Well Ive gone and done it now aint I

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Signal

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Spent the whole evening in the WS "fettling" 2 No 4's for a fiver and a 5 1/2 for a tenner

1 of the 4s is obvioulsy quite new but the other well quite old I suppose.

No identifying marks other than stanley and bailey and I wouldn't know where to begin.

The older one was in a terrible state every part of it was covered in this horrible black gunk, though it did smell quite nice :lol:

It was obvioulsy corrasive as on the blade is badly pitted and was stuck to the frog. In the end I scraped as much of it off as I could and gave it a bit of a soak to loosen up the really grimey bits.

Then I attacked it with the bobbin sander, yes you heard me :shock:

Very lightly mind just to get back to metal, then took to it with a sanding pad and worked my way up to 600 wet and dry. Its come up not to bad for a first attempt. I'm sure nowhere up the the level of attention that the likes of others would spend but once Id flatted the frog, blade and iron and give it a sharpen it works like a treat. I don't know who was more suprised me or the plane.

The newer one just needed a bit of a polish up and a sharpen and that performs quit nicely as well.

The 5 1/2 was to in a bit of a state but didn't need anywhere near the treat meant of the old 4 but again once id applied all the gems i've read here it to produces whisper thin curlies and a nice bit of shiny wood.

Not quite upto getting away with out a bit of scraping or what not but for 20 quid and a bit of elbow grease I have 3 nice planes to make curlies with


Now whats next on the list, hmm block plane, no 7, plough plane, moulding plane. Aargggggghhhhhhhhhhh help, some body just kicked me up the jacksie and Im slipping fast

Signal
 
Sig,
Watch yourself-don't let it get away from you! :lol:
Before you know it you'll be scouring the Internet for that rare number 1 and boring all your Mates...... :lol:
best regards,
Philly :D
 
Alf,

Ive just dug out a load of climbers friends and tackle to stop me falling to far, though im sure I just saw the glint of a freshly sharpened chisel hacking through my rope :wink:


Any ideas how I can get an Idea of the age of the older 4 and 5 1/2?

Chars

Signal
 
Alf, is there no type study for Made in England Stanley planes? How about Record?
 
Roger,

Not that I know of, no. There's some info on Record in the re-print of catalogue #15 which helps to date things a little for Record stuff (you don't say...), but not a type study as such. I would expect those who've had a lot more planes through their hands have some criterior they go on though, but search me. After all I'm not a c*ll*ct*r... :wink:

Cheers, Alf
 
Me neither :wink: but are there tool collectors and organizations? I've always been envious of the long history of woodworking there and just pictured it as a place where it alternates raining woodies and infills.
Surely someone is cataloging all that history!
 
Roger,

Well there's The Tools and Trades History Society of course, which I'm not a member of. Didn't seem much point when I discovered that there were no events or meetings further west than Plymouth, and then only rarely. :( And there's the trouble I think. There simply isn't enough volume of interested persons here in Blighty, so if you don't live in the east of the country (which seems to be the Old Tool Capital of the UK - bit like the USA really!) you're on your own. Anyway, I think members of TATHS are probably doing all the research, but 'cos of all these rains of woodies and infills ( :? ), that's what they're researching. Personally I have a soft spot for all the metal plane purveyors that appeared after WW2, but when you've 200 yr old planes to research, nobody's much interested in 60 yr old ones. :( Heigh ho. Wolfgang met someone who's looking into the saw makers (Sheffield only, I think?) while he was over here; now there's an area where we could really do with a good guide, so finger's crossed.

Cheers, Alf
 
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