Quangsheng parts

[Dokkodo]

Hi all, just wondering if anyone knows of a sourch of quangsheng plane parts? Other than workshop heaven, who have been ignoring my requests for about three weeks even though the lady on the phone said they probably had what i need in stock! Quite frustrating.

My quangsheng rebate block plane, a daily user, has fallen to bits, all the brass components have now failed. For a variety of reasons, the front knob broke when dropped by a friend (pretty upsetting) and then the hold down screw failed and now the knob that holds down the cap iron has failed on the thread.

I could drill out and tap in some non-brass replacement threads i guess but if anyone else has any ideas first that would be better!

Cheers

 

[Doug B]

You could try Rutland tools Rutlands Limited | Premium Woodworking Tools they sell them failing that it might be worth contacting @Peter Sefton I may be wrong but seem to remember he sold them for a while & might be able to point you in the right direction.

 

[Daniel2]

I really am quite surprised about your experience with Workshop Heaven, though

 

[Inspector]

You shouldn't have to go out of country but Australia have sellers of Quangsheng/Luban tools that might be able to supply you with what you need if locals fail to.

https://www.finetools.com.au/collections/all/quangsheng
https://www.timbecon.com.au/brands/luban
Pete

 

[D_W]

WH may have thought they'd have something, be overloaded with orders, and found they didn't. IF they don't respond timely, I'd move on.

I'm not sure how well boutiques keep spare parts like Stanley or someone would have when they were serving very long-term markets vs. whatever boutique market is stylish at the moment.

 

[Bm101]

WH may have thought they'd have something, be overloaded with orders, and found they didn't. IF they don't respond timely, I'd move on.

I'm not sure how well boutiques keep spare parts like Stanley or someone would have when they were serving very long-term markets vs. whatever boutique market is stylish at the moment.

Not sure how this applies David. Dokkodo's after QS parts not Stanley no?
I'd perservere with the WH team personally. Not a big buyer in any way but I've always found the entire business model is based on excellent products, customer care, and good service through knowledge and understanding of what's being sold. Of course some of it is expensive (and some it may even be a bit 'luxurious' lol, and no one is obliged to shop there but calling it 'boutique' like it sells designer handbags to rich Kensington ladies who lunch is a bit much.
The Qs planes sold at WH are not the same ones sold at Rutlands as Quiang shen or whatever. Same manufacturing company different QC. I think Matthew the owner has been involved first hand in developing certain aspects of all that.
I'm no massive fan boy of WH, and they are a bit rich for my needs mostly, (Star-M bits aside ) , but let's not knock them NOT for being BnQ or the US equivalent (Walmart?). That way lies madness.
I'd be on the phone again, maybe you just fell through the system Dokkodo. Happens with the best of companies. Or PM Matthew. He's a member on here and would probably love to help out if my personal experience is anything to go by.
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/members/matthewwh.1850/#latest-activity

 

[D_W]

Not sure how this applies David. Dokkodo's after QS parts not Stanley no?
I'd perservere with the WH team personally. Not a big buyer in any way but I've always found the entire business model is based on excellent products, customer care, and good service through knowledge and understanding of what's being sold. Of course some of it is expensive (and some it may even be a bit 'luxurious' lol, and no one is obliged to shop there but calling it 'boutique' like it sells designer handbags to rich Kensington ladies who lunch is a bit much.
The Qs planes sold at WH are not the same ones sold at Rutlands as Quiang shen or whatever. Same manufacturing company different QC. I think Matthew the owner has been involved first hand in developing certain aspects of all that.
I'm no massive fan boy of WH, and they are a bit rich for my needs mostly, (Star-M bits aside ) , but let's not knock them NOT for being BnQ or the US equivalent (Walmart?). That way lies madness.
I'd be on the phone again, maybe you just fell through the system Dokkodo. Happens with the best of companies. Or PM Matthew. He's a member on here and would probably love to help out if my personal experience is anything to go by.
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/members/matthewwh.1850/#latest-activity

I didn't do a good job describing what I meant. Stanley for a very long time provided parts for tools, maybe they still do, but tools that haven't been popular for 80 years (sometimes a modern made part for an older tool, etc).

I don't know if it's reasonable for us to expect that a retailer will pick up a chinese copy plane (let's not kid ourselves that most of the QS planes are anything more than LN copies, to the point that the WR versions sold here had to be redone with a part of that to take out bits of the copy that were really artifact's of LN's tooling).

The job of the manufacturer in that case is to make a batch for western purchasers, and in the current mindset of "who is the target customer", losing a customer here or there vs. the cost of maintaining a parts stream makes me feel that it may be more typical that a parts supply is gotten by tearing apart planes and scavenging those parts.

If that's doable, that's great. I'm sure QS planes aren't as cheap to get as the regular fare on aliexpress (that may look like it was machined with a cultivator rather than given a fine surface finish), but the proposition of taking apart new units is a lot more tolerable than it would be parting out LN or Clifton planes.

I don't buy at rutlands, so i'm not familiar with the versions there, but the ones here in the states were initially LN copies, then with colors of parts changed to make them look less LN and the block plane you guys have there got changed to be a knuckle cap here. I'm not an insider, but would guess that WR wasn't willing to take what's really a dead LN copy block plane and try to sell it in the states where trade dress can get you in trouble.

Talking of the same pattern being made to different QC isn't much of a sway for me. Talking about the same patterns being made by different companies would be a lot more meaningful. I've ordered tools from the UK dealers because anything made and sold in the UK is heavily marked up when it gets distributed here (e.g., ashley iles bench chisels at one point were far cheaper shipped ex. vat from the UK than bought in the states, perhaps 25% cheaper despite international shipping). Whether it was WH or classic hand tools or whoever else, I don't know. But if it comes from QS tool, unless it's been modified to avoid trouble with LN, we're talking about the same things.

 

[Dokkodo]

Thanks all, sparked interesting debate there.

I do also understand that it might be a bit optimistic to expect parts to be readily available anywhere really, given the relatively low volume of these things that are sold, when compared to main brand power tools etc. Speaking of, been on the hunt for some parts for my festool vac recently and was informed that covid meant that the parts supplier was waiting to hear from festool when the next shipment might be ready from china to distribute, and this was after two weeks since they took my money and didnt get in touch to let me know at the time it would be a wait, i still havent heard... so i suppose supply chains may still be suffering.

anyway more to the point, rutlands dont carry parts, no easy leads via searches, so ill give WH another final go since they seem to be the only lead, and after that ill be drilling and tapping my plane back into service, which frankly other than the time involved i also see as a chance to care for it as it deserves, just part of the business. reduce reuse recycle repair and all that, it was the past, and it will be the future, its just this disposible consumerist blip we're living through that tricks us into thinking things should be any different.

i should be counting myself lucky i didnt have to make the thing in the first place

 

[D_W]

Your last suggestion (replacing the bits that broke with better bits) struck me as a good idea early on, at least if it's doable. But that shouldn't be obligatory, so I didn't bring it up.

One thing I like to do when unhardened or soft parts fail, though, is make and install better parts.

 

[Vann]

My understanding is that WH Quangsheng planes are unique to WH. That is to say WH tweak the specs to their own requirements. I believe the US Woodriver planes are to a very similar spec (and Luban may be to the same spec as Woodriver). Rutlands spec is very different and much cheaper (& nastier).

So Woodriver/Luban parts will probably work fine, Rutland parts will probably downgrade your plane (and if Quangsheng parts failed, Rutland replacements will fail sooner) - and WH Quangsheng parts are what you should aim for.

I think Stanley/Record parts would be a crapshoot - these Chinese planes have moved on and while some Stanley/Record parts might fit, others probably won't.

Good luck.

Cheers, Vann.

 

[Peter Sefton]

Sorry, we are the Woodriver dealers but are unable to help on this one. Woodriver don't make a rebate block plane and the plane designs/parts in the range are different from Luban, Quangsheng and Rutlands. The Woodriver components are of thicker gauge and different specifications.

Matthew and the team at WH are usually pretty good, and I believe advertise a lifetime guarantee....

Hope you get your plane up and running, cheers Peter

 

[jvc26]

Hi all, just wondering if anyone knows of a sourch of quangsheng plane parts? Other than workshop heaven, who have been ignoring my requests for about three weeks even though the lady on the phone said they probably had what i need in stock! Quite frustrating.

My quangsheng rebate block plane, a daily user, has fallen to bits, all the brass components have now failed. For a variety of reasons, the front knob broke when dropped by a friend (pretty upsetting) and then the hold down screw failed and now the knob that holds down the cap iron has failed on the thread.

I could drill out and tap in some non-brass replacement threads i guess but if anyone else has any ideas first that would be better!

Cheers

If you bought from workshop heaven they give a lifetime warranty?

 

[Daniel2]

From the OP's description, it doesn't sound like a warranty issue

 

[jvc26]

From the OP's description, it doesn't sound like a warranty issue

Ah missed the drop!

 

[Daniel2]

Of course, having said that, I think it's perfectly reasonable to
expect to be able to purchase spare parts, if neccesary.

 

[Tony Zaffuto]

For me, I would drill out the broken bits, then re-tap to common thread sizes or for the knob/screw sizes available! These are tools, not collector pieces.

 

[D_W]

Reminds me of a tractor my grandfather had for two decades. IT had weak front spindles (both broke at different times in the field making a three-wheel tractor that obviously doesn't work well).

He replaced the spindles with a beefed up design and that was the end of that. The forum world today would say "Terrible tractor!" (the OP here didn't say that, so hopefully that's not what's conveyed here - we use things, we fix them, we use them some more. Sometimes we make them different just to be to our liking).

My grandfather loved the tractor. I remember when the second spindle broke (when I was a kid) and the tractor was sitting in the field half on its nose. I said to my dad "what happened?" He told me the neighbor was driving the tractor for my grandfather (to get the field hours in for the year), and I said "If tom broke the tractor, I hope he's going to pay for it". I was a bit naïve as a kid about who was helping who. (thanks for helping enough to be the one in the tractor when the spindle breaks would've been better).

 

[D_W]

(difference here is john deere is more than happy to have plenty of parts around, and if you replace 1/10th of the tractor, it will cost double the price of a whole one).