Rebate plane

[Colarris]

I've just got hold of one of these but dont know who to adjust it? The large screw holds the blade it which obviously loosens to allow the raising and lower of it but theres also a smaller screw, plus the an adjustment lever. I find that my adjustments just seem to make the blade come loose and fall out. Any tips?

 

[jimi43]

I've just got hold of one of these but dont know who to adjust it? The large screw holds the blade it which obviously loosens to allow the raising and lower of it but its not very subtle and Im having trouble getting the blade just right. Any tips?

What model is it?

Jim

 

[Colarris]

Its a Stanley No. 78

 

[jimi43]

You just tighten the lever cap to hold the iron and then use the adjuster screw to raise and lower the bevel in the mouth to get the correct depth of cut then fully tighten the lever cap.

Make sure the iron is engaged in the adjuster tag...

Cheers

Jim

 

[Colarris]

Thanks.
I'm confused as to what the purpose of the adjust lever is if you simply have to loose the screws and lower and raise the blade yourself.(?)
Also, when I move the adjustment lever sometime the blade holder pops off! :s All seems a little random.

 

[jimi43]

Thanks.
I'm confused as to what the purpose of the adjust lever is if you simply have to loose the screws and lower and raise the blade yourself.(?)

Oh sorry...my fault....of course...a lever that does the lowering and raising.

Tighten the cap not too tight and use the lever to get the depth then fully tighten the cap

Try reading about them HERE

There were quite a few versions.

Sorry for the confusion

Jim

 

[Colarris]

No problem Jimi, help appreciated.

 

[studders]

Its a Stanley No. 78

And a nifty little beast they are too, especially when you can't be rrrrrsed to set up the Electric beast just for one or two cuts.

 

[Colarris]

Still a bit fiddley though. Adjusting seems to mean messing aroud with the 2 screws and the lever. Still, I got it going in the end

 

[AndyT]

It should be possible to find the happy medium where the blade is held tight enough to work properly without chattering, but it is still possible to adjust the depth of cut with the lever. That's the benefit of the lever design - you can take off thick shavings to cut down quickly, then easily switch to a fine shaving for the last few cuts, just by a quick push with your thumb.
These planes sold in their thousands and were a very popular tool for joiners working on ordinary buildings, using softwoods.

 

[cam]

Patrick Leach's site Blood and Gore has a good description of the use and mechanics of the 78
Give it a look.
cam

 

[jimi43]

Patrick Leach's site Blood and Gore has a good description of the use and mechanics of the 78
Give it a look.
cam

Totally agree...my link above will take you there.

Jim

 

[Colarris]

Great job. Thanks

 

[Colarris]

I have noticed though that sometimes when using it that a curve appears in the rebate. Is that because the plane has/is moved during planning?

 

[Richard T]

Does it have a sliding fence like this?

I know a lot have them missing.... that and the depth stop.

 

[AndyT]

I have noticed though that sometimes when using it that a curve appears in the rebate. Is that because the plane has/is moved during planning?

The answer depends on which surface the curve appears in. With this, and any rebate plane, it's essential that the rught hand egde of the blade protrudes past the body by just a hair's breadth. If it doesn't, successive passes will each tend to be a bit narrower than the last, making a sloping side to the rebate. You then have to correct this by laying the plane on its side and taking a sideways cut.

It's possible that (if the blade is not clamped tight enough) successive passes will push it back into the body or tilt it over at an angle, producing this problem.

 

[bugbear]

Does it have a sliding fence like this?

I know a lot have them missing.... that and the depth stop.

Ah - thanks for the image, now I can see/guess what the OP means by small screw and big screw.

To the OP; the small screw is an (adustable) pivot, and isn't adjusted very often; the large screw (at the top) is meant to be the method of loossening/tightening when you want to remove the blade for sharpening, hence the large diameter, knurled head.

There are two things you might be seeing; one is a VERY rough under surface of the lever cap (where it presses on the blade), such that the adjuster can only budge the blade when everything is very loose. This can be checked for easily, and remedied by wet and dry SiC if needed.

The other issue (the lever cap moving when you adjust) is commonly caused by a minor design flaw - there's (in fact) nothing holding the lever cap in place. I have improved this on my plane by (gently...) taking a counter sink to the hole in the cap iron, so that the "small screw" actually locates positively in the cap-iron.

Hope this helps - the #78 can be made to work quite well, hence it being commonly used.

BugBear

 

[SteveB43]

The other issue (the lever cap moving when you adjust) is commonly caused by a minor design flaw - there's (in fact) nothing holding the lever cap in place. I have improved this on my plane by (gently...) taking a counter sink to the hole in the cap iron, so that the "small screw" actually locates positively in the cap-iron.

Hope this helps - the #78 can be made to work quite well, hence it being commonly used.

BugBear[/quote]


Hi BugBear, Any chance you could show a photo of how you've modified your 78. I'm trying to understand how the head of the small screw is'nt in fact holding the lever cap in place.... Much appreciated..

 

[bugbear]

T

Hi BugBear, Any chance you could show a photo of how you've modified your 78. I'm trying to understand how the head of the small screw is'nt in fact holding the lever cap in place.... Much appreciated..

The screw (obviously) holds the capdown onto the frog, and it (fairly obviously) stops the cap sliding towards the sole, but the keyhole slot is designed to allow movement away from the sole - it's how you remove/replace the lever cap. It's this latter movement, when you're just trying to adjust the cutting depth than my little mod avoids.

BugBear

 

[Colarris]

It does, yes, although its a little loose not matter how hard I tighten it