If you haven't used a plane before, this is a good one to start with. It takes a bit of practice to adjust it properly, but it's easy to tell when you get it right.

Good buy (Rating: 4.00)
Review : Stanley has been making planes for a long time. They do know what they are doing. I have a few of these around for general purpose work . I also have some Lie Nielsons and I love them but I keep them safe and out of reach of others'. I don't care who uses the Stanleys. I know if they get ruined , I'm not out much. With a little tuning a stanley will do a respectable job. Lap the sole and the iron ,put a good bevel on it and it will cut aggressively or produce a fine shaving. The adjustable throat is a must for avoiding tearout. I like the low angle version of this plane a little better. It is easier to control .It also makes a finer cut. It won't cut as deep however. To get a better plane you will have to spend at least twice as much so this is not a bad deal.

Solid tool with a few rough edges (Rating: 4.00)
Review : This is a solidly built block plane that will give you years of service once you spend a little time and tune it up right. Nearly every plane made requires some fine adjustment out of the box so that should not be considered a negative when purchasing this item.

The cap iron may need a little lapping at the front bottom to fit smoothly against the plane iron. The blade comes with a serviceable factory edge but I honed mine nonetheless. Check the blade for flatness and lap the back if necessary. The bottom of the plane should be checked for flat and the sides for square before you commit to using this on your finer projects.

Again, most planes need this kind of tuneup as they come out of the box. The only fault I have with this plane is that the rear adjustment screw has a bit too much free play (a sixteenth of an inch) between the adjustment screw collar and the blade adjustment. I fixed that by disassembling the mechanism and fitting a brass shim around it.