Anybody ever made a Bailey Y-lever?

[baldpate]

I've been experimenting with putting a 2" tapered plane iron (the cutter only, from the double-iron for a wedged woodie) in a Bailey pattern smoother. With some filing & straightening etc, it seems to work very well - the lateral adjuster functions, but the tab on the depth adjuster won't reach through the blade (over 3.5mm thick at that point) to engage the slot in the cap iron.

So I'm back on tap-and-try depth adjustment, unless I can get a Y-lever with a much longer tab. I've tried one of the extra-long ones from Workshop Heaven, but it still won't reach on this plane. I've seen the forum thread about brazing/silver soldering an extra piece of metal on the end of the Y-lever, but I haven't got the equipment or skills for that.

I was wondering if any of you had successfully fabricated (or attempted) a pressed-metal Y-lever? I was thinking in terms maybe of cutting two identical-shaped pieces from 2mm mild steel, bending the pieces outwards at the lower end to form the yoke, gluing the pieces together at the upper (tab) end with epoxy, pop-riveting at the pivot point and re-drilling the centre of the rivet to form the pivot hole.

Do you think such an assembly would withstand the forces involved? It would take a bit of effort to make, so I'd rather not bother if the general opinion is that it won't work anyway!

Or does anyone have any other bright ideas for how I can solve my problem (not involving silver-soldering)?

 

[katellwood]

There's an alternative





The two pieces attached to the cap iron will fit nicely in the groove of the blade just make sure they are wide enough to engage with the Y lever

take a look here
http://www.woodcraft.com/category/20801 ... lanes.aspx

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I seem to remember that Workshop Heaven do them for thicker irons.

 

[baldpate]

...
The two pieces attached to the cap iron will fit nicely in the groove of the blade just make sure they are wide enough to engage with the Y lever

take a look here
http://www.woodcraft.com/category/20801 ... lanes.aspx

Thanks for the pics & link - I'd read about the Cosman chip-breaker but didn't quite understand how it worked until now.

Looks maybe simpler than trying to fabricate a Y-lever. Have you actually done it yourself? And, if so, what did you use to secure the additional bits to the underside of the cap-iron - rivets?

I seem to remember that Workshop Heaven do them for thicker irons.

They do - it was the first thing I tried, but it didn't work unfortunately. Mostly because the plane is a piece of Silverline cr*p, with a poorly machined frog (wrongly placed Y-lever pivot) - I use it as my 'experimental' plane ; that poor machining + the thickness of the iron means even the WH Y-lever doesn't reach.

 

[David C]

I would rivet the plates to the C/B. Small diam. round nails would work well.

I am sure someone on the forum made a Y lever from solid. I drilled and fitted a casting which TLN supplied to me. There was quite a lot of headscratching in working out where to drill the hole!!

David Charlesworth

 

[Sheffield Tony]

Mostly because the plane is a piece of Silverline cr*p

In which case it is but a tiny fragment of a much bigger body of cr*p, and probably not worth the bother. I bought a Silverline mitre square which was over a degree out ! How you can make tools that cheap but still not worth the price defeats me.

 

[katellwood]

...
The two pieces attached to the cap iron will fit nicely in the groove of the blade just make sure they are wide enough to engage with the Y lever

take a look here
http://www.woodcraft.com/category/20801 ... lanes.aspx

Thanks for the pics & link - I'd read about the Cosman chip-breaker but didn't quite understand how it worked until now.

Looks maybe simpler than trying to fabricate a Y-lever. Have you actually done it yourself? And, if so, what did you use to secure the additional bits to the underside of the cap-iron - rivets?

I seem to remember that Workshop Heaven do them for thicker irons.

They do - it was the first thing I tried, but it didn't work unfortunately. Mostly because the plane is a piece of Silverline cr*p, with a poorly machined frog (wrongly placed Y-lever pivot) - I use it as my 'experimental' plane ; that poor machining + the thickness of the iron means even the WH Y-lever doesn't reach.

I actually silver soldered a piece on the tip of the Y lever, all you need is a B&Q blow torch, what I did was drill a small hole in the end of the Y lever about the same dia as a thick panel pin I then drilled a hole the same size in the piece of metal to attach. I put loads of flux on both parts and the panel pin which holds everything together. I heated it to bright red and dabbed the silver solder rod on the join. once it had cooled I shaped the end with a bench grinder and files

Silver solder is extremely strong, I weld bandsaw blades with it and only ever had one break

 

[Cheshirechappie]

The quickest way is the one Katellwood has outlined above; however if you need a method that doesn't involve silver soldering, then for a one-off, it wouldn't be too much to make from the solid. Rough it out oversize first (hacksaw and big files), then drill the pivot pin hole, then file to fit and finish.

 

[rxh]

I have made a Y-lever from the solid as shown in this thread:

a-replacement-plane-yoke-t68644.html?hilit=brook

 

[baldpate]

I searched the forum but didn't find your thread, rxh - clearly, I didn't use the right search term. Congratulations - that yoke is a work of art! I'm quite certain my metal-working skills aren't up to making anything remotely like that, so I'm going to pass on the idea of making it from the solid.

I think my simplest option, though, may be to rivet some tabs under the chipbreaker.

Thanks for the input, everybody.