Bench&Brace

Stanley

Stanley No. 90 Bullnose Rabbet Plane

A short, heavy bullnose rabbet plane whose nose piece unscrews, letting it work right up to the end of a stopped rabbet or, with the nose off, flush into a corner.

  • 1898–1970
  • Rabbet & Shoulder Plane
  • medium confidence
Specifications
ModelNo. 90
Production1898–1970
Sole length4"
Cutter width1"
Bodycast iron or gunmetal, nickel plated on some runs
Notable featureremovable nose for chisel-plane use

How to identify it

  • Very short body with the mouth close to the front, and a detachable nose held by a single screw.
  • Sides machined square to the sole - it is meant to register against a shoulder.
  • 1 inch iron, full width of the body.
Photograph needed: Stanley No. 90 Bullnose Rabbet 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

Check that the sides really are square to the sole and that the sole is flat. A bullnose that is out of square is worse than useless for the joinery it is meant to fix.

The same size from other makers

These do the same job at the same size. Parts do not interchange between makers, but the shaving does not know the difference - and where one maker commands a collector premium, another usually does not.

MakerCalledMade
RecordNo. 0771931–present

Every size, every maker

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, missing nose $40–$80
  • complete, honest wear $90–$180
  • excellent, pre-war $190–$380

Estimated USD range as of 2026-Q1, from a sample of about 45 sales. manually filtered sold listings Confidence: medium.

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