Hand Plane metal repair questions

Re: Hand Plane metal repair questions

Bruce, a MN Galoot

A rear corner of a block plane doesn’t mean much, actually, unless it’s gouging your work, leave it alone. I’m sure mine is out by that much, and it’s been doing good work for 70+ years.

As far as the pin being missing, it’s not really necessary to move the adjustable throat, so do what you want. I might JB it into place.

Re: Hand Plane metal repair questions

Barry Irby

Thanks. Turns out the hole was near and 1/8". I found a nail that was almost perfect. Ground it down a tiny amount and ground off the point. I drove it trough the hole in the lever, which was harder to do than I expected. Cut it off and tried to peen it. It seems very secure. Good enough. If it fails I will try again.

Upon inspecting it again I decided the slope was not as bad as I thought. The part that is way off is was tiny. Back in business.

Metal plane fettling

Jim Matthews

A common approach to rehab for vintage metal planes is to lightly file the front, rear and sides in a slight relief (like a chamfer) to avoid sharp edges.

Not so much as you can see a bevel, but enough that you can't feel a distinct corner.

Re: Metal plane fettling

Barry Irby

I have done that. Some were so sharp they would have made good scrapers and might have interfered with using them. On one or two the front end was somewhat battered and I put a tiny chamfer on them to both clean them up and to avoid digging into the work.

They are all nice and shiny, I think I need something to put on them to avoid rust.

Try camellia oil

Natural oils and alternatives

Jim Matthews

I'm with EV on this, Camellia has no odor, won't thicken and works well.

If you have WD40, regular application with a rag will do.

I keep a coffee can stuffed with an old T-shirt wetted in WD40.

A swipe on my chisels and blades keeps rust away.