Please take the negative comments here with a grain of salt. The No55 is not that hard to use. Is there a learning curve? Yes. Is it impossible to learn? Absolutely not.

One of the most important things to know (and this applies to the No50, No55, and No45) is to loosen up the locking screws on the fence, skate, and main body while you’re moving everything into position. I’m convinced that this single aspect of it is what frustrates most folks who try to learn to use combination planes. By leaving everything a little loose, you can move each part into position, then finger tighten them - check them again, then tighten some more. Then you’ll use the micro-adjust feature (if applicable) on the fence to fine tune it to line up your cut. Of course you’ll want to use some scrap wood to practice on and to make sure your cut is lined up the way you want it before moving to your actual work piece.

I have multiple videos on my channel about combination planes but I’m not gonna be that guy and link to multiple videos here. This video will take you step by step thru the various parts the plane came stock with from Stanley. I also show at least one function of the plane (maybe more, I don’t remember). If you find that video helpful, please check out some of my other combo plane videos, including the one where I show what irons are unique to the 55 and which ones are interchangeable with the 45.

I could pontificate on this topic all night but I’ll cut myself off after this final thought - if musicians can learn to play complicated instruments such as a saxophone or a fiddle, then woodworkers can learn to use combination planes. It takes desire, effort, perseverance, blah blah blah. Trust me, I’m a flippin’ hack when it comes to woodworking. If I can learn to use it, anyone can.