Clifton No.3 Bench Plane Thomas Flinn

Clifton No.3 Bench Plane Thomas Flinn

The Clifton No.3 Bench Plane is a smoothing plane made by Thomas Flinn & Co, a British company with over a century of craft tradition to back it up. A tool built for work where control and precision matter most — ready to use straight from the box, no lapping or fettling required.

In lutherie, this smoother is the choice for precision work in smaller formats: smoothing tops, backs and sides before assembly, refining short surfaces where a longer plane won't sit properly or loses contact with the workpiece. Its adjustable mouth — without removing the frog — lets you go from a generous cut to paper-thin shavings in seconds, adapting to the wood and the moment without interrupting the work.

The frog follows the BEDROCK full-face seating design, the same principle that made the classic Stanley planes a benchmark: no gaps, no flex, the cutting iron resting on a fully machined surface that delivers a stability you feel in every stroke. That rigidity, paired with the cryogenically treated O1 steel cutting iron forged in Sheffield — a city with centuries of history in steel and toolmaking — is what separates a surface that still needs sanding from one that comes off the plane ready to finish.

The walnut knob and tote are shaped and sealed by hand. Adjuster wheel and screws in polished brass. The Y-lever, solid brass casting. Details that earn their keep over years of daily use.

Technical Specifications

• Weight: 1.96 kg
• Length: 242 mm
• Body width: approx. 57 mm
• Cutter width: 44 mm (1¾")
• Cutter thickness: 3 mm
• Blade bedding angle: 45°
• Blade material: Cryogenically treated O1 steel
• Blade hardness: 60-62 Rockwell C