Thanks for all the comments guys I really appreciate it and it's giving me confidence to carry on and make some more.
Karl Holtey is one of if not the finest bespoke plane makers today and was one of the makers that inspired me to make my own.
While my planes may look similar to one of his stood side by the side the difference would be night and day.
While he says his planes are "hand made" he uses a lot of modern machinery to create his planes and while certainly not mass produced I believe he makes them in batches using modern machining techniques.
Some people would argue that the charm of a bespoke hand crafted tool lies in the traditional methods used while making it, Bill Carter for instance makes all of his planes in a shed in his garden only using hand tools and a small selection of bench top power tools (pillar drill, grinders, etc)
He purposely ages his planes to make them look traditional and they have a beautiful charm about them because they have blemishes.
At the other end of the scale Holtey strives for precision and his planes are as near to perfection as you could possibly get and it's only really achievable with modern machinery and techniques.
Both makers are at the pinnacle of their careers and both are well past retirement age, each makers planes are beautiful in there own way.
Holtey also makes every single part of his planes in house while on some of Caters earlier planes he commissioned Holtey to make his lever caps, though only for 4 or 5 planes I believe before carter went back to using the more traditional bridge and wedge design.
I'd say my planes are more in line with carters but I try to strive for perfection like Holtey with the tools I have available, the majority being hand.
I would still class myself as a total amateur to metal work though. Like Holtey I try to make my next plane better than the last and am improving every time.
For a comparison these are some of Holtey' mitre planes.
Much more contemporary in design and made to an impeccably high standard
And one of Carters early "cupid bow" mitre planes. I believe Carter was one of the first current makers to add cupid bows to his dovetails.
Carter also reclaims the blades for his planes from older Sheffield planes.
While I have enjoyed every minute of making my planes and would love to make a career of it I think I have a long way to go and a lot more to learn yet.
On another note the next project has started.
I'm very lucky and been given a small amount of Rosewood so I've made a start on the marking gauge.
Working on the main body on the engineering lathe.
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