Well I did it, I bought a plane from e-bay. Seems to be in fair condition a little rust and such, the wood is in good shape no cracks. The blade seems good but has a few nicks which I can grind out. I will be using it for rough work. I have some old small logs which I plan on splitting out with a fro and I would like to flatten them some before running them through my thickness planer. So I’m not looking for paper thin shavings just want to get them flat on one side and such. My questions are what should I use to get rid of the rust. I’ve heard of a product called “Evoporust”, how does it work and where can I get it? Also what do you think of a replacement blade should I pay as much for a new blade as I did for the plane ($23.00includeing freight) I just like the idea of renewing an old tool and bringing it back to life. It’s like building something with recycled lumber.
ZABO
Replies
How much rust are we talking about and where. What vintage is the plane?
Usually surface rust is pretty easy to take care of so long as there is no pitting. Fine sandpaper (like 400) on a wood block removes it from the cheeks. Move in a line along back and forth along the long axis of the plane for a neat job. For the sole - tape a shhet of the sandpaper to a wing of the table sawy or other flat surface. The block would work again too.
If the jappaning is shot and you want to remove rust and such from the inside areas, wire brushes and such work okay to get you to the point where a nice coat of rustoleum will take (take some to mask to get a neat job).
brass wire brushes, sand paper and scotchbright type pads all get things cleaned up.
Evaporust works awesome. If you're lucky you can buy a gallon at your local auto parts store. If not, Lee Valley now carries it. All you do is get an empty plastic storage container, take your plane apart, put it in the container and fill it up with Evaporust until all the parts are submerged. Let it sit overnight, rinse off with water and buff it up with steel wool. You'll be amazed at how well it takes off the rust. You'll never use a wire brush again.
As far as a replacement blade goes. You say you're not looking to shave micro thin paper shavings with your plane so I wouldn't even bother buying a replacement blade. Millions of woodworkers over decades of time have gotten excellent results out of those old blades. In fact I can plane .002" thick shavings with my old Stanley blade when it's sharpened and the plane is properly fettled so buying a replacement blade would pretty much be a waste of money at this point.
Since you want to use your plane in a scrub fashion to flatten wood that you split, just put a nice camber on the blade and set the frog back on your plane so your blade has a large opening at the mouth of the bed so that coarse shavings can pass through without getting stuck. Play around with the blade depth adjustment until you have the shaving you want.
Most importantly, have fun.
Evapo-rust works well and you can buy quarts of it at AutoZone for about $9.00. The same results, much cheaper, can be had with food grade citric acid from a home brewing supply store. I buy powdered citric acid and I can make at least 20 gallons from my $25.00 investment. I have done many plane restorations, so feel free to ask questions. Here is one that I recently did:
Beautiful plane.
Can citric acid substitute for EvapoRust?
What did you paint with, and how did you prep?
Doug
The Wood Loon
Acton, MA
Doug, the plane in the photo was a very lightly used example of a post war Stanley, and the japanning was virtually intact. The restorers I know used high temp engine paint to replace Japanning. There was some surface rust on this plane that required the use of citric acid and a small brass brush used like a toothbrush. I do not like to use a rotary wire brush because it erodes the metal and is always a dead giveaway of an over-cleaned tool. Plane restoration is a rather tedious, dirty business when done by hand, but the result is a tool that looks well-maintained rather than refurbished. Scothbrite pads are good for removing stains, as are the abrasive rubber blocks that you see advertised in toll catalogues. The wood parts of the pictured plane were made by Greg Droz, who is a remarkable craftsman. I usually strip and refinish the rosewood handles and knobs that comes on the Stanley planes. I often have restored planes for sale, if anyone is interested.
What planes do you have in stock? Do you have a website?
Thanks,
Scotty
Right now I have another #4 and a #5. Perhaps it would be best if I list them in the For Sale section. I'm not sure if the forum wants items sold right here. If you are interested I will direct you to some photos.
Citric acid? That's not lemon juice, is it?Chris @ http://www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com
- Success is not the key to happines. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
Citric acid is lemon juice. In fact I just go to the local supermarket and buy the store brand of lemon juice dump it in a bucket sized to the plane to be derusted and let it soak for a few hours to overnight depending on hoe rusty the plane is. Wash it off well with clean water blow it dry with a hair dryer and get some protection on the surface ASAP because it will flash rust quickly otherwise.
I've used white vinegar that seems to work very well - and it's cheap too. Only drawback so far is that it has a tendency to etch the surfaces. Does lemon juice also do this?
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
I have not noticed any adverse effects from using the lemon juice. However, citric acid (lemon juice) is a mild acid and so I would guess that to some extent potential etching would depend on how strong the concentration of citric acid is. I don't know what it is in lemon juice. If starting with powdered citric acid and mixing with water you would have the ability to control the concentration. I've never tried this but you can find information on this on some of the old tool wed sites discussions of restoration.
Thanks man,
I have read numerous posts and have yet to hear where/how vinegar can be used without it etching the surfaces. I would have to say also that I've not seen/heard of any effect by diluting it either.
Guess perhaps some experimentation is in order.
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
Bob:Any of the acids including lemon juice will etch. In fact, the acids in a bottle of Coke will etch badly (As a child, I used Coke to clean the chrome fenders on my bicycle).Part of the fun of Evaporust is that you don't have to be mindful. It doesn't etch and it doesn't damage paint, seals or anything else. I just drop stuff in and pull it back out when I get around to it -- which may be days later , given my schedule. Another benefit is that you need not worry about leaving some in a cranny or hole. Acids, on the other hand, must be stopped, and any leftover will cause corrosion.Joe
Thanks Joe,
Well I guess it's off to get some Evaporust.
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
Some of the Harbor Freights have begun to carry EvapoRust, I think around $10/gallon. That gallon will last awhile, it's quite re-useable. I've been using it for probably 3 years now, and love the results and the fact that I don't need to wear gloves, worry about disposal, etc. A search here would find quite a number of posts about it (Thanks to Len, who was the first here to experiment with it.) Also...it won't hurt paint, plastic, or aluminum, should you ever have a hybrid tool you want to de-rust.
Just toss the tool in, leave it overnight, and come back out the next morning. Wipe it down with a cloth, use a little #0000 steel wool to polish. I put a glass furniture coaster in the bottom to hold something like a plane blade up off the bottom, exposing all surfaces to the ER. You can use a plastic food storage tub or anything like that to soak in, doesn't have to be super-sturdy or acid resistant, because it's not caustic. Keep using the same solution until it loses effectiveness. You'll get sediment, just pour off into another container.
forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Edited 6/27/2008 12:51 am by forestgirl
Edited 6/27/2008 12:53 am by forestgirl
If you own a battery charger, do a google on:
electrolysis rust removal
It's like magic.
This method sometimes removes paint. I did one Stanley plane and the paint stayed on, but I wouldn't guarantee it.
Pete
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