Bench&Brace

Record

Record No. 073 Shoulder Plane

A big, heavy shoulder plane for trimming tenon cheeks and shoulders. Widely considered the best production shoulder plane of its era, and still expensive because users rather than collectors want it.

  • 1931–present
  • Rabbet & Shoulder Plane
  • medium confidence
Specifications
ModelNo. 073
Production1931–present
Sole length8-1/4"
Cutter width1-1/4"
Bodycast iron, machined sides
Notable featureiron bedded bevel up at a low angle, full width of the sole

How to identify it

  • Substantial rectangular body with sides machined square to the sole and an iron running the full width.
  • Wider and heavier than the common 042 and 041 sizes.
  • Marked RECORD.
Photograph needed: Record No. 073 Shoulder Plane - overall view, plus a close-up of the toe and bed markings
No image is published here until its rights are cleared. Sourcing policy.

Buying and using

The critical checks are that the sides are genuinely square to the sole and the sole is flat. Everything else is cosmetic. A 073 that has been dropped and is out of square cannot do the one job it exists for.

Other makers' answer to the same problem

These share a design lineage rather than a size. Each is its own tool with its own dimensions, and no parts interchange.

What it is worth

  • user / incomplete $15–$40
  • complete, honest wear $45–$110
  • excellent, boxed $120–$260

Estimated GBP range as of 2026-Q1, from a sample of about 20 sales. manually filtered UK sold listings; sterling, and UK prices run below US ones Confidence: low.

These are researched estimates for a private sale in average light, not an appraisal. Condition, completeness and type move a price further than any of these bands do.

Sources

Others in this family