Bench&Brace

Cross-reference

What every maker called the same plane

Sole length is the one thing every maker agreed on. Find the size, and read across to whatever each of them numbered it.

  • 4 brands
  • 18 sizes
  • 74 models

A nine-inch smoother is a nine-inch smoother whether it says Stanley No. 4, Millers Falls No. 9, Sargent 409 or Record 04 on it, and the four will produce indistinguishable shavings. What differs is the price, and the difference is driven by collector demand rather than by the tool. So the practical use of this page is arbitrage: find your size, then buy whichever maker is cheapest in good condition.

Makers

3-1/2" 2 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Stanley No. 100 1" 1876–1962
Stanley No. 101 1" 1877–1962

4" 2 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Record No. 077 1" 1931–present
Stanley No. 90 1" 1898–1970

5-1/2" 4 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Stanley No. 1 1-1/4" 1867–1943
Stanley No. 92 3/4" 1898–1970
Stanley No. 102 1-3/8" 1877–1962
Stanley No. 103 1-3/8" 1877–1962

6" 5 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Stanley No. 9-1/2 1-5/8" 1873–2000
Stanley No. 18 1-5/8" 1888–1950
Stanley No. 60-1/2 1-3/8" 1898–2000
Stanley No. 93 1" 1898–1970
Stanley No. 95 1" 1911–1970

7" 9 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Millers Falls No. 7 1-5/8" 1929–1975
Sargent No. 407 1-5/8" 1887–1964
Stanley No. 2 1-5/8" 1869–1961
Stanley No. 15 1-5/8" 1876–1955
Stanley No. 19 1-5/8" 1888–1950
Stanley No. 65 1-5/8" 1898–1969
Stanley No. 94 1-1/4" 1898–1960
Stanley No. 220 1-5/8" 1898–1984
Stanley No. 602 1-5/8" 1898–1943

7-1/2" 1 model

MakerCalledIronMade
Stanley No. 110 1-5/8" 1874–1990

8" 6 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Millers Falls No. 8 1-3/4" 1929–1975
Record No. 03 1-3/4" 1931–present
Sargent No. 408 1-3/4" 1887–1964
Stanley No. 3 1-3/4" 1869–1984
Stanley No. 140 1-3/4" 1896–1958
Stanley No. 603 1-3/4" 1898–1943

8-1/4" 1 model

MakerCalledIronMade
Record No. 073 1-1/4" 1931–present

8-1/2" 2 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Record No. 778 1-1/2" 1931–present
Stanley No. 78 1-1/2" 1885–1980

9" 6 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Millers Falls No. 9 2" 1929–1975
Record No. 04 2" 1931–present
Sargent No. 409 2" 1887–1964
Stanley No. 4 2" 1869–1984
Stanley No. 112 3" 1885–1943
Stanley No. 604 2" 1898–1943

9-1/2" 1 model

MakerCalledIronMade
Stanley No. 40 1-1/4" 1896–1962

10" 7 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Millers Falls No. 10 2-3/8" 1929–1975
Record No. 04-1/2 2-3/8" 1931–present
Sargent No. 410 2-3/8" 1887–1964
Stanley No. 4-1/2 2-3/8" 1884–1967
Stanley No. 9 2" 1870–1943
Stanley No. 151 2-1/8" 1877–1980
Stanley No. 604-1/2 2-3/8" 1898–1943

11-1/2" 2 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Stanley No. 5-1/4 1-3/4" 1921–1975
Stanley No. 605-1/4 1-3/4" 1921–1943

14" 6 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Millers Falls No. 14 2" 1929–1975
Record No. 05 2" 1931–present
Sargent No. 414 2" 1887–1964
Stanley No. 5 2" 1869–1984
Stanley No. 62 2" 1905–1942
Stanley No. 605 2" 1898–1943

15" 5 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Millers Falls No. 15 2-1/4" 1929–1975
Record No. 05-1/2 2-3/8" 1931–present
Sargent No. 415 2-1/4" 1887–1964
Stanley No. 5-1/2 2-1/4" 1898–1970
Stanley No. 605-1/2 2-1/4" 1898–1943

18" 5 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Millers Falls No. 18 2-3/8" 1929–1975
Record No. 06 2-3/8" 1931–present
Sargent No. 418 2-3/8" 1887–1964
Stanley No. 6 2-3/8" 1869–1975
Stanley No. 606 2-3/8" 1898–1943

22" 5 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Millers Falls No. 22 2-3/8" 1929–1975
Record No. 07 2-3/8" 1931–present
Sargent No. 422 2-3/8" 1887–1964
Stanley No. 7 2-3/8" 1869–1984
Stanley No. 607 2-3/8" 1898–1943

24" 5 models

MakerCalledIronMade
Millers Falls No. 24 2-5/8" 1929–1975
Record No. 08 2-5/8" 1931–present
Sargent No. 424 2-5/8" 1887–1964
Stanley No. 8 2-5/8" 1869–1960
Stanley No. 608 2-5/8" 1898–1943

How each maker numbered its planes

Every maker except Stanley encoded the sole length in the number, which is why this page is organised the way it is rather than around Stanley's list.

Millers Falls

Bench plane model numbers are the sole length in inches. A Millers Falls No. 9 is a 9-inch smoother, a No. 14 is a 14-inch jack, a No. 22 is a 22-inch jointer. This is far more sensible than Stanley's numbering and it means you can identify the size of any Millers Falls bench plane with a tape measure and no reference book.

Confidence: medium. Measure the sole. The rule is self-checking, which is the best kind.

Record

Record mirrors Stanley's numbering with a leading zero. A Record 04 is the equivalent of a Stanley No. 4, an 05 of a No. 5, an 07 of a No. 7. Half sizes follow: 04-1/2, 05-1/2. The specialty planes mostly keep the same relationship - the 778 answers Stanley's 78, the 071 the 71 router, the 405 the 45 combination plane.

Confidence: high. Self-evident once you have the plane in hand and know the Stanley range.

Sargent

Bench plane numbers are 4 followed by the sole length in inches; the premium Auto-Set line uses 7 followed by the same length. A Sargent 409 is a 9-inch smoother, a 414 a 14-inch jack, a 422 a 22-inch jointer. The Auto-Set equivalents are the 709, 714 and 722. Once you know this, the Stanley equivalent falls out of a tape measure rather than a cross-reference table.

Confidence: medium. Measure the sole and confirm it matches the last two digits before relying on this for a purchase.

Stanley

Stanley's numbering encodes nothing. The No. 4 is nine inches, the No. 5 is fourteen, the No. 8 is twenty-four. The sequence is roughly ascending by size and that is the most that can be said for it. Everyone learns it by rote, which is exactly why the other makers' schemes feel like such a relief once you notice them.

What equivalence does and does not mean

  • Same size and same job. It does not mean parts interchange - irons, frogs and lever caps are not swappable between makers.
  • Quality is comparable within a period, not across one. A 1910s Sargent beats a 1960s Stanley; a 1910s Stanley beats a 1960s anything.
  • Record is the exception to the post-war decline, which is why it is the value buy for a user rather than a collector.
  • A size with one maker listed means the others either never offered it or are not catalogued here yet.