter bringing the plane up to spec, you will need to set the plane based on what you would like to do with the plane. Personally I am using this plane as a shooting board plane. So I have mine set very shallow and the sharp blade is an absolute must. This plane performs wonderfully as a shooting plane. Paul sellers has great videos explaining how to set planes as well.The sole is about 2.5x9 inches. The sides, at their highest, are about 1.5 inches.Pros:*Awesome value.*Good machining when it comes to being square.*Works well as a shooting planeCons:*A TON of work bring it up to spec (-1/2 star)Additional Considerations:Be aware of safety while sanding. You do not want to breath metal dust.Overall: 4.5/5 stars (>=.5 rounds up, <.5 rounds down) => 5 starsIf you have any further questions regarding the product in my review please leave a comment below and I will get back to you as soon as possible.

I was just looking for a cheap plane to use as a scrub plane. After a few minutes of trying to set it up I put it back into the box to return it. It's evident there is virtually no quality control on this product. But good thing I gave it another try. I had to grind down the edges of the lateral adjustment knob so it would fit through the blade and allow the blade to seat correctly. The frog was so far back and misaligned it was also obstructing the blade from seating. I think the depth adjustment prong is either partially broken off on mine or the design just sucks because I can't adjust the blade significantly forward with ease.. Well, that's it for the negatives. I was able to get the blade razor sharp, and after finding the right blade depth, this thing ended up being incredibly useful. For $30 bucks with shipping, its the best value hand plane I've tried by far. The blade retained its edge after a heavy amount of use, and for what I'm using it for, it's not imperative that the sole be perfectly flat. I won't try to use it as a smoothing plane, but as a sacrificial all-around scrubbing work-horse it's a great deal.

This is a fantastic plane for this price. Anyone buying this plane should read G. Conner’s review and following his instructions for fettling this plane. I would also recommend watching Paul Sellers videos on restoring hand planes and sharpening plane irons. No plane, even high end ones, will work optimally without proper setup and sharpening. My plane came with a reasonably flat sole, that less five minutes on my flat granite surface with some 400 grit paper made perfect. The frog needed a little more work, but another five minutes with a file and sandpaper also fixed. I’ve noticed that some people think the tote is plastic, and I can understand thinking that. The finish is a heavy paint makes it look plastic, but I took the tote off and scraped some of the finish off the bottom, and found that it is indeed wood. What kind of wood? Heaven knows, but it seems adequate to the task. I have a number of older high quality planes, but I find I reach for this one quite often in my luthiery work.