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This article is from the Woodworking FAQ
Collection 1, by multiple authors.
57 Moulding vs. Universal Planes
Many people are interested in the #55 because ideally they can
produce many moulding profiles. Through a combination of
different shaped cutters, using multiple passes, these planes can
indeed produce a wide range of profiles. They also do plough,
filletster, and match work. Owning one (rather expensive) plane
saves one the trouble and cost of assembling the whole range of
wooden planes it replaces.
However, there is a downside. These planes have no mouth--well
actually they have an infinitely wide one. Thus, the tearout
reduction provided by the mouth on a dedicated moulding plane is
lost. This may not be as disastrous as it seems, since in
general, one tries to pick the clearest, straightest grained
stock available when sticking mouldings. Still, it is an issue.
These planes are also temperamental. "Jack of all trades, master
of none," applies here as much as above. Unlike a dedicated
moulding plane which has all the registers and stops built into
its stock and set forever, these must be set each time a
universal plane is used. This can cause inconsistent results.
That said, I have read articles where people who do restoration
work swear by them. For folks likely to encounter such a wide
range of profiles, owning one plane, as opposed to 48 or so does
have a distinct advantage. That said (again!), it is important
to note that these tools were produced at a time when the
repertoire of profiles had become impoverished. They are not
universally useful for work in all periods. Dunbar points out
that even the proportions of simple profiles, such as quirked
beads changed over time.
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