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  1. #16
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    artist's oils will work fine, but be sure to clean every bit off of your surface plate before it dries. the stuff made for scraping in doesn't dry.

    the tube of prussian blue I have was made by permatex, a supplier of thread locking compounds, gasket sealers and similar chemistry to the machining and automotive industries, at least in the US. not sure if they market to OZ, but there must be a similar supplier there. try an automobile parts store.



    Quote Originally Posted by 62woollybugger View Post
    Just use Prussian Blue artists oil paint, thats what I used when I did my fitting & machinst apprentiship.

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  3. #17
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    Jan 2001
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    Langwarrin, Victoria, Australia
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    thanks again for the help.

    Went out to local stonemason yesterday - picked up 2 pieces of granite - 1 = 18" square or thereabouts, the other about 36" long.

    Straight edge on the first - one side dead flat. The other direct - around 6 thou dish in the middle.

    Go figure !!

    So - ignoring planes for a second - and considering lapping plane irons, chisels etc. ... what would be the tolerances one considers adequate ?

    next ... assuming we head down the sandpaper route on plane soles ... same question ... how flat is flat enough ?

    Do I need to toss this piece and go back for another ? .... he had crates of the things ... offcuts from jobs ... stove tops etc.

    Cheers !!!
    Glenn Visca

  4. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Glenn.Visca View Post
    thanks again for the help.

    Went out to local stonemason yesterday - picked up 2 pieces of granite - 1 = 18" square or thereabouts, the other about 36" long.

    Straight edge on the first - one side dead flat. The other direct - around 6 thou dish in the middle.

    .006 is within the tolerance for a plane sole. if you scrape to that plate you will have a .006 belly in your plane, which isn't the end of the world. definitely better than .006 hollow.

    however, if you have a pile to pick from, I'd say why not see if you can find a better one?


    Go figure !!

    So - ignoring planes for a second - and considering lapping plane irons, chisels etc. ... what would be the tolerances one considers adequate ?

    next ... assuming we head down the sandpaper route on plane soles ... same question ... how flat is flat enough ?

    Do I need to toss this piece and go back for another ? .... he had crates of the things ... offcuts from jobs ... stove tops etc.

    Cheers !!!

    tolerance is does the plane do the work you need it to.

    the problem with the sandpaper route is you don't know what you're getting. it cuts sort of flat, but you have no way to keep it from sanding the low points at the same rate as the high points. add that there is some slip/stretch/wave/tipping/wear etc involved and the sole will be less flat than the plate used.

  5. #19
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    Jun 2008
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    Melbourne
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    Cool

    Quote Originally Posted by Glenn.Visca View Post
    Just borrowed my dear old grandfathers #8, #6, and #4 planes from Dad .. which would all appear to be 1930s vintage.

    While its easy enough to dress the sole of the #4, how does one dress the sole of #8 at 2 feet long ?

    More particularly .. what do folks use as a dead flat surface, and do you use multiple sheets of sandpaper ?

    Comments welcome ...
    Glenn,

    I have a couple of glass shelves 200 wide and about 1200 long; I buy rolls of wet and dry and use artists spray adhesive to make a large flat sanding pad, one about 400 grit, 800 and 1200. You can work the plane as long as you want, getting a mirror surface if you persist. I also use it with a jig for the blades and chisels. A few uses and you need to peel the grit off and stick more, clamping under heavy weights and allowing to thoroughly dry before using.

    Look at the vendors on the forum; the rolls can be bought be the metre quite cheaply.

    BR,
    Fraser

  6. #20
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    ... how flat is flat enough ?
    eternal debate... depending on your level of retentiveness
    Cheers,
    Clinton

    "Use your third eye" - Watson

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/clinton_findlay/

  7. #21
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    May 2008
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    Australia
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    Its always good practice when flattening the sole of Stanley or other steel plane to do so with the blade assembly retracted slightly below the mouth and the lever cap locked down.

    Stewie;

  8. #22
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    Well, I started a first round of fettling the #8 this evening.

    Removed iron, backing iron and frog.

    Many years of built up gunk removed by cmt tool cleaning fluid.

    The japanning is shot, and rust covers the sides of the body, but that can wait for another day.

    Started flattening the back of the iron from 80 grit, 120, 220, and then 320 grit. Not perfect but a darn site better than it was. It's really only the outer wings that are not quite flat now.

    The bevel grind was not square, but was cambered, so I started the process of squaring, while maintaining the camber. Having only recently moved in, my bench grinder is still sitting on the floor, so I used sand paper on my recently acquired granite plate .. and then onto the oilstone, which was also my grandfather's (investment in Japanese waterstones pending)

    I decided to give the back bevel trick a shot, placing a steel rule on the stone ... and again, while not perfect. I think its the sharpest I have ever got a plane iron.

    I have steered clear of dressing the sole, not wanting to make a mess of it.

    So reassembled and jointed the edge of a 1400 board that I wasn't happy with off my 6" short bed jointer.

    Very nice indeed ... Better finish, flatter than the jointer finish.

    Now, onto my #6, #5, and 3 x 4 1/2 planes to bring them to the same level.

    My father also relayed one of grandfathers methods when doing lots of planing. He had a piece of carpet tightly rolled and tied with twine. He would load the carpet with raw linseed oil and place on his bench. When he felt the plane dragging, one or two quick swipes across the carpet roll from back to front of the plane and then right back into it.

    When finished, place carpet in an airtight tin ready for next time.

    Thanks for reading.


    Sent from my HTC Sensation Z710a using Tapatalk
    Glenn Visca

  9. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by Glenn.Visca View Post
    Well, I started a first round of fettling the #8 this evening.

    Removed iron, backing iron and frog.

    Many years of built up gunk removed by cmt tool cleaning fluid.

    The japanning is shot, and rust covers the sides of the body, but that can wait for another day.

    Started flattening the back of the iron from 80 grit, 120, 220, and then 320 grit. Not perfect but a darn site better than it was. It's really only the outer wings that are not quite flat now.

    The bevel grind was not square, but was cambered, so I started the process of squaring, while maintaining the camber. Having only recently moved in, my bench grinder is still sitting on the floor, so I used sand paper on my recently acquired granite plate .. and then onto the oilstone, which was also my grandfather's (investment in Japanese waterstones pending)
    don't be too quick to abandon that oilstone. for plain high carbon steel blades like these vintage plane irons they can be the overall best stones, taking in to account stone maintenance and simple convenience

    I decided to give the back bevel trick a shot, placing a steel rule on the stone ... and again, while not perfect. I think its the sharpest I have ever got a plane iron.

    I have steered clear of dressing the sole, not wanting to make a mess of it.

    good call


    So reassembled and jointed the edge of a 1400 board that I wasn't happy with off my 6" short bed jointer.

    Very nice indeed ... Better finish, flatter than the jointer finish.

    a sharp plane is an amazing thing....


    Now, onto my #6, #5, and 3 x 4 1/2 planes to bring them to the same level.

    My father also relayed one of grandfathers methods when doing lots of planing. He had a piece of carpet tightly rolled and tied with twine. He would load the carpet with raw linseed oil and place on his bench. When he felt the plane dragging, one or two quick swipes across the carpet roll from back to front of the plane and then right back into it.

    When finished, place carpet in an airtight tin ready for next time.

    I keep a lump of candle wax for the same purpose. less messy for me.


    Thanks for reading.


    Sent from my HTC Sensation Z710a using Tapatalk

  10. #24
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    Thanks Bridger ...

    Can you explain why oilstone better than water for carbon steel ?
    Glenn Visca

  11. #25
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    Quote Originally Posted by Glenn.Visca View Post
    Thanks Bridger ...

    Can you explain why oilstone better than water for carbon steel ?
    it's not any one thing.

    waterstones have their downside. they are expensive, messy and fragile. water promotes rust, so you have to deal with that. the stones need constant flattening, releasing slurry in the process.

    the upside of waterstones is that they work fast, no matter what steel you use. o1, a2, whatever.



    carbon steel sharpens up nice on pretty much anything. it needs to be touched up frequently, but the edge it gives is a joy to work with. once you get it ground to a working bevel, you can go a long time just with touching it up on a finishing stone only. eventually you have to go back to the grinder or whatever rough stone you use as long as you don't nick the edge, but even that is an easy process. especially for tools that you take to the worksite, the ease and convenience of carbon steel is a winner.

    I'm making a couple of assumptions about your grandfather's oilstones, based on that they have survived until now, and that they were his and that he used them to make a living, and that he was a skilled enough woodworker to need a jointer plane, at a time when a jointer plane cost a week or more in wages. given that, here's my thoughts on oilstones.

    oilstones have their downside too.
    they get covered with a slurry of oil and steel, and if you don't clean them off that slurry gets packed in to the pores and changes the working characteristics of the stone. porous coarse oilstones behave like a slower, finer stone. fine oilstones get glazed and stop working at all.
    soft oilstones wear pretty fast, but not as fast as waterstones. hard oilstones wear very slowly. you might not need to flatten a surgical grade fine hard black arkansas stone more than once a decade, but when it does come time, you have quite a chore ahead of you.

    the upside of oilstones is how they fit into the flow of work. a little oil on a steel tool is if anything going to retard rust- and while you have the oilcan out, go ahead and put a drop on the hinge of your toolbox, or whatever working parts you have at hand. you don't need special dedicated honing oil, no matter what the dedicated honing oil salespeople tell you. any light mineral oil is fine. really.

    I don't know if your grandfather's oilstones are natural or synthetic. either way, they could be anywhere on the continuum from coarse to very fine, from medium soft to very hard. in any case, assuming that he had decent to high quality stuff, those stones are likely very appropriate to those planes. the use and maintenance of oilstones is quite different from waterstones. rather than constantly flattening to expose new abrasive, you let the oilstone settle in to the surface that works best, which will be a little different for each stone. wrap it in a bit of cloth with a small can of oil and keep it at hand at the bench or in your toolbox. and thank your grandfather for helping you keep your (his) tools sharp.

    today I used the #2 smoother I inherited from my grandparent's estate. it probably came from my grandmother's uncle, who was a finish carpenter in san francisco a long long time ago. I smile every time I get to use it.....

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