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#1 ·
Planes, Planes, Planes

After a long week at work, I decided it was time to start the process of restoring my bench planes. I have been collecting them for a while with the intent of getting a good set of operational hand planes. I am hoping I will get a good set of usable planes at a reasonable cost.



Currently, I have the following size planes set aside for restoration: #3, #4, #4 1/2, #605, #5 1/2, #6, #7 and #8. All of these are Stanley except for the #8 which is a Sargent VBM 428. The #4 1/2 and the #605 (bedrock) are in good working order. I have gotten Hock blades for these planes (4 1/2 and 605) and plan to save the original blades.

I also was successful this evening on ebay and purchased a Record T5 handplane. This is a plane that was used to teach woodworking in the UK. It has larger sides than a normal #5 and the sides are square for shooting. I will post some photos of it when it arrives. I am also actively looking for 5 1/4, 10, 10 1/4, and 10 1/2 planes.

I plan to take photos documenting the process I follow for each plane. As a starting point, I am following the general instructions provided Reclaiming Flea-Market Planes by Ernie Conover. I also have a number of videos and other informations sources relative to sharpening and using planes. I will compile these and post these as well.

I've also noted that Matt has a series of Podcasts on hand planes running. I'm a little behind and will have to get caught up.

Also if you would like information on Stanley planes. I recommend The Superior Works: Patrick's Blood and Gore as the best reference for Stanley hand planes on the internet.

Time to close for tonight.
 
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#27 ·
Preparations for restoring a hand plane

I've had a couple of 12-14 hour workdays this week and have not had the opportunities for restoring any planes. I decided to take a little time this evening to discuss items that will be needed for the restoration process. The basis for this list comes from the Ernie Conover Video on Reclaiming flea market planes. Hopefully, he will update this video and release on DVD.

The list is as follows:

Lap Plate - used to lap the sole and sides of a plane
- Plastic Laminate - speeds the process
- Heavy Plate Glass - flat surface
- Contact Cement
- Laminate Roller

Lee Valley also sells a glass plate and plastic that adhears to the plate
Other alternatives include using sandpaper on a granate plate or on a flat surface such as a table saw wing or jointer bed

Grit for sole and sides
- Emery paper
- Silicon carbide abrasive 60 Grit (powder)

I ordered some Grit from lee valley and also found some locally at a lapidary supply house.
Also you could use 60 or 80 grit sandpaper.

Abrasives for cleaning metal parts
- Coarse, medium and fine abrasive blocks
- 120 Grit Emery Paper

General cleaning
- Scotch bright
- Alcohol (Denatured)

Finishing
- White Shellac
- Orange Shellac

Other
- Squeeze bottle for alcohol
- Paraffin

Sharpening
- Honing guide
- Angle gauge
- Water Stones
- Tormek

I am using a Lee Valley Honing Guide and Angle gauge, and Norton 1000, 4000, and 8000 grit waterstones. I have a 220 grit or so diamond stone that is used to flatten the water stones. I also think the new Pinnacle sharpening system being sold by woodcraft may be worth a look.

For setting the primary bevel angle on the plane blade I have a grinding jig from wolverine that integrates with my lathe tool sharpening system. The Tormek is on my "someday" list.

Please add to or correct this list as you see fit. As there are many ways to approch this problem. Thanks for reading and hopefully, I will get a plane restored and documented this weekend.
 
#28 ·
I bought the Pinnacle and it is nice. I tried it on diamond plate and it really took it down nice. I don't have waterstones so I was going to try it with scary sharp paper. I didn't purchase the Pinnacle paper holder but I think that MDF would work fine as a base with something at the ends to hold the paper and keep it from slipping.
 
#36 ·
Selecting Planes for Restoration

Again I am plagued with long work days. I'm on a dinner break with one more work meeting tonight. Given this, I thought I would continue the discussion from yesterday. I'm really longing for some shop time. There are a number of factors that you should consider before you decide to purchase an old plane and once you have purchased it if you should restore it.

Old hand planes can be found be found in a wide variety of places including garage sales, flea markets, antique stores, ebay, craigslist, etc. One of the things that greatly affects the plane's value (monitary and usefulness) is it's condition. Before you put any money towards an old plane you should consider the following:

  • Flatness of the sole
  • Presence of any cracked parts
  • completeness
  • Condition of the plane's mouth
  • Amount of blade that remains
  • Pitting from rust
  • Are the parts original to the plane
  • Condition of any handles

Before I buy I normally ask the price prior to inspecting the plane. Once I understand the price I carefully inspect the plane considering the factors above. I find that if you spend a lot of effort inspecting the plane before asking the price, the price may be higher.

I evaluate if it is better than a compariable plane I may already own. Also, if the plane is very low in cost, I consider the parts value of the plane. For example, does it have a good rosewood tote and nob? Those can be quite expensive to replace. What about the blade/chipbreaker? etc.

As Paul pointed out in my last post another factor you should consider is the value of the plane to collectors. I only recommend restoration of hand planes if you know that they are commonly available. Restoring a rare plane can greatly decrease it's value to a collectior. Always check the value of the plane using ebay and prices guides as a guide. If your unsure hold off until you can validate the value of the plane.

Well, I'm out of time for tonight. Time to talk to some people in Asia about learning management systems…
 
#43 ·
End of a long week

Today marks the end of a long week. So I think I will take it easy tonight. Most days have been in excess of 12 hours. But, I'm still hoping to get something productive done over the weekend. Next week I will be traveling to Houston, so there will be little opportunity for creativity.

Shortly after I arrived home, my daughter returned from the mailbox with my latest eBay purchase. Yes, it happens to be a handplane. Who could guess? I should try out the series capability and post some other items otherwise everyone will think I am only intersted in hand planes.

I thought I would post a few photos since it is a plane you do not see every day. I'm guessing Phil grew up with one of these in his hand. These planes were used in the United Kingdom as a teaching plane. They were designed with large square sides for shooting. It is my intent to use this as my shooting plane until I find a Stanley #9 or purchase a miter plane from Lie-Nielson. This plane appears to be in new condition although it is missing the side handle that normally comes with the plane. If anyone knows the source of one, please point me in the right direction.

I would like to Introduce the Record Technical Jack Plane T5.



On each side of the plane there is a hole machined for a handle.



This is it with the lever cap and blade removed.



Here is a view comparing it to a Bedrock 605.



Anyway let me know what you think or if you have some other suggestions for a shooting plane, let me know. I am planning to try the Stanley 5 1/2 for this once I get it restored. David Charlesworth uses one I belive.

Take care until next time.
 
#44 ·
Wayne - Thanks for the great post! Looks like a nice plane and I hope you find a replacement handle (or make one . . . )

Going on vacation next week and I am hoping find a plane or two to bring home. I downloaded you last entry to my PDA to use as a guide.
 
#49 ·
Plane Blades

This morning I got up, threw my tool hunting pack and my son in the car and headed out to see what would come our way. We made our way across town to the local Woodcraft store, stopping at a few yard sales along the way. We did not find much of interest other than a trashed yankee drill that happend to have all of its original drill bits in its storage area. A buck later and we were on our way.

At Woodcraft, I purchased a Hock blade and chip breaker for use the Record T5 hand plane described in my last post. This got me thinking about blades.

I view my blades and planes independently. I have a set of hock blades that I keep in the planes I am using. I retain and lable the original blade that comes with the plane and if I upgrade or change planes, I return the original blade to the plane. The Hock blade is then transferred to the new plane. For example, the Record T5 plane's blade has never been sharpened. When I am ready to upgrade to a new shooting plane, I can move the blade to another plane and reinstall the unused record blade.

I belive in using high quality blades. They hold an edge longer and they are one of the key components of the plane. I belive this justifys the cost. However, used plane blades are easy to find and to put into service and this approach can be used without having to make a significant investment in blades. If you sharpen the blades correctly and tune up the chip breaker. You should be able to get good results. There are many videos and books that describe how to do this. Many of the sources listed in my earlier posts in this series have this information if you need it.

After leaving Woodcraft, we stopped at a local antique store. No planes, but I did find a nice set of drill bits for use in a brace. I'm sure there are a few Galoots out there who would be interested.

Here are the pictures of the drill bits…





And a couple of my braces for grins



I hope everyone is having a good and productive evening. Take care.
 
#51 ·
Wondering if I should continue this thread

I'm sitting in a hotel room this evening on a week long business trip to Houston. I've been looking around on the web quite a bit and see lots of information on this topic available. Matt is doing a good job of covering planes in his podcast, etc.

I'm thinking of just showing the finished results of the restoration of the different bench planes in the project section and moving on to other topics. Any thoughts or feedback?

Anyway, have a good week, have fun and be productive.
 
#62 ·
Stanley Bailey #3 Type 10 before

This is a Stanley Bailey #3 Type 10 Bench Plane that I picked up a few weeks back at a local antique street sale. It was better than the one that I had set aside to restore. (I'll save the other one for Obi if he wants it) The purchase price for this plane was $20.

The first step in the restoration process is to determine the type of the plane and condition of the plane. To do this I looked up the plane using the stanley bench plane dating page. using information from the plane.

  • Blade is marked with a patent date of April 19 '92 - Approprate for the plane
  • Lateral Adustement is is marked Stanley
  • Body of Plane as 2 patent dates March 25 '02

This places the age of the plane to approximately 1907. Right at 100 years old.



Next to inspect the general condition of the plane.

  • The japanning appears to be fully intact
  • Both handles are cracked (The rear may be a replacement and had 2 modern washers used to keep it tight)
  • The mouth is in good condition
  • No cracks anywhere
  • Rust and surface grime everywhere
  • Oily Sawdust under frog
  • The blade has been sharpened with a slight camber. Plenty of blade remaining.

Below are more pictures

Side view



Note the oily wood shavings



Fully Apart



I'll post the after pictures once I get'er done.
 
#63 ·
I have a #3 that seems to be a type 10 or 11. Has ids of both. Was told Stanley finished out runs sometimes with parts on hand. Or could be a mixed part plane, someone else did. Not sure.
But am sure it's in great shape and well worth the time it will take to re-hab it.
So glad to see a knuckle dragger here…lol
Love your posts and will use the info for sure.
 
#66 ·
A couple of new candidates

There is a monthly antique sale here in town. I went down there with the family this morning to look around. I've got some pictures to share of what I got today and will add these at the end of the entry. I'm sharing primarily because David asked to see what I got.

I was looking for a #18 block plane, but the dealer who normally has a large selection of planes was not here today. So no #18 today. The number of dealers was a little less than normal today. I'm assuming this was because of the Easter holiday.

Also, I was on the hunt for a router plane. I saw a Stanley and a Miller-Falls, but neither was good enough for the asking price.

The Antique Fair is located underneath one of the local freeways. During the week it serves as a parking lot for California State employees. About half way through the antique fair, my daugher came up to me and told me that a Raccoon was hanging off of the freeway overpass. I walked over to where she indicated and sure enough a raccoon was there. He was about 30 feet up above the pavement and with 12 lanes of freeway behind him. The highway patrol, fire departement, animal control, and at least 2 of the local TV stations had arrived. The firemen (about 6 of them) were deployed below the Raccoon with a large blanket. There was a very large crowd below watching. Animal control went up onto the freeway and attempted to get a noose on him. He ran around the person and Jumped. Unfortunately, the firemen were not able to get over quickly enough and he hit very hard. The crowd was stunned and the fire department went over and covered him with the blanket. People were crying. It was very depressing.

After this, I slowly continued on my way. About 5 minutes later my daughter came back and told me that they had put the raccoon in a cage and he was now awake and looking at people. Hopefully things will work out for him. But things were looking up. I'll check the news tonight and see if there is an update.

Anyway, I found the following items today:



Box of files and small tools $8
Stanley 5c handplane $12
Old Screwdriver $12
Stanley 12 1/2 Scraper Plane $20
Sargent Scraper $20
xacto plane $6

I passed 6 jorgensen 48" or so bar clamps for $50 and they were gone when I came back. I have plenty of clamps, but you can always use more.

Here is a look at the files. Lots of handles and stuff. Most are Nicholson files. : ^ )



I plan to restore the 12 1/2. I need to replace the rosewood that goes on the sole of the plane. I will also need to get a blade for it. Probably will invest in a hock blade. The handle on it is also a replacement. I'm thinking about turning a rosewood handle for it. Should be a fun restoration.







I would not normally buy another #5, but got drawn into this 5c. Japanning is Ok. Both handles have damage. It has the wrong lever cap. Everything else is good. The main reason I bought it, is that it has a nice Bedrock lever cap. Figured for $15, I could not go wrong.







This is a Sargent #52 Scraper. It is a very nice, solid tool.





I'm going through a phase with these old style screwdrivers. Putting together as set of various sizes of these. They work well with the screws on the planes. May do some shopping on the UK Ebay site. Seem to be more common there. Probably should raid Phil's shop. : ^ )



This is a Xacto plane. I'm still deciding if I will keep it or give it to a neibour or hang on to it



Happy Easter!!!
 
#67 ·
A willing seller and a willing buyer make for a happy couple. Good stash. Hope you wern't on the farside of the parking lot and had to carry everything.
 
#73 ·
Stanley Bailey #3 Type 10 Clean-up

I've been working on cleaning up this plane in the evenings this week and thought I would post some photos and description of the process. To begin with I had inspected and dissassembled the plane you can see photos and description of this process in the my earlier post "Handplane Resortation: Stanley Bailey #3 Type 10 before". Now I have begun the process of cleaning the plane.

Before Photo



I started by cleaning up the blade, chipbreaker, lever cap, and Frog. I used a tooth brush, a rag and denatured alcohol to clean up the jappaning. I would estimate this plane has about 60% of it's jappaning remaining. Jappaning is a coating applied to the plane body after casting and before machining. If your concerned about the value of the plane, you should not repaint the plane. Leave the jappaning as it is.

To clean up the exposed metal parts, I'm using sanding blocks I obtained from my local big box store. I start with coarse grit and move to fine. It is important to note that I did not use abrasives on any part that is jappaned, chrome, brass or blued. The blued parts on this plane are the metal piece that goes behind the screw used to adjust the frog and also the back of the chip breaker. These were cleaned with alchohol. I will apply schellac to these parts to prevent rust.



Next, I lapped the sole of the plane. This time I am using a plate glass lapping plate and 90 grit silicon carbide lapping grit. I have some grit I obtained from Lee Valley. I also have some 60 grit that I obtained from a local lapidary store. I'm looking for a consistent scratch pattern across the sole and both sides of the plane.



The sole of this plane has a little wear near the front of the plane and in the back on the sides. It too about 20 minutes to lap the sole flat. I then followed up with the sanding blocks to get a consistent finish on the sides and sole.

Top View



Sole Before



Side Before



This is what it looks like after the main parts have been cleaned and lapped.



I still have to clean up the brass parts and hardware parts used to put the plane together. I also need to repair the broken rear tote. I will probably leave the front knob as it is and look for a parts plane for a replacement knob. It has been cracked and reglued. The glue job is not very good.

I will probably use Gorilla glue to make the repair to the tote. I've seen a couple of approaches for this and given that this is a real clean break. Gorilla glue should work ok.

After this is done I will apply schellac to the Japanning and then begin to tune the blade, chip breaker and lever cap.

It will probably next weekend before I finish. Tomorrow I am taking an all day class at WoodCraft with a friend. Take care and have a good weekend.
 
#86 ·
Stanley Bailey #3 Type 10 After

I finished up the restoration work on the #3 I have been working on. Things have been going slow due to work and family commitments. I thought I would get the blog entry done this morning before heading out to the woodworking show. I'm taking my daughter and her boyfriend. It should be a lot of fun.

I also picked up a couple of items yesterday. My mother-in-law as been wanting a workbench for a while and I found one on craigslist yesterday. I love craigslist. The photos of the plane were take on her new bench. I'll get to be it's caretaker until she comes up from Arizona in June to get it.



On ebay I was able to get a Stanley 5 1/4 Junior Jack Plane. From the photos it appears to be new in the box.



Now all I need are the $20 #1 and #2 to complete my set of bench planes. Good luck, right?

To finish the plane, I needed to clean the hardware. I used my lathe with a drill chuck to hold the parts. I used abrasive blocks and a 320 grit abrasive foam pad to clean up every thing except the brass parts. To clean the brass nuts, I put them in the shorter handle post and mounted them in the lathe. I used cloth and semi-chrome polish to shine them up. Here are the results.



The next issue I needed to deal with was the broken handle. The break was very clean so I used PVA. I used a woodworking clamp to hold the handle. It worked well. Below are some photos.







Next I applied schallac to the jappaning and to the blued components (metal that holds frog adjustmet screw and back of chip breaker) and reassembled. I still need to sharpen and tune the plane. I'll get you all a few photos to show how it cuts. This is how the plane turned out.

Before



After







Next in line is a #4. Here is a preview…

 
#104 ·
Stanley #4 Type 3/4?

I've been having blogging withdrawals and was hoping to get started on my next plane restoration. Tonight, after I was able to free myself from my last meeting of the day, I inspected the #4 I had set aside for restoration. As you can see from the photo's this plane is pretty rough.







This plane was in a box of planes I bought at an antique store for $50. There were a good 15 planes in the box and lots of other Misc tools. The owner had it in the back of the store and wanted to get rid of it. Some days it pays to ask about what your looking for.

I had been looking for a good number 4 for a while, but had not found one that I really like. I thought I would restore this one and wait for the right one to come along.

I dissassembled the plane and the following are my notes:

  • The rear tote is pretty crudely shaped and appears to be home made. I was also unable to free the rear post from the bed of the plane.

  • The lever cap is missing its spring and has damage to the lower end of the cap. The cap also has a U cast in it. There is damage to the lower part of the lever cap. It does not have a spring.

  • The body has a #4 cast into the toe of the plane. No patent dates. Perhaps 65% of the jappanning remaining. Significant rust under the frog. Does not appear to be pitted.

  • I could not find any markings on the blade. Most likely due to rust.The blade and chip breaker would not come apart.

  • The frog is attached with round head screws that appear to have washers attached to them. It has "Stanley" stamped into the lateral adjuster. It does not have a frog adjustment screw.

  • The blade asjustment knob is marked Bailey Patent Aug 6 1867 and Aug 31 1858.

Here are some photos of the plane apart.







After looking at the plane, I decided that I would not restore the plane. It is either an early plane or one assembled from a variety of parts and I do not belive in restoring very old or rare planes. I looked in the type study and had a hard time pinning down the specific type of the plane. The Type 3 or 4 is a guess.

The plane has a number of condition issues. I will continue to look for a good #4. I think I will target a #4C either here locally or get one off of ebay. Speaking of ebay, I am still waiting on the 5 1/4 I won last weekend. The seller did not take paypal and I had to send a check via snail mail. I'll take some photos when it arrives.

Have a great weekend.
 
#105 ·
Wayne, I think maybe your are correct not to prusue the restoration of this plane. I does appear to be an old one.
I gotta tell you, when I bid on the bay for something I use the "PayPal Only" click on the side of the list of items page. That way I don't have to deal with anything but PayPal.
BTW I've only received maybe 3 planes that I considered "not a good deaL" on ebay. I've been quite pleased with 99% of them.
What's your veiw of that?
 
#113 ·
Stanley Bailey #4 1/2 Type 19

Thought I would get an easy one out of the way. I have to turn some pens this weekend for 4 of my co-workers that are retiring next month . I'm going to do some real nice kits and use some of my best materials. I'll post some photos in the project section when I finish. It is also my Son's 16th birthday so we have a party planned. Lots to do.

This 4 1/2 plane was purchased on of ebay. I normally shop on ebay when I am looking for a specific plane or other tools. It is a good way to find an older item in a short period of time. If I am hunting for bargins, I prefer flea markets and antique stores. Nothing like a little Nickle Creek on the iPod to get the whole the flea market shopping experience.

Here are some pictures of the plane.







This plane is in excellent shape and no restoration is necessary. I've decided to retain the original blade in it's current condition and will tag it and set it aside. I've replaced the blade and chipbreaker with a new hock blade and chip breaker.





I gave the plane a light coat of wax and she is good to go.



Next up will be one of the #5s.
 
#120 ·
Record T5 Technical Jack Plane

I'm doing another easy plane today. I'm watching Norm build table saw jigs this morning and thought I would get another plane posted before I headed out to turn those pens.
This is another ebay find. I had been looking for one a while and only seen a couple listed on ebay.

My plan is to use this plane as my miter plane until I can afford a Lie-Nielson or perhaps find one for $5 at a garage sale (one can only hope).



This plane was made in the United Kingdom and was used in schools there to teach woodworking. It has larger sides than a normal #5. This one is in excellent condition except for the fact that it is missing it's side handle. I'm on the hunt for one and if anyone sees one, please let me know.









To complete this plane, I'm replacing the blade and chipbreaker with a Hock blade. Also applied some 3 in 1 Oil to the moving parts and waxed the plane.



So far I have completed going through 3 planes



This is what I have in the queue





Also, people may wonder why there are no block planes on my restoration list. This a picture of my smaller planes. As you can see, there is really no restoration needed. I have been looking for a Stanley #18. If I find one, I will add it to the restoration list.

 
#126 ·
Stanley Bailey #5 1/4 Junior Jack Plane

Another long week at work, so I will post another of the planes that is in good shape. This plane is a Stanley Bailey 5 1/4 Junior Jack Plane. I purchased this plane on ebay and it arrived in the mail today. It came with it's original box and is in good shape.



This is another plane that was used for training woodworkers. It is 11 1/2"Long, 1 3/4"Wide and weighs 3 3/4lbs. This plane was made from 1921 until 1983 and this one appears to be a more receint model. It came with its original box.





Basically all I did to this plane was to provide a light coat of wax. Hopefully I will get some sharpening done this weekend.

The following picture shows the planes that have been completed so far.



They are from left to right Stanley #3, Stanley 4 1/2, Stanley 5 1/4 and a Record T5. Also, I found some info on how to make a side handle for the T5. Perhaps I will get to turning one this weekend. I'll post pictures if I get there.

Today at work we had the going away party for a group of my retireing friends. I presented the pens that I turned last weekend. Everyone was extreamly happy. Anyway have a great weekend.
 
#143 ·
Stanley Bedrock #605 Jack Plane

Today was a day with a lot chores to be done, so I picked a plane to rework that required little effort. This is a Stanley Bedrock plane from the mid-1930s. Bedrock planes are Stanley's preimum line of handplanes. They were made in sizes from #2-#8. All of the planes are numbered in the 600 series (e.g. 603, 606, etc.) The early planes had a rounded side similar to normal Stanley Bailey planes. In the early 1900s the planes changed to a more square side as you can see from the photo of this plane. Bedrock Planes have a unique frog adjustment capability. You loosen 2 screws on the rear of the frog to release the frog and then you can use the center screw to adjust the mouth of the plane without removing the blade. The Lie-Nielson bench planes are based on Stanley Bedrock planes.

All I needed to do with this plane was clean it up a bit. Because this plane has collectable value, I replaced the original blade with a Hock Chipbreaker and Iron. I set the original blade aside and will return the blade if I ever decide to sell the plane. This plane was an eBay purchase and cost a little over $100.









Here are a couple of photos showing the plane after I cleaned it up.





The following photos show the planes that have been completed so far.



 
#151 ·
New Candidates

Today is Mothers day. To cellibrate, the family and I went to the monthly antique sale. and I thought I would document the day's find. This antique sale is fairly large and makes for a good family outing. There is a little something for everyone. I did miss one item that made me wish I had been there a little earlier. It was a large, highly figured and very beautiful lignum vitae mallet. Such is life.

I was looking for router planes and also perhaps a scrub plane to add to the set. Hopefully a Stanley 271 or a #140 if I were to get lucky. The following is what I was able to find.



A #71 Stanley Router Plane, a Stanley #95 RH Edge Plane, a lignum vitae mallet and a small handle for taps or similar use.

Here are some more photos








The mallet is marked Hati on the end. I also found a nice set of trammel points that I did not take pictures of. Everyone in the family found some treasures as well. All in all not a bad day.
 
#163 ·
Aw Screw it

I have not been working on this series or any real projects for that matter for quit a while. I have been working very long hours at my day job and really not feeling too motivated. Perhaps I caught some of that bug that was affecting Mot a bit back.

I have a nice early type 9 or so Stanley #4 I want to restore as part of the set I am putting together. You can go back to post one to see my overall plans if you want, but, iin a nutshell, I plan to assemble a complete set of old Stanley Bench planes. Number 1 to number 8 and all of the odd sizes in between.

I purchased the Stanlye #4 off of ebay a little while back. It has a broken tote, which is easy to repair and then upon further inspection I discovered that the blade adjustment knob is frozen. I'm not sure I will be able to repair it and I guess I may need to find a approprate parts plane and replace the frog.

Anyway last weekend, I was in woodcraft getting my father's day present. I've shown pictures of it elsewhere, but will show a photo again here in the event you missed it.



It is a Lie-Nielson #1 and it is sitting next to my #8 to show the difference in size between the smallest and largest bench plane. While I was looking at the #1, I saw that Woodcraft had the #4s on sale and decided to screw the plans to have all old Stanleys and buy myself a birthday present (I had already conceded on the idea of original Stanley Bailey #1 and #2s because of cost). This was last Sunday. Tonight I grapped the WorkSharp and sharpened the blade and put the plane to work. Here are some photos of it in action. It is a sweet plane and the experience of making paper thin shavings makes it worth every penny.









I now have every plane in the series except for the #2. I'm guessing this will be another Lie-Nielson unless I get lucky along the way. I have restored the planes up through the #5. I have the 5 1/2, 6, 7, and #8 to go. Anyway have a great night.
 
#173 ·
Stanley #78 Duplex filletster and rabbet plane

I'm straying a little from the bench planes today and documenting the restoration of a Stanley #78 Duplex Filletster and Rabbet Plane. I found this plane at the flea market last weekend and had been wanting to play with one. This one was in fairly good condition and was complete. Many of these planes that you find are missing parts. Things to look for are the depth stop, fence, and 3 blade spur.

This plane can be used with the blade in two position one for normal use where you cut rabbets and bullnose position. This plane was made after 1925 given the lever that is used to adjust the blade. A good post on how to tune this planes can be found on the Australian Woodworking Forums.

Here are some before photos.







The next step was to disassemble the plane. Here are some photos of it apart







Next I removed any rust from various parts with abrasive blocks and then applied a coat of schallac to all of the japanned (black) parts. This protects the plane from further rust and brightens the finish. If needed it can be removed with denatured alcohol.



One trick I use to to clean up screws in a drill chuck on the lathe. I use abrasive blocks while the lathe is spinning. I does a good job.



Next to assemble and test the plane. I sharpened the blade earlier in the week, so it is good to go.





It cuts rabbets quickly….



Have a wonderful weekend….
 
#193 ·
Cleaning Parts with Citric Acid

Based on an article by James Thompson I found on OldToolsShop.com. I though I woud try using Citric Acid for rust removal. The article can be found at the following link.

http://www.oldtoolsshop.com/z_pdf/restore/RemovingRust-CitricAcid-ne.pdf

Citric acid is used in food processing and seems to do a good job removing rust. I checked the local yellow pages and found a local beer home brewing store. I called them and confirmed that I could purchase citric acid for $5 per pound. I made a quick run over and purchased 2 pounds. I also located a plastic container, a brass brush and some scotch bright.



I had purchased a #5 parts plane for it's handles at the flea market a couple of weeks ago for $3 and had retained the handles and the frog. The body was badly pitted and had already gone in the trash. From a hindsight perspective, I would have like to have held on to it to use to try it this rust removal technique.

Here is a photographs of the parts before taking the bath.



I mixed up the solution using a mix of 1 cup of citric acid to one gallon of water. I placed the parts in and then came back and scrubbed them every 30 minutes or so. The total time in the solution was about 2 hours.



Here is what they looked like once they came out…



After removing, them I dried them with paper towels, compressed air, and coated them in a light coat of 3 in 1 Oil. I belive it removed the bluing from the metal piece that controls the position of the frog and because of this, I would not use this method for this part or for chip breakers if you care about maintaining the original finish.

Also, another technique I tried from Michael Dunbar's book Restoring, Tuning, and Using classic woodworking tools was to soak weather worn knobs in Boiled Linseed Oil. This worked very well. Basically you stand the parts in a coffee can with an inch or so of BLO in the bottom and you let it wick up into the parts. 45 minutes on each end.
 
#194 ·
Wayne, Thanks for this article. I just picked up 5 planes at a flea market this past weekend. Three of which need a little attention as this one you got. This will help immensely. Looks like it works really well.
 
#222 ·
Sliding down the slippery slope - Part 1

I started this blog to restore a set of Bailey style bench planes for use in my shop. The more I have worked with handplanes, the more diverse my interests have become. I have been interested in Plough Planes for a while after reading about them on Patrick's Blood and Gore site and on Alf's Cornish Workshop web site. Alf has a lot of historical information on her web site as well as a user's guide that shows how to tune and use a combination plane.

In addition to this, I read an entry in Chris Schwartz's blog about some new planes coming from Lee-Valley this fall. Lee Valley is releasing a new Plough plane based on the Record 044. The Record 044 is one of several planes that are unique to Record. Others are the 040, 043 and the T5.

All of this motivated me to purchase a Record 044 on ebay. This plane is used to cut dados of various sizes.



Front view



It comes with 7 blades and 2 sets of bars for the fence



In my hand for size



With a #4 bench plane



I also won a Record 043 and am waiting for it to arrive in the mail. One of these days I will get a Stanley 45 and take another step down the slippery slope.
 
#246 ·
Sliding down the slippery slope - Part 2

I recieved the second Plough plane from the UK in the mail today. This one is the little sister of the Record 044 I showed in my last blog entry. This one is a small plough plane made by record and imitated by a couple of other manufactures including Marples. This plane is useful for quickly making groves in boards for drawers and similar applications.

Let me introduce the Record 043 to you. I'm show it next to my Lie-Nielson low angle block plane to give you a sense of scale. It was actually smaller than I was expecting. I'm going to clean this plane up and put it to good use in my shop. This one only came with a single blade. Normally they come with 3 blades (1/8", 3/16", 1/4") and metric blades were available as an option. I'm going to have to find additional blades. In the interem, I can use blades from my Record 043.



Here is a view of the front of the plane.



Here is a side view



Again I would like to thank Alf for getting me interested in these planes. Here is a link to a video showing her using a Record 044 to make a groove.
 
#271 ·
Sliding down the slippery slope Philly style

I'm a firm beliver in supporting other LumberJocks when I can and I've been in the hunt for a good miter plane for a while. I was impressed with Phil's wooden miter planes and decided to order one. It actually arrived a couple of weeks ago, but with my work schedule I really have not had time to try it out.



It is a wonderful plane. Well made. Phil made the blade as well as the plane. It was well tuned when it arrived. I basically set it on the bench, put the blade in, then the wedge, tapped the wedge in. Tapped it a few times on the nose and was off an running.
The plane has a very fine mouth and takes nice shavings. I've used it on my shooting board and it works quite well.



Here is a photo of it on the shooting board



And one with it apart



This is a really wonderful purchase and well worth the investment. It will get many years of use in my shop.
 
#272 ·
Great Blog, Wayne. You got it here quick. We were just talking about it this morning. I got on Philsville tonight and then went to the shop and started a plane. I gotta try this. I am impressed with Phil's work. Great tecnique and very functional.I think maybe we lost something when we started to buy our tools instead of making them. The guys like Phil are teaching us the difference. Thanks for the photos,Wayne.
Tom
 
#289 ·
Stanley Bedrock 603 Type 6

I really like the Stanley Bedrock style planes and on a whim bid on and won this plane last week. I will be replacing my current #3 with this plane in my bench plane set. If you have followed the blog, I set a goal of putting together a full set of Stanley bench planes. The set is now pretty much complete with a little tuning planned. For example, I would like to replace my Sargent #8 with a Stanley 8C or perhaps a Bedrock 608 and have been slowly looking for one. Also, I still need to restore the #5 1/2, 6, 7, and 8 to complete the set. Need to get it done so that I can move on to completing and blogging some projects.

Here is a before photo of the plane. It was missing it's front knob.



The first thing I did was go to Bob Kaune's Stanley Bedrock Type study page to determine the plane's type and age. According to this page, this is a Type 6 Bedrock plane and based on blade was manufactured between 1914 and 1918.

When you buy a Bedrock for use, I recommed you get a type 5 or later. The one of the key benefits of a Bedrock plane is the ability to adjust the frog with the blade locked into place. This is a very nice feature and was introduced in 1911. The type study page has a good diagram that shows the design of the frog.

Another identifying feature of a type 5 or later plane is the flat sides. As a side note, this design is the foundation for the Lie-Nielson bench planes. All of their bench planes (except the #1) are modeled after the Stanley Bedrock line.

I have been buying any of the planes that I come across that are in 1910 to 1930 or so manufacture date if they are inexpensive and have usable parts. I evaluate the overall condition remembering that blades, knobs, frogs, etc. can cost a bit if you need to buy one. This approach paid off for me as I had a couple of knobs that are approprate for this plane. Also, I purchased a Hock Blade and chip breaker for the plane. I will set the original blade and chip breaker aside and return it to the plane if I decide to sell it in the future



The next step is to dissassemble the plane and evauate any problems. As you can see there is some light rust in the bed of the plane. Also the rear handle has been broken and repaired. I will leave it as is.



Note the pins that are used instead of screws.



With the frog out you can see the design of the frog mounting point and where the screws are located that are used to lock the frog in place and adjust the frog.



Here it is completely dissassembled. There is some light rust on the body of the plane. Other parts are in good condition. I checked the bottom with a steel rule and it appears to be flat. Given the collector's value of the plane and overall condition, I am not going to lap the sole or clean the patina off of the metal. I am going to clean the rust from the body and apply some clear shellac to the japanned parts of the plane.



Applying the shellac



Next step is to put everything together. I'm using a little 3-in-1 oil on all of the screws. Then I adjusted the mouth and set the blade. A few quick passes to verify the plane is operational.









And here it is in it's rightful place along with the other smoothing planes in the set

 
#308 ·
Stanley 112

This was a craigslist item that showed up yesterday evening. I quickly arranged to head over to the sellers house and pick it up. The Stanley 112 is a scraping plane used for finishing surfaces similar to a card scraper. According to Patrick Leach, "this is one of the finest tools ever to have been unleashed on the public from New Britain, Connecticut." It has been on my shopping list for a while.

This one is in pretty good shape. It has some light rust and is missing it's blade. It also has some very minor pitting on the sole. It should clean-up nicely. A quick trip to the Craftman Studio web site and a replacement hock blade is on it's way. Attached are some before photos. I will post a follow-up when I have her cleaned up.

DSCN0242

DSCN0243

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Lie-Nielson has a video on setting them up -
and using them -
 
#309 ·
Wayne, that is a nice looking plane. I will be looking forward to seeing its restoration. With all of these posts on plane restoration it certainly is an incentive to work on my #5 and #8 that belonged to my father.

I have seen posts detailing how to clean up the original blades that were in the plane but, in my opinion, you can't beat a Hock iron. It was a good idea (especially since it did not have one anyway) to put one in.
 
#318 ·
Stanley 112 Update

Just a quick update. I ordered and recieved a Hock replacement blade for the plane from Craftsman Studio. While I was at it, I had a moment of weakness and also ordered a Hock burnishing rod. I really like Craftsman Studio, good prices and quick shipping.

The burnishing rod comes without a handle so I enlisted one of my friends to turn a quick brass handle. The Hock blade is very high quality and I like the finish. Photos are below.

I also have a some evapo-rust on order. Once that is here, I will get after the restoration. It will be interesting to see how well it works.

DSCN0252

Hock burnishing rod

Stanley 112 with hock blade and burnishing rod

DSCN0250
 
#324 ·
Interesting middle of the road approach

While looking for a link to Christopher Schwartz's blog for my review of his book I noticed his most recent blog entry "Vintage Planes are Better than New" and thought the topic was worth sharing here. In the article, he discusses his purchase of a handplane from Steve Nisbett. Steve is a Machinest that buys old planes and rebuilds them. The planes are then sold from his ebay store. The blog article is a quick read and includes a link to Steve Nisbett's ebay store.

Given the discussion recently about Lee Valley Planes vs. Lie-Nielson vs. Restoring planes, I thougth this would be a good compromise if people were looking for a good value in a hand plane. Check it out.

I dug around in the shop last night, but was not able to find a good candiate to try out the evapo rust on. I may have to make a flea market run this weekend. I did come across a nice #18 that I had set back. May have to get to work on it after the 112.
 
#325 ·
Interesting article.

Did you ever notice how woodworking magazines never feature articles about used tools? Its because their advertisers would go nuts. They don't want anybody to know that you can get better quality US-made tools for a quarter (or less) of the price of new crap from China/Taiwan.

I'm checking out that guys e-bay store right now.
 
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