Tap & Die or Thread Chaser?

[diytoolbox]

I recently bought a vintage hand plane Stanley P190. It worked OK for a few days, and then when the blade was taken off a few times for sharpening and adjusting, the tightening screw was keep loosening itself. It looks like both the bolt's and nut's threads are worn out.

I am wondering which repair kit would be better for reviving the threads. Would a Tap & Die kit do the job ok? Or would it be better using Thread Chaser (restorer)?

 

[IWW]

I'm not familiar with that designation - is it a 'block' plane? Some pics of the offending bits would help.

In any case, my answer would probably be much the same - if both threads are stripped, you have a major problem. A die & tap or a thread chaser will only clean up what is left of the threads, they won't replace lost metal, so that route is unlikely to be fruitful. In any case, the thread is probably not a common size or pitch (Stanley was very good at choosing less-common ones) so you probably won't find what you need at the local ironmonger.

It's more common for one or the other of the thread components to fail even though they may both look like they are gone. For e.g., if the screw has stripped, the lands of the nut will likely be filled with the stripped threads from the screw & will look like it has little or no thread, but will clean up nicely with the appropriate tap. So first step would be to determine which part has failed & concentrate on replacing the other bit. The best solution may be to tap the 'nut' oversize & use a larger screw, but if it's a block plane with a single-piece screw & thumbwheel like this:

... it makes that a rather difficult exercise for anyone without metalworking abilities or appropriate gear & full replacement of parts may be your only recourse.

Can't be any more helpful than that without knowing exactly what you are dealing with...
Cheers,
Ian

 

[diytoolbox]

Yes, it is a block plane Stanley P910. It looks about 50+ years old, but shaves very well when the blade is sharpened. It is kinda weird size, substantially larger than usual block planes, but much smaller than the No.3 or 4 planes.

It works really well for certain shape and size of woods not too small or big. For the really small parts of woods, I tend to use a Stanley 102, which also works fine.

But both tightening bolt and nut is worn out, initially I thought. But now I think the nut is OK or better condition than the bolt which looks almost no threads around it.

I have thought about it, and got a few ideas. I have a long bolt with a plastic handle at one end. It came from a defunct work light brackets. The bolt fits tightly to the P910 nut. But it is a lot longer than the original P910 worn out bolt. So I will vise it, and cut it to the same length as the original worn out bolt with a hacksaw, and try it out.

It is fortunate that the nut's thread was not too badly worn. Looking into the hole with a LED light didn't help finding about it due to too much brightness light shed into too small space. But trying the spare bolt with nylon handle gave me some clue, that they might work together, if the bolt is cut to the right length. It will start tightening the blade on the P910 OK hopefully. cheers.