Stanley Scraper

Stanley knives are very popular little tools, but there is only so much that you can do with them. For example, if you have a flat surface that has some dirt and grit on it that you want to clean off, a Stanley knife is useless unless you use the point of the blade. This scratches things easily, and is very inefficient for removing muck. Fortunately though, Stanley have come out with a scraper which is based on similar technology, but the blade is facing completely out of the scraper, and by pushing it from the back and angling the scraper correctly you can remove a lot more grit in less time.

The blades that are used in a Stanley Scraper are usually rectangular, to ensure that the cutting area is maximized. They can be replaced very easily (just by sliding them in on the right side) and as a result you can now scrape things clean very quickly. Stanley Scrapers are good for cleaning dirt off very solid items. This includes steel, hard plastic and even timber, but you need to be very careful of how you do it. The blades are usually that sharp that if you scrape too hard you will take off the coating or damage the product you are scraping in the first place.

You can use one of these scrapers to cut off hair from your arm, so you can imagine how easily it takes paint off, as well as chips out of timber and scratches plastic. Of course, this comes down to how you use it, but a Stanley Scraper used properly will be much more effective than a Stanley knife. At the end of the day they are simply designed for difference purposes. There are a number of these scrapers on the market, and they all look very similar. Sometimes you can get away with buying something that is a bit cheaper because you end up paying for the brand name itself, but to be safe I always stick to the Stanley Piece products.

They are guaranteed to be good, and for the extra few dollars it’s really worth it. Stanley also makes various types of planes, which are designed to take off the surface of timber. These use blades which are considerably stronger, as they have to take off bits of timber which is quite hard. By moving the plane back and forth and having the blade set down enough, it will remove the surface layer of what you are rubbing it on (assuming that the product you are using it on is softer than the blades!) Using them on metal doesn’t work very well, unless you are trying to clean it up.

Planes are primarily designed for cleaning back timber, or shaping it. A Stanley Scraper can be used for taking off paint, but it’s no good for doing any serious wood work. If you haven’t seen a Stanley Scraper before, simply type it into Google and you will see immediately what I am referring to. A lot of people don’t know what these are, but they are very handy in the workplace and at home. These and a Folding Utility Knife are great to have lying around!