Thread: 'Zip' Mini-Plane needs a new razor-blade.

Personally, I haven't been able to find even the light safety razor blades for my windscreen sticker remover. The ladies at the supermarket told me they can't get them anymore.

Can't even get a safety razor?
What's the world coming too?


At least I could find (light weight) safety razor blades.........so now I know for sure that they won't work.

Even searching the net for ZIP is not getting me anywhere.
Has anybody heard of this company?
By the look of what's left of the blue finish on the plane and the casting, I'd have an uneducated guess that it was made in the 50s or 60s.

post a pic of the blade.

you can sharpen a blade on an oilstone

I'll do my best with the pics.....it's a double edged safety razor.....do you really need a picture?

Yes the blade can be and indeed was sharpened on an oilstone.
A replacement blade would be nice if someone still makes the heavy duty razor blades as it's down to one usable edge.


Pics in progress.

if it's just a normal looking safety razor blade a pic will tell nothing.

Just a possible workaround, If you narrow a blade then glue it to another blade with superglue. That would give you a stiff blade body. It might or might not work.

I bought a box of double-edged carbon steel razor blades to put in such planes. They come in a box of 5 and each is individually wrapped in paper. I am happy to sell you one box of 5 for AUD5.00 plus postage to NZ.

But it might be better to wait until I see a photo of your blade to make sure that it is the same as the ones I have.

Apparently if you build a pyramid, align the vertices north / south, and put a razor blade inside overnight, the blade will sharpen itself.

Haven't tried it myself, but as a last resort you might...

Originally Posted by echnidna

if it's just a normal looking safety razor blade a pic will tell nothing.

Too late

Just a possible workaround, If you narrow a blade then glue it to another blade with superglue. That would give you a stiff blade body. It might or might not work.

I like the super glue idea....it might be possible to laminate two thin blades together.

A pic of the ZIP plane for illustrative purposes



A pic of the mini-plane.......it consists of the body, a razor blade, a cap iron and a wingnut. The detail that you can't see because of my atrocious photography is a raised piece that fits into the slot on the razor blade. This is the nice part of the design...loosen the wingnut and the blade can be dropped back until it's almost retracted, tighten the nut....then it can be kept in a shirt pocket. Reverse the procedure and the blade dops forward a smidge and it's good to go.



A pic of the ZIP plane between a #8 and a #220........for humorous purposes only.

Yep those are the fellas

Originally Posted by jmk89

Yep those are the fellas

I'll send you a PM.

Thanks a whole lot.......I like all of my old tools to work.

Micromark in the US sell a similar plane as well as various types of razor blades - intended for light duty woodwork or craft. A good source of bulk blades too - either in small packs or 100's.

www.micromark.com
http://www.micromark.com/RAZOR-BLADE...-100,6559.html

Lee Valley also sell a similar light duty plane, they have spare blades too.

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.a...=1,41182,41188

Its not listed in their regular plane lineup.

Well done.....that's two sites I didn't find.
The 25mm wide power planer is a beaut....but I've sworn off power tool purchases for the forseeable future.
http://www.micromark.com/MICROLUX-POWER-PLANE,6674.html

I like the Lee Valley plane, though it is slightly big.

Not sure if the Lee Valley blades would fit the ZIP properly as the center slot differs from the safety razor pattern.....might be a bit too much play.
Nice to see someones still making them though.

Looks like JMK89's offer is my best bet.....I'll get the process underway as soon as this nice drop of rain we're having backs off a touch.

Right...

Just in case anybody's interested.

I now have a working mini-plane and a supply of blades thanks to the help of one JMK89, a sterling fellow.

There would be pictures.....but due to procrastinaion, incompetence and a lack of quality (and skills to use such items) photographic equipment there will be no photo.......yet.

I do have photo of a small (freshly painted with a thin curly shaving as proof of excellence) blue blob. A photo even less descriptive than the ones above. Distinctly lacking in picturesquenessness........so imagine if you will the bare metal plane illustrated above painted once again a cheery blue colour........should really be 'hammertone' but I couldn't get that. Nevermind.

One day I will get a camera that likes to take close-up shots...... until then.

I bought one of these things years ago when i couldn't afford a block plane (man was i
broke!)

It's such a versatile tool. I used it for harp making and so many other projects. I also ran out of blades, because they're heavy duty. One of my favourite tools though.

Brett