47 - Build Your Own Mortising Machine , страница 10
Y-YOKE Y-YOKE SPLIT PIN HANDLE DEPTH ADJUSTMENT KNOB FROG ADJUSTMENT \ SCREW KNOB THROAT OPENING All it takes to transform a neglected plane into a useful tool is a little old-fashioned elbow grease. LEVER CAP MOUNTING SCREW For twelve bucks, you can't go wrong. Thaf s what I told a friend of mine as I showed him the old, rusty bench plane I'd bought at an auction. (It's the plane in the before photo above.) But as he surveyed the black, gritty metal, the broken wood handle, and the chip in the front knob, I could tell he wasn't so sure. In spite of that, I still believed the plane had CAM LEVER CAP IRON —^ ^ BLADE RETAINING NUT AND MOUNTING ROD LEVER CAP RETAINING NUT AND MOUNTING ROD LATERAL ADJUSTMENT LEVER SOLE 3EHCH PLANE ANATOMY a lot of potential. Somewhere under that rough exterior, there was a precision hand tool. And all it required to bring it out was a little elbow grease and some patience. SNEAK PREVIEW. By the way, if you'd like a "sneak preview" of how the plane actually turned out, take a look at the after photo. It's the same plane. Only I've cleaned it up, made a new handle and front knob, and then tuned it up a bit. (The next few pages are devoted to the methods to do this, so I won't go into them here.) WHY RESTORE? Okay, but it sounds like a lot of work. So why go to the trouble of restoring an old plane? Why not just buy a new plane? Two reasons. First of all, there's a lot of satisfaction in turning an old neglected plane back into a useful tool. And second, it's an inexpensive way to acquire a quality hand tool. WHAT TO LOOK FOB But not every old plane is worth restoring. So how do you know just what to look for? MISSING PARTS. First of all, check to see if any parts are missing. I like to account for each piece, see drawing. But if one is missing, it is possible to buy replacement parts, see Sources on page 31. Just a word of caution. Depending on the parts you need, the cost can add up quickly. CHECK FOR DAMAGE. Another thing to check is whether any parts are damaged. Some damage (like the handle and front knob on my plane) is easy to repair. Other things are more difficult (or impossible) to fix. For example, I'd steer clear of planes with cracked or chipped castings, bent blades, or heavy rust WHAT ABOIJT RUST? So just how much rust is alright? If it's just a light surface rust ifs easy to remove, see box on page 11. The problem is you can't always determine the extent of the rust I found out the hard way. Even though the blade on my plane was rusty, I took a chance it might be salvageable. I was wrong. Sanding the back of the blade exposed deep rust pockets that made it impossible to get a sharp edge, see margin on next page. Restoring a Bench Plane Before 10 ShopNotes No. 47 |
