Thread: Does anyone make and sell replacement hand-plane yokes?

Is this what your after. Gunmetal File-To-Fit Handplane Y-Lever

regards Stewie;

Originally Posted by planemaker

Is this what your after. Gunmetal File-To-Fit Handplane Y-Lever

regards Stewie;

Well, hey hey. It was worth asking! Yes, that's it.

They want about AU$28 apiece which considering the bother of any alternatives like fantasising I'd make one in a mill, is steep but tolerable on balance.

Weirdly you have to get 2 or more to get Royal Mail airmail delivery (AU$20); if you just want one, it's AU$50 for DHL delivery.

It's the kind of thing one of our own specialty woodworking suppliers should consider stocking.

Another alternative is to add a blob of braze to the end of the lever, and file to shape.

I've found fitting a 3mm/3.175mm thiick iron into an old plane is more trouble than it's worth. I've had a couple surface ground to 2.6/2.7mm - but I feel a thicker cap iron is a better way of stiffening the iron. No hassles with the yoke, the lever cap pivot screw, or the size of the mouth.

My tuppence worth.

Cheers, Vann.

Originally Posted by Vann

I've found fitting a 3mm/3.175mm thiick iron into an old plane is more trouble than it's worth.

Cheers, Vann.

You know, sometimes I think some of these "viral" innovations to woodworking are little more than fads. However, it maybe entirely self-suggestion, but I do think these new blades have made a difference, I say as a nearing-60 who has almost never won a game of perfect planing since starting at 13 years old. I do recognise that the original blades apparently worked fine for previous generations, but for us instant-gratification Gen-X and up, they are not good enough. I'm as guilty as anyone on this, but that's our situation -- we want to do everything and cannot embed all the motor skills sufficiently without extra props and gadgets like these.

Anyhow, when I fitted my first thick blade, into my the Stanley 4-1/2 plane, it all went perfectly -- the mouth was fortuitously wide enough, and the yoke long enough. With the Stanley No.6, I have had to file the mouth from 4.5 mm to 5.1 mm for a good fit (not hard to do), and the yoke, yes, it's become a time and money sink.

PS I went off from the main point -- the blob of braze sounds good. OK.

Originally Posted by Vann

Another alternative is to add a blob of braze to the end of the lever, and file to shape.

Just one thing though: are you suggesting so-called yellow-top brazing rod (2% silver) or other low-temp alloy which will work with my Sievert/Primus torch kit, or are we talking the much harder manganese bronze rod which needs higher temperatures like a Bullfinch autotorch or oxy?

I'm just doubting a little the silver solder approach. But I do overthink things.

The softer braze will probably work, but for the one I did I used hard braze so can't speak from experience. I was able to borrow a small oxy/butane torch that did the job nicely. I've fitted after-market blades to all of my Stanleys & Records & only struck the problem of the cam being too short with one of them, but the braze extension worked very nicely. It's such an easy thing to do, I didn't even remove the yoke from the frog, though it may have been wiser to do so. I certainly wouldn't consider forking out the price of a new/old plane for a commercially-made yoke! I'd say give it a go with the soft braze if that's all you've got available, you can easily file it off if it proves too soft & start over..

P'raps thicker blades are just a "fad", but they can definitely improve performance of a lot of the oldies, at least a little, and are usually better at holding an edge with our hard woods. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder......

Cheers,

Originally Posted by IanW

...P'raps thicker blades are just a "fad", but they can definitely improve performance of a lot of the oldies, at least a little, and are usually better at holding an edge with our hard woods...

Ah, or course. When I said I didn't think thicker irons were worth the bother, I wasn't considering your really hard woods.

Cheers, Vann.