Stanley Plane Tuning Question

[Tom Banes]

Tightening up the mouths on both a #3 and #5 Stanley. Want the #3 at about .020 and the #5 at about .125. In both cases the frog adjusting screw bottoms out befoe I get the mouths that tight, with just a hint of iron below the sole. So I just took the screws out and moved the frogs forward manually. That worked fine, but it would be nice to use the screws for more precise adjustment.

Question 1 - Is this "too long" screw normal? I suspect it may due to the irons (both original Stanleys, ca. 1930s) being short from many honings - likely?

Question 2 - I can fix it by either shimmimg under the adjustment yoke (moving it further aft) ot grinding 3 or 4 threads off the adjustment screws. Which is preferable? BTW, these are both users, not collectables, so staying original is not way up there.

Thanks for any thoughts.

Regards.

Tom

[Dave in Fairfax]

Tom Banes wrote: snip

If you haven't already, please read Jeff's website, especially the part on fettling before you do anything irrevocable.

Dave in fairfax

[Australopithecus scobis]

Something's not right. If you back off your chipbreaker, you'll get more blade through the mouth. The frog adjusting screw is happiest when you loosen the frog attachment bolts. It's not doing what you think it's doing, I think. Loosen the frog attachment bolts a hair, put everything back together, check the mouth opening, lather rinse repeat. When you've got it as tight as you want, tighten the bolts down. And read the link another poster mentioned.

[Larry Jaques]

On Thu, 30 Jun 2005 17:05:18 -0500, the opaque Tom Banes spake:

Two things would normally cause something like that. First, if the plane was refinished, excess paint could build up in the frog holddown holes. Second, the excess sanding on the frog and its track could make the standard screws appear too long. You can check for the first and repair that.

THREE OR FOUR THREADS? Something's missing there or the wrong frogs are in those planes, Tom. Shimming the frog might be my choice.

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[Craigd]

After you have checked on the other things that have been posted, try a thicker blade - that will push the frog back and give you back your range of adjustment. I put a 1/8" thick blade in my #7 and had to open the mouth to get clearance but it sure works well. Craig

[AAvK]

adjustment. I put a 1/8" thick blade in my #7 and had

What brand of blade might I ask?

[Tom Banes]

Thanks to all for the input. As usual the issue was not what it appeared. "Screw too long or hole too short?" The latter, in this case. The adjustment screws had obviously never been fully screwed in. By taking the frog and tote off to get a clear shot at the screw, using some machine oil, and running the screw in and out multiple times (I didn't have a tap that matched the Stanlley threads), flushing with WD40, I was able to getthe screws in both planes to seat fully. The frogs adjust just fine now.

10 minutes of thinking as a result of your responses and all is well.

Thanks.

Tom