Gorilla Glue says it can glue metals. Has any tried to glue a brass sole to a wooden plane? I've made handplanes with hardwood soles but was thinking of giving this a try. Brass is relatively easy to work and should wear better than any type of wood.
Brass is infamously difficult to glue. I've had as much luck with polyurethane glues (Balcotan, not Gorilla) as I have with epoxy, so give it a go. IMHE, you need to scratch the surface bright (sandpaper or steel wool) immediately before gluing it.
Personally I'd do it the traditional way; use a thick sole plate and well countersunk brass screws.
I used GG to glue three wooden discs together before I knew that it foams for a while before drying. It taught me to do the clamping VERY carefully. I found the disc floating away because I didn't read the label first, but it was somewhat dark, diabetic neuropathy in my eyes, and little tiny black letters on a dark label. That's my excuse. The disc came out 99.5% "ok".
I would use steel or bronze. Brass is too soft. But, what the hell do I know?
Polyurethanes need moisture to cure properly, so follow the label directions, and it *should* work. I've just started using GG a few months ago, and it hasn't let me down yet.
On Thu, 04 Nov 2004 23:17:45 +0000, Andy Dingley calmly ranted:
I have one of Steve Knight's first shoulder planes with the brass sole. The first piece fell off within a month. The other about a year later. I just replaced them with a jarrah sole which ought to stay put. The problem is that the metal and wood expand at different rates during temperature swings. If you want to affix brass to wood, screw it. No, I meant...
There ya go. And fill in the slots with bondo so it's a smooth bottom.
-- Sex is Evil, Evil is Sin, Sin is Forgiven. Gee, ain't religion GREAT?
I made a little try square with some leftover ash and brass strip, glued with GG instead of riveting it. Holds together nicely. Also used GG to hold carving knives together -- handle halves with blade in a wee groove. Works like a charm. Go for it. Post pictures.
Quite likely they will come apart. As I rarely do either of these things with my carving knives or try square, it'll have to do. Until I get some brass rivets from LV, of course.
The OP's plane probably will be stored on a shelf in the shop, not his fridge, too.
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