Premium Number 14
Millers Falls No. 14/14C Jack Plane
|
Manufactured: |
1929 to 1977 Corrugated(1971) |
| Sole: | Smooth and Corrugated |
| Sole Length: | 14" |
| Sole Width: | 2-3/8" |
| Iron Width: | 2” |
| Weight: | 4.6 lbs |
| Bedding Angle: | 45 Degrees |
| Type: | Bailey Design |
| Cross Reference: | Stanley No. 5 / 5C |
| Sargent No. 414 / 414C | |
| Record No. 05 / 05C |
The No. 14 premium jack bench plane was produced for over forty-eight years across six different types.
Type 1 (1929 to 1935)
There were two distinct changes what can be found while the No. 14 type 1 planes were in production. The first is the change to the frog face around the lever cap screw. Extra metal was added around the screw to possibly eliminate stress cracks to the thin wall. Based on looking at the Mohawk-Shelburne and the rebrands, the best guess is that this change happened around 1931. The second change was the stamping of the patent number to the face of the lever cap. The patent was approved on September 8, 1931. Sometime shortly after that date, the lever caps were stamped with the patent number above the Millers Falls name.
This type 1 does not have the patent number on the lever cap. Later type 1 planes will the the patent stamp.
Type 1 with the cocobolo knob/tote and the name and number cast in the bed
Type 2 (1936 to 1941)
The changes to the type 2 planes allowed Millers Falls to consolidate their production so that the same body and frog castings could be used on the premium line, secondary Mohawk- Shelburne line and the Craftsman/Fulton rebrand line.
Casting gates will be seen for the first time during the type 2 years. There is no data to know when these were incorporated on the toe and heel, but there seems to be an even split of planes with and without.
On this type, the name and number are stamped on the cheek. The cocobolo knob and tote are secured with brass waist nuts and double threaded rods.
Type 2 No. 14 will have a brass depth adjusting nut.
The type 2 release was from 1936 through 1941. Sometime during the type 2 years, Millers Falls either added or left the casting gate on the toe and heel of the bed. Going forward, this will be an easy way to identify a Millers Falls bench plane over 10 inches. This picture shows a type 2 with the casting gate in front of a type 2 without the casting gate.
Type 3 (1942 to 1948)
Look for stained hardwood secured with single bolt. Examples have been found with the hardware blued. If they are not blued, the hardware will be nickel plated.
For reasons unknown, the 2” frog and lever cap changed casting numbers during the type 3 production years. Early type 3 planes will have a frog with a 317 casting number and a lever cap with a 334A casting number. Later type 3 production has a 496A frog and a 334 lever cap. The new 334 lever cap eliminated the phrase “PAT. APLD. FOR” and most of these caps have the red paint on the face. The type 3 496A frog will probably have a brass depth adjusting nut.
During the type 3 years, the casing numbers on both the lever cap and frog changed on the No. 14.
The type 3 is easy to identify with the "Since 1868" triangle trademark on the iron and the stained hardwood knob and tote.
Type 2/2 (1949 to 1952)
Millers Falls returned to using brass and rosewood wood at the end of the forties. There are three features on the No. 14 type 2 second release that clearly distinguishes it from the initial type 2; the trademark on the iron will be stamped “SOLID TOOL STEEL”, the casting number on the frog will be 496A, and the lever cap will have a casting number 334 without the “PAT APLD. FOR”. All the other premium type 2 second release plane with the exception of the No. 9 will only have the new “SOLID TOOL STEEL” iron.
The type 2/2 has a return to the rosewood knob and tote and the brass waist nuts with double threaded rods.
Millers Falls changed the trademark on all irons in 1949. For the first time every plane with the Millers Falls name will have the "Solid Tool Steel" trademark iron.
The type 1, 2, and 3 only had the template number under the tote on the No. 14 bed. Starting with the type 2 second release, the casting number and the letter "S" are added to the bed. This sequence will carry over to the type 4 bodies.
Type 4 (1953 to 1965)
It is easy to identify a type 4 plane with black frog, full brass depth adjusting nut and the change in the knob/tote finish. The wood species changed from a rosewood to a wood called “Goncalo Alves” which is a strong, durable, and beautiful tropical wood found in central and south America.
The type 4 lever cap will have a cam lever spring with a sharper bend in the metal and a new recess in the cast metal below the spring. A second change to the lever cap occurred at the end of the type 4 period. The lower section of the type 3 lever cap with the phrase “PAT. APLD. FOR” and a casting number of 334A can be found on a small number of caps with a type 4 upper section.
The casting number on the frog changed from 496A to 496 in the 1958 time frame based on samples that have been found. It is not clear why this change was made to only the 2 inch frog.
The letters “S” is found on many of the bodies along with the casting and template numbers.
For the first time, the knob and tote are a Goncalo wood secured with brass waist nuts.
The depth adjusting nut was changed on the type 4 to a full brass version.
The horn on the type 4 No. 14 is a little shorted then the horn on the smoothing planes.
Type 5 (1966 to 1977)
By the 1966 timeline, the need for a top quality woodworking hand plane is apparent with the changes in the type 5 No. 14 plane. The need for Millers Falls to cut costs would result in closing the Erving plants and shutting down the foundry in Greenfield with all castings outsourced. The remaining bench planes were standardized so that only one size knob and tote would fit any remaining plane. At the start of the type 5, a “B” was added to the cheek, but the “B” was not added to the catalog listing. The smooth sole would have a cheek stamp 14B and the corrugated version would have a cheek stamp 14CB. In 1968 the company updated its catalog and renamed any tools that ended in a letter. As a result, the corrugated 14C was renamed 14-01. The stamp on the cheek would now be 14-01-B. The corrugated version would end in 1971. In 1978, the Greenfield facility closed and operations were moved down the street to Deerfield. The 1979 Deerfield catalog no longer lists the No. 14.
This type 5 was in a box with a November 1966 date. The iron has the shorter length, but it also has an ink stamp for the trademark.
One feature this plane has which is not consistent with the type 5 version is the embossed "MADE IN U.S.A.".
The horn on the type 5 is back to the original size
The top picture shows the original corrugated model number on the cheek up to 1968. The bottom picture shows the same plane with the new model number after the 1968 catalog change.
Type 5 Lowside
Sometime in the 70’s, Millers Falls put out a No. 14 with lower cheeks. Commonly referred to as the “Lowside”, the cheeks are a noticeable 3/8” shorter than the normal sided cheek. In addition to the lower cheeks, the toe tote pin is cast in the bed and a unique casing number is stamped on the bed. It is not clear when the “Lowside” was introduced and for how long.
You can see how low the cheeks are on this LowsIde.
14" Lowside bench plane
This Lowside plane has the unique number "5678" and notice the MADE IN USA is cast on the bed. At the time these planes were made, MADE IN USA was stamped on the bed of the type 5 planes