Comparing Clifton bench planes to ordinary planes is akin to comparing a Mercedes to a Metro: they both get you there, but along the way you're going to experience radical differences in solidity, control, comfort and performance. You'll feel exactly that kind of difference the first time you put a Clifton plane to work. The weight of the casting, the quality of its finish, the rigidity of the iron and chipbreaker assembly and the precision with which they are controlled makes for extraordinary planing performance. Clifton's adoption of Stanley's Bed Rock design, together with real improvements in both the iron and the chipbreaker design, lets you adjust the planes' throat opening from wide open for heavy work to a gap of mere thousandths of an inch for the finest possible finishing, all with no loss of stability or control.

The seat for the frog is a solid surface milled flat and true all the way to a virtual knife-edge at the rear of the throat opening. The frog itself, precision machined to match the seat, can be loosened, adjusted and retightened without removing the lever cap & iron assembly. Easily as heavy as the iron itself, the Clifton 2-piece chipbreaker applies pressure over nearly the full length of the iron, with no tendency to spring it and allow vibration between iron and frog. Further, the hinged lower section pops off for sharpening, making resetting a snap when you're honed and ready to go back to work. Clifton irons and chipbreakers are sold separately for upgrading any Bailey-pattern plane.

As specified in the original Bed Rock design, Clifton's castings are considerably heavier than ordinary planes (1/4 to 1/2 lb. more than comparable models), and machining is carried out to a higher standard. Soles are flat & polished, and sides are square and likewise ground very fine. In a bow to Leonard Bailey's inspired design, Clifton has retained the lovely full curve of the side rails, just as Stanley did on their earliest Bed Rock planes. Top edges of the rails, and front & rear edges and bosses as well, have been gently rounded and buffed to a mirror gloss. Lever cap lever & screw are polished brass—accents as tasteful as they are beautiful. In another distinctive touch, handles & knobs are nicely finished Bubinga. We're proud to add these outstanding planes to our collection.

Clifton No. 4 Smooth Plane is 9-1/2" long, with a 2" wide iron. It weighs 4.3 lbs.