Lost the lever cap screw for my Stanley 220 block plane

[FrenchIan]

I could buy the official replacement pack which contains, among other things, the screw, but at £7.76 plus VAT plus P&P to (France), it's expensive.

If I can identify the thread, though, I reckon I could get someone in the UK to buy me something similar, and post it out.

I estimate it's 1/4 inch, finer than Whitworth (tried that), so I'm guessing BSF. Can anyone confirm this?

Thanks

 

[Vann]

I estimate it's 1/4 inch, finer than Whitworth (tried that), so I'm guessing BSF.

Hi Ian,

I have the remains of an old English made #220 that I picked up somewhere along the way. It still has the screw.

It's 9/32" 24tpi, but I couldn't tell you if it Whitworth form or something else. The screw is 13/16" long overall, and 5/8" long excluding the head. There's 1/2" of thread.

I hope this helps. If you can't pick something up locally, or within Europe, let my know and I'll post mine from the nether-regions of the Pacific

Cheers, Vann.

ps The thread of lever-cap screw on bench planes is 9/32" - 24tpi American/unified form, according to recordhandplanes.com but two I tried don't screw freely into the #220 body - so maybe (just maybe) the thread is Whitworth. I don't know how much difference the different form would make.

 

[FrenchIan]

I estimate it's 1/4 inch, finer than Whitworth (tried that), so I'm guessing BSF.

Hi Ian,

I have the remains of an old English made #220 that I picked up somewhere along the way. It still has the screw.

It's 9/32" 24tpi, but I couldn't tell you if it Whitworth form or something else. The screw is 13/16" long overall, and 5/8" long excluding the head. There's 1/2" of thread.

I hope this helps. If you can't pick something up locally, or within Europe, let my know and I'll post mine from the nether-regions of the Pacific

Cheers, Vann.

ps The thread of lever-cap screw on bench planes is 9/32" - 24tpi American/unified form, according to recordhandplanes.com but two I tried don't screw freely into the #220 body - so maybe (just maybe) the thread is Whitworth. I don't know how much difference the different form would make.

Vann, thanks for the reply. Very interesting

I have a spare screw for my Stanley/Bailey No.4 bench plane - it's bigger than the screw for the block plane, but the thread looks similar. But, I think it's 5/16" rather than 9/32", despite what the website says. (9/32" seems to be an uncommon size for a bolt in any gauge - 5/16" seems more common.)

Just to confirm this, I measured the internal diameter of the tapped hole in the block plane. It matches the dimension for a 1/4" bolt - either Whitworth or American Unified. So, in the nicest possible way, might your 9/32" screw actually be a 1/4" screw?

If so, it would give us the choice between 1/4" 26tpi BSF and 1/4" 28tpi UNF. Or something really unusual.

What do you think?

Cheers

 

[Racers]

Hi,

Planes use non standard thread sizes, plane making started before threads where standadised and the continiued using the odd sizes.
Why don't you drill it out and re-tap for a larger screw?

Pete

 

[FrenchIan]

Hi,

Planes use non standard thread sizes, plane making started before threads where standadised and the continiued using the odd sizes.
Why don't you drill it out and re-tap for a larger screw?

Pete

True. And it does allow interchangeabiity of parts.

Regrettably, metal drilling and tapping isn't an option for me - haven't the tools. Besides, I think the plane body is cast iron, and if it is, it's now old, hard and risky to machine. I may just have to buy a genuine replacement

 

[Vann]

I estimate it's 1/4 inch, finer than Whitworth (tried that), so I'm guessing BSF.

It's 9/32" 24tpi, but I couldn't tell you if it Whitworth form or something else. The screw is 13/16" long overall, and 5/8" long excluding the head. There's 1/2" of thread.

ps The thread of lever-cap screw on bench planes is 9/32" - 24tpi American/unified form, according to recordhandplanes.com...

Vann, thanks for the reply. Very interesting

I have a spare screw for my Stanley/Bailey No.4 bench plane - it's bigger than the screw for the block plane, but the thread looks similar. But, I think it's 5/16" rather than 9/32", despite what the website says. (9/32" seems to be an uncommon size for a bolt in any gauge - 5/16" seems more common.)

Just to confirm this, I measured the internal diameter of the tapped hole in the block plane. It matches the dimension for a 1/4" bolt - either Whitworth or American Unified. So, in the nicest possible way, might your 9/32" screw actually be a 1/4" screw?

If so, it would give us the choice between 1/4" 26tpi BSF and 1/4" 28tpi UNF. Or something really unusual.

What do you think?

Cheers

I've been back out to the garage to re-measure the thread. It is, without doubt, bigger than ¼" - to be exact it's 7.00mm dia. over the threads.

Using my thread gauge it's 24tpi (22tpi & 25tpi don't fit - 24tpi does).

As Pete says, Stanley developed their threads before threads were standardised. Whitworth form (55°) was is use in USA then, BSW came later, but by then the US had changed to American form (60°) because it was cheaper to produce.

Cheers, Vann.

ps just a thought :idea: is your #220 a recent one - possibly with metric thread :?:

 

[FrenchIan]

I've been back out to the garage to re-measure the thread. It is, without doubt, bigger than ¼" - to be exact it's 7.00mm dia. over the threads.

Using my thread gauge it's 24tpi (22tpi & 25tpi don't fit - 24tpi does).

As Pete says, Stanley developed their threads before threads were standardised. Whitworth form (55°) was is use in USA then, BSW came later, but by then the US had changed to American form (60°) because it was cheaper to produce.

Cheers, Vann.

ps just a thought :idea: is your #220 a recent one - possibly with metric thread :?:[/quote]

Bingo! It's M6

I am surprised. I bought the plane 35 years ago, and I would have bet that a company like Record still used Imperial at that time - none of this new-fangled metric rubbish.

Serves me rightr for masking assumptions.

Thanks, everybody. I can now re-assemble the plane and start making a mess.

Cheers