refinishing old planes

Source for Japanning... *LINK*

John Aniano in NJ

>Eric,

I'm sure it has been mentioned before here and is somewhere in the archives, but I thought it could be mentioned again.

A firm, Liberty on the Hudson, sells a product they call Pontypool, which is supposed to be the original japanning product made from asphaltum. The link to their site is below.

I have ordered some of their paint products and have been very pleased with their knowledge and service.

Over and out,

John


Liberty on the Hudson

Depends

Bill Houghton, Sebastopol, CA

>A lot depends on your aesthetic comfort level in a user plane. They work as well with 10% japanning as with 90% japanning. My No. 8 has no visible japanning at all, and cuts quite well. I wax all the surfaces of my planes I can reach, and find that this provides quite effective protection, here in north coastal California, against the Dread Rust.

But, if you like your tools factory pretty, which is fine, pay attention to other posts, not this one.

Re: refinishing old planes

David Miller from Iowa

>Welcome Eric.

I had a jappanning link, but it's dead. Anyway, as Bill said, it's not just paint - it's a special mixture that you bake on. If you search the internet enough I'm sure you will find a case study. The tricks is to get ALL of the old jappan off. This means sandblasting. You will be able to see the edges of the old jappan if you don't do this (DAMHIKT). I haven't done this in a while, but I baked it in the oven according to the directions (no wonder I'm divorced).

Maybe it's just my eye, but I never got the planes to look new, just redone. I gave up and just cherish the original patina readless of the finish condition.

Look here *LINK*

Dan Donaldson

>There is an article in the WC article section about japanning a plane.


Japanning a Plane

Japanning vs Rustoleum

jim_reed@marietta

>I rehabilitated a nasty rusty Type I #48 T&G plane not too long ago. Knocked off the rust with a wire brush, washed the plane in detergent, and painted it with black Rustoleum. It looks great, works great, and feels great. Mr. Stanley would have used the stuff himself if it had been available at the time. It was an extreme thing for me to do since I normally just clean 'em up and use 'em. Suggest you clean & use unless they are basket cases.

Replacement blades

Robin Frierson

>LN will make you blades in whatever thickness you desire. I had some made in .115 thickness, which is a little thicker than the standard .095 Hock, LV, Ln replacement blade. They dont charge any extra for it either, but there can be a wait. I know of some guys who have used .125 thickness and with a little mouth filing they fit.

I have put Clifton Chipbreakers and LN blades on most of my Baileys. It really helps the performance. The Clifton chipbreakers though do need some flattening. You would think they could do a better job with them, I mean they can be really out of flat.

Rejapanning can be a real job, you got to remove all the old finish to make it look good. The japanning formula can get old quick, so dont buy too much at one time.

Re: refinishing old planes

Tom MacGregor

>It's a judgement call on a user, but be aware that sandblasting changes the surface texture of the cast iron which could affect the final finish quality. Too heavy an application could even damage the plane. It's a change that can't be reversed. I would never use blasting on anything but a total salvage job and even then do some careful masking of machined surfaces before starting.

Re: Japanning vs Rustoleum

eric in Maryland

>Jim,

The jappaning is 90%+ gone so it looks pretty bad. I just finished a new kitchen and don't think the wife will let me bake a plane in the new oven ;) I am just back from the Blue Borg, gloss black rustoleum in hand -- glad to knwo I made a good choice

Cheers

Eric

Re: Japanning vs Rustoleum

A. Byrd

>Eric,

Post some pics of your finished results if you would. I have and Old K6 that has no original jappanning as the result of over zealous rust removal by a previous owner. The plane is OK and fettled out well but it is UGLY.

I would like to see how the Rustoleum turns out.

Thanks,

A.B.

Re: Japanning vs Rustoleum

Don Thompson, Cutler Ridge, Florida

>Did you use any sort of primer?

OK now...Wait just one min...

Scott Burr in Ben Lomond CA

>Someone has to step in here and say Hey what's going on here! These are precious antiques. They deserved to be rejapaned and cleaned up a bit so they can sit on a shelf and collect dust! The nerve of some of you guys!

Scott who uses the black Rustolem epoxy paint on bakes it on in the oven. No primer, just mask and paint. 3-4 coats look like new japaning. Please disreguard the first paragraph, somebody had to say it;).

No primer

jim_reed@marietta

>Although the can says to use the Industrial primer on rusted surfaces, I did not. After 18 months of service, the plane still does not know about the shortcut.