Gentle Galoots:

A visit to a flea market just yielded an unusual #5-sized metallic plane.  
This baby's frog is part of the base casting. The mouth is
not adjustable.  Other than that, it is much like a Bailey plane. It even 
has the Traut-style lateral lever.

The only identifying mark I can find is on the blade itself.
There is a diamond (Rhombus?) outline saying:

        METAL PRODUCTS CO. INC
              PARPLUS
            TRADE MARK
        WEST HAVEN CONNECTICUT

The second "P" in PARPLUS is a little doubtful,
but I think it makes sense as meaning "above par"

Can anyone shed any light on when this was made? Methinks it had to be after 
the Traut patent on the lateral lever expired.

The seller could not tell  me anything about who used this plane, but 
certainly one or more workmen used it vigorously. The iron is sharp, but 
worn down to within one-half inch of the slot.  The now-cracked hardwood 
tote has an amazing amount of wear. The high knob is also quite worn in a 
manner suggesting that it lived in a very active tool box. Oh, and it has a 
LOT of white paint smeared on it!

The design looks pretty good - the blade has a good support down near the 
business end. And somebody loved it enough to wear the heck out of it.  So, 
I'm looking forward to this proving to be a good user.

As a price point, $8 with above-mentioned wear & tear, plus a small chip out 
of the right cheek.  Not really a neener, I'd say.

John R. Ruth
Metuchen, NJ
Who also ripped himself off of $2 by buying two bitstock tools which had 
been ruined by improper sharpening. Still wondering why I didn't notice this 
upon initial examination.
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