Chems
Established Member
How to get that shine on the metal is what I want to know!
What Smoothing Plane
- Thread starter Chems
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bugbear
Established Member
Chems":1z1qwe8e said:
I'd get it working before going nuts on the cosmetics.
You need to remove a good deal of metal to get down to a mirror finish, since you'd need to get below the deepest localised damage
Unless you can do this accurately, you'll actually degrade the tool.
BugBear
Chems
Established Member
I know but once Ive got it together I wont be willing to take it apart again.
woodbloke
Established Member
Chems":3ebzgkqr said:
At the risk of being cyber-slagged I'll offer up a coupla pics of my No 4 with apologies to those who're about to say 'oh, heavens above, not again :roll: ...'
The 'shine on the metal' requires a lot of elbow grease and involves just working down thru' the grades of w/d paper, I finished this one off at 1000g. Then follows a bit of work on the leather wheel of the Tormek and finally some Autosol to finish...BTW that's all the shiny metal bits :lol: - Rob
woodbloke
Established Member
Karl - still got this one, Martin the Woodkateer had the T5 for a 'reasonably exorbitant sum' :lol: - Rob
Chems
Established Member
Looks fantastic, I will keep plugging away with mine!
Chems
Established Member
woodbloke":2254jn1l said:
Im not sure mine will ever look like that, I worked on the blade for quite a while, but not sure how much progress Im making. I think I might be going wrong as Im not using a solid sanding block mainly just using my hands. Did you use any sort of lubricant be it T-Cut or whatever?
woodbloke
Established Member
I think I started off on the sole with about 100g al oxide and fixed it to a bit of float glass and progressively worked down thru' the grades of paper ... eventually used w/d papers for the finer grades, water as a lube.
The very best tip I can give has nothing to do with fettling the plane, it's to do with your hands. They'll get absolutely filthy black with ingrained crud and the best way to prevent this is to go to somewhere like Halfords and buy a pot of barrier cream which is applied before you start work. When you wash hands afterwards you'll find that all the yuk comes off quite easily which saves a lot of time with the scrubbing brush - Rob
The very best tip I can give has nothing to do with fettling the plane, it's to do with your hands. They'll get absolutely filthy black with ingrained crud and the best way to prevent this is to go to somewhere like Halfords and buy a pot of barrier cream which is applied before you start work. When you wash hands afterwards you'll find that all the yuk comes off quite easily which saves a lot of time with the scrubbing brush - Rob
For getting the pieces nice and eventually shiny not only start with a course enough abrasive but also a good quality one that does not clog up and wears out fast. I find 3M 255P gold and 3M 255P production work best.
Usually I start up with 30 to 60 gritt depending on how flat, pitted or scratched the surface is. For the plane sole and sdes, the frog's blade and seat side and the cap iron.
I start with 80 to 120 gritt on the blade, the frog positioner fork, the frog adjuster screw and the washers.
I use a float the flatten end level the frog seat on the planes body and to correct the mouth.
When sanding I stick the sandpaper down with adhesive (spray or very wide ultra thin double sided tape) onto thick float glass or granite for the planes sole and sides, frog and cap iron. For the other parts I glue it onto a piece of thick MDF.
After sanding (I don't go past 600 grit) I use various grades of polishing compound on MDF and buffing wheels.
The blade depth adjusted wheel and screws are cleaned and polished on the lathe. I use a drill chuck I salvaged from a broken cordless drill. Which is perfect for grabbing small objects without marring. The shaft of the drill chuck is mounted on the lathe using a lathe chuck with small jaws.
The handles are best oiled and shellaced. Handles made from non exotics have to be stained first to a reddish brown colour.
I replate the lever cap and screws if necessary with nickel. And re-enamel the plane body, frog and logos (after cource sanding and before making the plane nice).
A plane in the condition like yours would take me about 2 to 3 full days to get like the one in the pic posted by wookblode.
Usually I start up with 30 to 60 gritt depending on how flat, pitted or scratched the surface is. For the plane sole and sdes, the frog's blade and seat side and the cap iron.
I start with 80 to 120 gritt on the blade, the frog positioner fork, the frog adjuster screw and the washers.
I use a float the flatten end level the frog seat on the planes body and to correct the mouth.
When sanding I stick the sandpaper down with adhesive (spray or very wide ultra thin double sided tape) onto thick float glass or granite for the planes sole and sides, frog and cap iron. For the other parts I glue it onto a piece of thick MDF.
After sanding (I don't go past 600 grit) I use various grades of polishing compound on MDF and buffing wheels.
The blade depth adjusted wheel and screws are cleaned and polished on the lathe. I use a drill chuck I salvaged from a broken cordless drill. Which is perfect for grabbing small objects without marring. The shaft of the drill chuck is mounted on the lathe using a lathe chuck with small jaws.
The handles are best oiled and shellaced. Handles made from non exotics have to be stained first to a reddish brown colour.
I replate the lever cap and screws if necessary with nickel. And re-enamel the plane body, frog and logos (after cource sanding and before making the plane nice).
A plane in the condition like yours would take me about 2 to 3 full days to get like the one in the pic posted by wookblode.
bugbear
Established Member
Chems":48uc4700 said:
You should; it easy and quick. It's only held together with a few machine screws.
The only even vaguely critical adjustment is the frog, and you'll probably alter that several times as you gain experience to guide your choice. That's what the adjuster is for.
BTW, when cleaning rust (certainly the amount you've got) I wouldn't use anything coarser than 320-400 grit SiC.
The extra speed of rust removal gained by coarser grits is more than compensated by the tedium of removing the scratches they leave.
And (if your photos are accurate) 320-400 grit will have that corrosion off in a couple of minutes.
Here's my most frequently used plane:
Despite the cosmetics of the body, the handles have been fully stripped, sanded to 800 grit, stained and oiled, the blade and cap-iron fully flattened, polished and fitted, and the sole flattened by reference to a surface plate. It works quite well, actually
Addition: I've also cleaned the thread on the adjuster bolt (removed by holding the thread in a soft jawed vice and rotating the frog), and reworked the surface of the cam on the lever cap to give smooth operation.
You did say your purpose was to remove tearout, not make a showpiece...
BugBear
Chems
Established Member
That looks very similar to mine.
I will continue sanding polishing etc till I get gleaming surfaces, then I will have a look at the knobs and repainting the handles. Then it will be actually sharpening the blade up.
I will continue sanding polishing etc till I get gleaming surfaces, then I will have a look at the knobs and repainting the handles. Then it will be actually sharpening the blade up.
bugbear
Established Member
Chems":u59dsyuf said:
OK. Check back in when you've done the cosmetics the way you want, and want to make it work well.
BugBear
Chems
Established Member
I will indeed, I dont think I will get it super clean, if I can get it looking like yours I will be pleased.
Lord Nibbo
Established Member
Jake":co2lvnl7 said:
Oh I don't know
Here's one I did last year
Chems
Established Member
I bought a cheap grinder today, it has tool rests, can I sharpen my blade using a grinder?
