Reconditioning a concave spokeshave

[else24]

I've set the circular plane aside for now, and am concentrating on my other flea market find, a double spokeshave with one concave and one flat surface. Both blades are clearly marked Union Plane Co. It looks like it's all original parts. Nice looking tool.

But now I see that the concave blade doesn't match the concave bed on the plane. When the middle of the blade is flush with the bed, the side edges stick way out. The radii are slightly different between the blade and the bed.

This is my first concave spokeshave so I don't know if this is normal and I've been googling and so far no mention of anything like that so now I'm wondering if someone has replaced the concave blade so it would look complete. The odds that they'd find another Union blade with the same sort of mottling and wear as the other Union blade seem rather high, though. I suppose someone could have reground the blade long ago for some reason. Or maybe that's the way it was made.

Huh.

[bridgerfafc]

either it's a frankenplane or you're seeing some sloppy manufacturing tolerances, or maybe somehow some damage. in any case you have to figure out what to do. here are some options:

seat the blade. remove metal from the blade or the bed (carefully) to make them fit. files, sandpaper on a shaped wood block, even rubbing compound directly between the blade and bed.

make a shim between the blade and bed. could be brass or even hard plastic. if it's brass you might be able to get away with folding the edges to make it thicker there. hard telling from here how much blade to bed contact you need to have to avoid chatter.

bed it in metal filled epoxy, like JBweld. use a release agent on the blade and clean the bed well. a light sanding of the bed with 600 grit paper followed by an alcohol wipedown should get good adhesion. saran wrap on the blade might work for a release.

good luck....

[Patriarch]

" [e-mail]" wrote in news:1189696249.896074.56990 @y42g2000hsy.googlegroups.com:

If you don't get an answer here that satisfies your curiousity, try the hand tools forum at

A picture or two, in smaller sizes, might help.

There are some pretty knowledgable folks there on old tools.

Patriarch