Abraham Hyatt
Modern ivory plow plane by Dominic Micalizzi. Following Micalizzi's death in 1999, his family and CRAFTS of New Jersey used proceeds from the sale of this plane to create a scholarship program.Luthier’s planes, tiny planes used to make violins and other stringed instruments, get little attention from wooden plane researchers. One reason is that since the late 19th century, these planes, also sometimes called thumb planes or finger planes, have been made of metal. But luthiers making their own wooden planes is a long, centuries-old tradition. Some are used for joinery. Many are used to make minute adjustments to the body of the instrument to change how the wood resonates. These are planes that make wood sing.
Due to their specialized nature, it’s a tool very few woodworkers will ever use. If you want to see what these tiny planes can create, check out luthier David Finck’s work.(He’s also the author of Making and Mastering Wood Planes.) I highly recommend his Instagram. The reason I’m posting about these planes this month is pretty much just to show this video of Ben Crowe, from Crimson Custom Guitars, making a gorgeous boxwood thumb plane.
Are they called thumb planes? Finger planes? Violinmaker planes? R. A. Salaman, in his Dictionary of Woodworking Tools, makes this distinction: thumb plane and finger plane are general terms used for any type of plane 1-5 inches long, often made of wood. A violin plane is a luthier’s plane up to 2.5 inches long, typically made of metal. Personally, I put finger planes in the latter category, but I’m not going to argue with Salaman.
Note: This story was updated on 10/26/2026 to improve clarity and fix grammatical errors and other typos.
Interested in more stories about unusual planes?
- Who Stole This Solid Ivory Plow Plane?
- 'A man of rare ability and taste': A Legendary Gunsmith's Personal Gunstocker Plane
- Glass Has to be the Worst Material to Make a Plane From
- Dyed With English Dragon's Blood
- The Tiniest Planes You'll Never Use
The story about John Moody’s claim that Egyptians may have used planes was originally published in this newsletter. It has since been moved to its own post: Blame This Famous Book for the Myth That Ancient Egyptians Used Planes.