Plane sole lapping the easy way

[Jacob]

I do this all with 3M microfinishing film on float glass plates, all you need for most planes are a sheet of 100 micron and then 40 micron, it's self adhesive and never curls up on the corners like wet/dry paper can, so no need for white spirit or turps, I usually lubricate it with ACF50 and it really works well at preventing the planes from rusting. For longer planes you need a couple of big pieces of float glass but the same process as jacob shows, you can do it on your workbench with some leather underneath to stop it from moving about. Seems expensive but bear in mind I've had sheets last about 6 months to a year.

https://www.workshopheaven.com/3m-micro-finishing-film-100-micron-ao-psa.html
https://www.workshopheaven.com/3m-micro-finishing-film-40-micron-ao-psa.html

Wet thin paper-backed wet n dry doesn't curl up once it's been pressed down and very wet. It really is designed for the job.
Wet processes have other advantages see earlier post.
I forgot to add; instead of marking with felt tips etc you can do a few passes at an angle and then look at these marks for high points. Then take them off going to and fro again, against a bit of a fence.
I know I've made wet sole lapping appear ridiculously easy - that's because it really is, any fool can do it!

 

[hlvd]

In my worst nightmare, I still couldn't imagine doing that
to my planer bed.

It's not doing anything to the planer bed though.

 

[Sandyn]

one or two sheets of 80 grit wet n dry, some white spirit, a piece of wood, a good flat impervious surface. I use my planer bed but the other options often discussed should do.

I use the cast iron top of my band saw for polishing all kinds of flat surfaces using wet and dry. I also sharpen planer blades and chisels using this method. I have never thought of using white spirit to hold the wet/dry in place, what a great idea!!

 

[Jacob]

I do this all with 3M microfinishing film on float glass plates, all you need for most planes are a sheet of 100 micron and then 40 micron, it's self adhesive and never curls up on the corners like wet/dry paper can, so no need for white spirit or turps, I usually lubricate it with ACF50 and it really works well at preventing the planes from rusting. For longer planes you need a couple of big pieces of float glass but the same process as jacob shows, you can do it on your workbench with some leather underneath to stop it from moving about. Seems expensive but bear in mind I've had sheets last about 6 months to a year.

https://www.workshopheaven.com/3m-micro-finishing-film-100-micron-ao-psa.html
https://www.workshopheaven.com/3m-micro-finishing-film-40-micron-ao-psa.html

Forgot to say - 100 micron is much too fine for sole lapping - just makes the job slower.
80 grit is fine, I suspect 60 or even 40 would do it. No finer polishing needed - that way madness lies!
The fresh grind scratches are sharp hence it's a good idea to do it for and aft so the pane will skate in a straight line, and it looks neat! But the sharpness will be gone after a few minutes use and you will have low friction.
Low friction is achieved not by removing the scratches but just by blunting the tops of them.
I discovered this when I bought a new Quangsheng 4 - you could see the grind marks but the friction was gone very quickly, though you could still see the marks

 

[thetyreman]

Forgot to say - 100 micron is much too fine for sole lapping - just makes the job slower.
80 grit is fine, I suspect 60 or even 40 would do it. No finer polishing needed - that way madness lies!
The fresh grind scratches are sharp hence it's a good idea to do it for and aft so the pane will skate in a straight line, and it looks neat! But the sharpness will be gone after a few minutes use and you will have low friction.
Low friction is achieved not by removing the scratches but just by blunting the tops of them.
I discovered this when I bought a new Quangsheng 4 - you could see the grind marks but the friction was gone very quickly, though you could still see the marks

the micron system is different, 100 is the most course grit, lower number = finer, I don't know what the 100 micron equivalent is with wet/dry, but 100 micron is quite aggressive, really good for flattening soles and also removing any rust or pitting.

 

[D_W]

It appears to cross to about 160 grit in the coarse grit ratings, but some of those charts can provide suspicious results, and if the abrasive is finely graded at 160, it may be as fast as something like 100 grit W/D (give or take).

 

[Jacob]

the micron system is different, 100 is the most course grit, higher number = finer, I don't know what the 100 micron equivalent is with wet/dry, but 100 micron is quite aggressive, really good for flattening soles and also removing any rust or pitting.

Says here that 80 grit would be about 200 microns - twice as coarse. Micron to Grit Conversion Calculator

 

[D_W]

Some of it depends on the abrasive - when both papers are brand new, if the rating is accurate, the silicon carbide will be twice as coarse. The lapping films have fairly hard particles (different than the silicon carbide papers that are - if good - closely graded, but intended to break to cut alloying elements - especially in stainless and high speed steels, etc).

Kind of hard to tell much without having used the different types, and most of the abrasives that claim additional speed do it one of two ways:
1) they lie and include a fair share of large particles coarser than the grade (an inexpensive way to do it)
2) they're honest and really close to the grade (an expensive way to do it)

 

[D_W]

There's something pretty lacking in this demonstration, Jacob (though it's fine to freshen planes that are already close to flat).

The reason this topic came up (or that I responded here) is receiving several questions (independent of each other) about how to do significant flattening of long planes. The spot method is better at that - it removes metal far faster, and only where it's "sticking up".

It also results in a flat plane because you're only removing the high stuff - no matter how the plane is out of flat to start (has to be pretty bad if the toe and heel are high, but lapping a plane with a toe and heel high doesn't do anything other than polish the profile. You can do it for hours and you won't remove a hundredth from the sole, and the profile will still be the same.

I don't have any objection to doing it "the easy way" on small planes when it's quick, though. It's just easier on adhesive roll, because you put the glass shelf on your bench, lap the plane ,vacuum the dust and put the shelf back up against the wall where it started.

 

[Jacob]

Says here that 80 grit would be about 200 microns - twice as coarse. Micron to Grit Conversion Calculator

Also your "3M microfinishing film" is nearly 5 times the price of bog standard wet n dry which probably does a better job anyway.
Luckily it's "relatively easy to remove with a few drops of orange oil" which I'd never heard of before.
Luckily orange oil is available in 100ml bottles at £14 which is £140 a litre.

 

[D_W]

I doubt that's 3m's instruction, though I'll admit my purchasing of expensive abrasive sheets was limited to one, and then some weird fiber stuff that's fabulous for repairing finish issues on guitars (i'm sure that it would be great for car finishes, too, but the standard isn't that high there when you really get up close, and the go-to appears to be sand to medium and then start with cut compounds and end with color /high polish).

Meguiars fast glaze probably won't work that well on tools.

That aside, I do have a large portion of my original purchase of 60 grit silicon carbide paper left after your method didn't fare that well against the lap and spot removal method. It wasn't particularly expensive - maybe 50 cents a sheet or a little more (seemed to cost almost the same for 50 sheets as 10 based on the "nail the small purchaser" model), so - well, at least 80% of what's remaining appears to be money wasted. Two 4 inch by 10 yard adhesive rolls of aluminum oxide paper would've been dandy in exchange, but I can't find anyone who wants to trade.

 

[Jacob]

.

 

[Ttrees]

Here's just one example of myself being a numpty, when I was convinced that the big lap would always work.
keeping paper tight, and clean etc, I was convinced lol!

Here's something that might happen should you see those job lots of planes with thin ends and unused full length irons.
Look at the hairline cracks starting to appear.

More to the point and a lot more embarrassing is the fact that it took me a while to figure this out.
I was absolutely certain that the gurus couldn't be dishing out inaccurate info.
Two 60 1/2 were destroyed, and a pulley which didn't tolerate having a custom key
which had a crown, should have checked the center as well as the corners.
Thankfully it finally clicked, and learned how to flatten things with the spot method, as in David's video.

If one is still convinced otherwise, then make sure you get yourself a plane with a thick casting
which can be seen head on front and back, so you know you've got enough meat left
should you want to try both methods and see for yourself.

 

[Jacob]

Just dug these out of the archive. This was years ago. Horrible plane found in a skip.
Couldn't get the pics in correct order but you can work it out!

You can see here how the wet n dry picks up the high points. I took it to the point where it would cut OK "in good working order". Could have gone further but not worth the effort.

Cut quite nicely in the end. Didn't keep it. The blade was the only good bit of metal in it. Pictures in wrong order too difficult to rearrange!

PS Found the link Planes - how bad is bad? pictures all gone

 

[Ttrees]

Good photo of what folks mean by working the high spots off.
One can easily see that the ends are not in contact and if kept at it
the high area in the center will meet with the ends in a crowned profile,
not so much of an issue with a no.4 plane,
but for a longer one, thinner one or one with a movable mouthpiece, that can lead to going very out of flat,
as one is just see sawing on the center and continually wiping out the edges by
copying the crowned profile, or making things even worse, which gets very noticeable if one starts
with a longer plane in that condition.

Tom

 

[Jacob]

Good photo of what folks mean by working the high spots off.
One can easily see that the ends are not in contact and if kept at it
the high area in the center will meet with the ends in a crowned profile,
not so much of an issue with a no.4 plane,
but for a longer one, thinner one or one with a movable mouthpiece, that can lead to going very out of flat,
as one is just see sawing on the center and continually wiping out the edges by
copying the crowned profile, or making things even worse, which gets very noticeable if one starts
with a longer plane in that condition.

Tom

You do seem to have had a problem! Those old planes in you snaps look absolutely effed to start with so maybe no chance at all of improving them, if there's just not enough metal. I did a concave no7 years ago which was pretty bad but came out OK.

 

[Ttrees]

Not all the thin planes I see are welded, but many are that thin or close to it.
One might question this example, first I seen on a google search, but have stumbled across many job lots of planes like this, and many longer Bailey's with obscure photos on the bay.
Often presented to look carefully restored or cared for.

 

[Jacob]

Not all the thin planes I see are welded, but many are that thin or close to it.
One might question this example, first I seen on a google search, but have stumbled across many job lots of planes like this, and many longer Bailey's with obscure photos on the bay.
Often presented to look carefully restored or cared for.

I've seen broken planes brazed but never welded. Brazing works fine. I've got a spokeshave brazed together after being dropped and it's OK.

 

[D_W]

Just dug these out of the archive. This was years ago. Horrible plane found in a skip.
Couldn't get the pics in correct order but you can work it out!

View attachment 117333View attachment 117334

You can see here how the wet n dry picks up the high points. I took it to the point where it would cut OK "in good working order". Could have gone further but not worth the effort.

View attachment 117335View attachment 117336View attachment 117332View attachment 117331

Cut quite nicely in the end. Didn't keep it. The blade was the only good bit of metal in it. Pictures in wrong order too difficult to rearrange!

PS Found the link Planes - how bad is bad? pictures all gone

I don't remember any #4s that were hard to scrub the bottom off of other than one that was about 5 thousandths hollow in its with (like it was on rails) with a hard casting, and a very beat marples 4 1/2 (also with a very hard casting). I'd have lapped them if the castings were softer (some planes - like some sargents and millers falls are *very* soft and don't even seem to need fresh paper).

 

[Craig22]

I just had a response from Ray Isles regarding surface grinding of a #7 sole. £22.50 plus VAT, and shipping each way. So I reckon £33 all told. They'll do the sides too for another £7.50 plus VAT

That I would suggest is a bargain, given that the last #7 I did by hand took me several hours. It was very flat indeed once I'd finished, but it was not an easy, clean, or a short process.