Depth Stop on a Record 044C or a 050C

[SteveB43]

Hi All,
Anyone know how the depth stop on the above planes is supposed to work?,
OK I know you screw the depth gauge locking screw from the top of the plane into the body of the plane to connect to the depth gauge itself, but it's how the little nylon washer or depth gauge expander is supposed to work, which is currently eluding me. :?
Currently the whole depth assembly just moves up and down and does not lock tight if you try and set it any lower than screwed in tight. To reduce the 'play' in the gauge where does the nylon washer need to be?
On the Stanley 50 you lock the whole gauge down dependant on depth required,
Any advice/pointers would be much appreciated...

Cheers
SteveB,

 

[AndyT]

You should have a conical part which draws up into the nylon tube when the top knob is turned, making it swell outwards slightly. It's this expansion which locks it up to grip. Try taking the whole assembly out and fiddle with it outside the plane - you should be able to see that the tube is a loose fit when the cone is below its lower edge, but fatter as it is drawn up.
If yours has been left a long time, and the bottom of the tube has got permanently expanded, you might need to cut it off square again.

Having said all that, I think it's not a very good design solution, compared to the simple approach of a thumbscrew in a hole. The final locking action seems to shift the setting a little bit. Scope for some diy improvements!

Edit: I was remembering it the wrong way up but the principle still applies. Alf has a handy scan of the instructions here which should confirm whether yours is all correct and complete: http://www.cornishworkshop.co.uk/record050cmanual.pdf

Also, it might be that your bit of tubing is too short for the cone to reach it - adding a washer should fix it, or a longer piece of tubing.

 

[SteveB43]

Hi Andy
Thanks for the tip, I think I'm going to experiment with differnt bits of tubing as you say and some washers. I get the idea that there needs to be some expansion in the nylon tube to lock the depth stop into place. The thread also on the depth guage locking screw doesnt seem long enought to lock in when working at full range, but this suggests parts need a different way of fitting to achieve this.
Cheers
Steve,

 

[AndyT]

Here you go - pictures of my one, which works.

The parts:

Loosely assembled:

Tightened up, showing the bulge in the plastic tube.

The length of the tube is 9mm.

 

[SteveB43]

Hi Andy,
Thanks for these, here's mine..

so they look similar but it could be the way these are set into the plane body, I noticed the nylon washer had got stuck in the body of the plane and was allowing the depth stop to pass through with no resistance


Cheers!