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Est. 1998 — 27 years of woodworking knowledge

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Loose lever cap screws

Posts

Loose lever cap screws

#1

Loose lever cap screws

Moses Yoder in White Pigeon, MI

>When I emntioned that I had found a #603 for $61 (boy, I love mentioning that; see how well I just slipped that into the conversation ;) someone else mentioned that they wondered if the screw that holds the lever cap onto the frog would be as loose as their's is. And this in fact turned out to be the case.

I didn't figure it would affect performance much, but it could lead to some difficulites in adjusting the iron, and it could cause chatter I guess. At any rate, alter on I ended up getting the Charlesworth books and read through his "plane tuning" section, which is pretty much the same as every other plane tuning suggestions I have ever read with a few minor variations. One of the things he suggested is checking to see if the lever cap screw is loose, and if it is, to use a thread locker to tighten it. Now I think a lot of times people will put stuff in books just because it sounds good, and not because they tried it and it works good. But I witheld judgement until after trying it. I went and got a small tube of blue thread locker, the type that is supposed to leave bolts removable after assembly. I put it on the screw threads and screwed it into the frog. I had envisioned a thicker substance as a thread locker, but this was a very runny thin substance, about the same consistency as WD-40, and I was wondering how this could actually work. The next morning I checked it out, and the screw was magically tight; no wobble at all. And no visible residue of thread locker left over that could be seen. I put the iron and lever cap screw on, then realized I had to loosen the screw some to get the right tension, so I backed it out some, and now it was a little bit wobbly again, but not nearly as bad as before. I put the plane together and set it in the cabinet, and checked the screw again at the end of the day. It was once again very snug with no wobble at all, and now at the right adjustment.

So there you have it, a solution to a problem found in a book, and it actually works well.

Re: Loose lever cap screws

#2

Jack Guzman from Maine

Re: Loose lever cap screws

Jack Guzman from Maine

>Just about every plane I have derusted and rehabbed has started with a frozen screw. Many times once I get the screw to where it is adjustable it is also sloppy in it's threads.I think I may get me some of that blue stuff.You are referring to "lock-tite"or something similar?---Jack

Re: Loose lever cap screws

#3

Re: Loose lever cap screws

david charlesworth

>Jack,

Yes, loctite nut lock is fine. Please don't use bearing fit, or you may never remove the screw.

The advantage of firming up a really loose screw is that some backlash is removed.

There is one major difference in my plane tuning routine as compared to the famous one on the net. Sole flattening is done AFTER frog fixing and positioning. This is essential as frog fixing often upsets the flatness of sole, just behind the throat.

I would just like to add that all the advice in my books is based on my personal experience of teaching fine furniture making, over the last 29 years. This may explain why some of the ideas are a little radical, but they have all been extensively workshop tested.

best wishes,

David Charlesworth

Re: Loose lever cap screws

#4

Loctite grades

Bob Hackett

>The 3 threadlocking products I use most from Loctite are the blue,red and green.I`ve found that the blue is to be used if you think you may have to disassemble at a later date.

The red can be used to lock down things like bearings on shafts,studs that need to remain with an assembly.etc.You can get the red to release by applying heat but I consider it to be reversable with problems.

The green is for things like cylinder liners and other parts that you don`t want to come apart EVER.

All of these products require a clean surface with all rust,grease or oil removed to work properly.Loctite sells a cleaner but alcohol or acetone work just as well.

You can assemble the parts and then apply the blue or red Loctite and it will wick into the joint(that`s why it`s such a thin consistency)but we usually apply,then assemble and wipe the excess away.

These procedures are what I know works for commercial manufacturing, automotive,motorcycle,and marine use so it ought to work just fine for handtools too.

These products have a limited shelf life and if we notice it`s getting thicker then we usually toss it and get fresh product,just like CA glue.

Mainely,Bob

Addy protocol-When I say this works under all these conditions it`s from my own personal experience.No papers,cetificates,diplomas are involved,just real world application.

Re: Loose lever cap screws

#5

Re: Loctite grades

Todd O. Cronkhite Maine Native in FL. Exile :~(

>Thanks for the tip Moses. I wasen't aware of this product. I was aware of Loctite, but but didn't know that they came in in blue, Red and Green for different purposes.

It just kills me that David Charlesworth posts here. I like David's work and enjoy learning from him.

Todd O.

Re: Loose lever cap screws

#6

Number not color

Bill Houghton, Sebastopol, CA

>Unless Loctite has changed, the most reliable way to understand which is which is the number rather than the color. I haven't bought any for a while, but the back of the blister packs used to list all their consumer-grade products and identify the use of each.

Re: Loose lever cap screws

#7

That was me but...

Scott Burr Ben Lomond,CA

>I was talking about the stud in the frog that the blade adjuster screw travels (with the yoke) on. Do you think thread locker could be used there?

Re: Loose lever cap screws

#8

Loctite Products

Don Thompson - Cutler Ridge, Florida

>Loctite probably makes hundreds of adhesives of various sorts, in addition to the red/blue/green threadlocker products. Make sure you have the right one!

Re: Loose lever cap screws

#9

Re: That was me but...

Moses Yoder in White Pigeon, MI

>Okay, now I understand that would be a different screw. I thought we were talking about the same screw. I'm pretty sure it would work well on any screw on any plane that is loose. The blade adjuster stud on my plane is nice and tight. There was a question whether I was referring to Loc-Tite, and I think that is the brand I got. Any brand thread locker should work pretty well to take up the slop in screw threads.

Re: Loose lever cap screws

#10

Re: The books

Moses Yoder in White Pigeon, MI

>You did a nice job on those books. They are a nice addition to my very small library. I really appreciate the work that went into them, and was not trying to belittle it in any way, I might say I was just embellishing my story a bit with the comment on wondering whether it would actually work or not. I am looking forward to collecting a whole series of David Charlesworth books ;)

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