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Thread: Stanley #4 Type 9 Cleanup
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18th August 2017, 06:48 PM #1SENIOR MEMBER
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Stanley #4 Type 9 Cleanup
I picked up a #4 on auction the other day and it arrived yesterday. I paid the equivalent of about AUD45 for it (Stanley prices have been going up around here for a while), and while it's not perfect, I'm quite happy with it. I sp not some time last night stripping it and cleaning it up a bit. Of course I forgot to take photos before I started, and the photos for the seller didn't really show up the amount of dirt and surface rust very well at all. And then there's the tote - it's from a bigger Stanley, which was at least visible In the pictures.
i don't have time at the moment to do a full clean up, and I'm not convinced that I want to either. It's an old plane, made between 1902 and 1907, and making everything shiny again would be a bit like your granny going out in a miniskirt. So what I did was remove the rust and most of the grime without worrying about shine, flatten the back of the blade and sharpen it. Oh, and for now I've stolen the tote of my newer #4 (a type 16).
I used only 600 grit water paper and some Autosol polish which I've found cleans up metal quite well. So no serious flattening and lots of patina still there. I may revisit it later when I have more time and do some more, but for now I'm happy to have cleaned the rust off and got it to a state where it made short work of getting a smooth shine of a scrap of Sneezewood.
These are the pics from the auction. They are quite flattering.
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18th August 2017, 07:05 PM #2SENIOR MEMBER
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Some pictures of the blade, chip breaker and lever cap, after polishing with Autosol. The back of the chip breaker is painted, which I don't remember seeing before. The blade looks original and is pretty close to being full sized too, although it has been used and sharpened before. The first photos of the lever cap were taken midway through the clean, and you can get an idea of how much grime there was from what the top portion the lever itself look like.
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18th August 2017, 07:37 PM #3SENIOR MEMBER
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Here are a couple of pictures of the body, frog and handles. I've not done any lapping, just a quick cleanup using Q20 with 600 water paper followed by a polish. I haven't touched the knob, I want to get my hands on a replacement tote first and do them together. I've ordered a tote on eBay, but it will only get here next year with family doing the free international shipping.
I've include a pic showing the two different tote nuts (the one with straight sides is from the type 9, the one with the cove from the type 16).
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18th August 2017, 07:50 PM #4SENIOR MEMBER
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I put a bit more time into the blade than the rest, although the back is not as flat as it could be nor as flat as I'd like it to be. I ran out of time as I wanted to finish up last night as I'm away over the weekend. I lapped the back. Started off rather optimistically on the fine diamond plate, then course, extra course and eventually 100 grit water paper on a granite block.
I learnt a valuable lesson (which I have read before but it's nice to confirm) - water paper (scary sharp system?) rounds the edges. I got the blade clean on the water paper, only to discover, once I went back to the diamond plate, that while the sides were closer, I'd actually taken a step back on the edge itself. The order I load the pictures seems to swap but you can see the picture where the back looks shiny and consistent, and then a later pic with black marker around the edges, which was taken after it had been back on the diamond plate again.
The bevel was around 30 degrees and I didn't want to waste an original blade by grinding, so I kept it at 30 and used the Veritas blade guide on diamond plates to clean the edge ns sharpen it.
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18th August 2017, 08:00 PM #5SENIOR MEMBER
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Here it is, reassembled with its borrowed tote. Yes, the shiniest part is the brass nut on the knob. It had a catch sticking up from when someone's screwdriver slipped, and I made the mistake of smoothing it of with water paper, which left scratches, and so up through the grist until it really stands out. The last pic show it next to a piece of sneezewood (Ptaeroxylon obliquum) that was weathered grey, and touched up with the plane. The surface I planed is nice and smooth - to the point where sanding would ruin the finish.
I'm satisfied with an evening well spent. It's still an old plane, but it's capable of doing exactly what it was made to do.
Edit: yes I see the pics are upside down, and no, even with a degree in computer science, I don't know how to turn them around.
Just in case anyone is wondering if I stole a white towel from inside, no, it's a cloth nappy. When the youngest stopped using them, I pinched them for the workshop. Those lasted me sixteen years and the last few years I've had to buy a few new. They make amazing cloths - really absorbent, soft, mostly lint-free and last a long time even with abuse.
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18th August 2017, 08:23 PM #6
That's a great little plane you've got yourself there; I have a very early type 11 No. 5 and it is my favourite plane of all time due to the excellent build quality.
You say the back of the cap iron is painted? That's very unusual; for that model it should have been chemically blued so if it is paint someone has daubed it on deliberately. The cap iron looks correct for that era, the business end is very thin.
I hope you have many years of use with it!Nothing succeeds like a budgie without a beak.
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18th August 2017, 08:38 PM #7SENIOR MEMBER
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Thank you, I really like it. I very nearly passed on it because it's at the top end of what I'm prepared to pay, but I'm glad I bought it. It's my oldest Stanley, and I don't think I'll miss the frog adjusting screw at all.
Sorry, you're quite correct - it's not paint. I wasn't sure how to describe what was done, and meant to change the word "paint" to something more appropriate after I had done some research on what the treatment was, but before posting. Blued is what it is, first time I recall seeing that.
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18th August 2017, 09:34 PM #8
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19th August 2017, 04:17 PM #9
Colin,
Nice old plane you found there. I like the minimal restorations. As you say an old plane looks a bit wrong if it's too shiney. Plenty pictures and the compulsory shavings. Love it.
Regards
John
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19th August 2017, 07:16 PM #10
Good one Colin. As has been said, there's something about a well used old tool; they seem to me to be much nicer to use than a brand-new one. Maybe they've just learnt what to do through long training...
Cheers,IW
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