Need help tuning Stanley plane.

[photobug]

You may have the incorrect chipbreaker.
I have encountered this many times on used planes.


If this is the case, the placement of the slot, by which the advance mechanism moves the blade fore and aft, is too far from the mouth of the plane.

That is possible with all my other planes.  This I believe came correct and intact.  I purchased it from someone with a good reputation, it came very clean except for the blade's condition.  I moved the chipbreaker up to within a hair of the back of the blade.  I put the frog nearly flush with the mouth, it was proud before (slightly covering the mouth).  The blade is now in the right place so I now twist the adjusting knob and the blade goes through the range from not cutting to a too deep of a cut.

The one issue i have to solve is the blade is crooked.  In order to get the blade parallel to the mouth, I need to push the lever over all the way to one side to get it near parallel.  It looks parallel but does not cut an even curl.  I had used a square to make a line before grinding the bevel down.  I think it is close to 90 degrees but still does not sit in the plane perpendicular.

[Admiral]

That is possible with all my other planes.  This I believe came correct and intact.  I purchased it from someone with a good reputation, it came very clean except for the blade's condition.  I moved the chipbreaker up to within a hair of the back of the blade.  I put the frog nearly flush with the mouth, it was proud before (slightly covering the mouth).  The blade is now in the right place so I now twist the adjusting knob and the blade goes through the range from not cutting to a too deep of a cut.

The one issue i have to solve is the blade is crooked.  In order to get the blade parallel to the mouth, I need to push the lever over all the way to one side to get it near parallel.  It looks parallel but does not cut an even curl.  I had used a square to make a line before grinding the bevel down.  I think it is close to 90 degrees but still does not sit in the plane perpendicular.

Try adjusting the seating of the frog laterally, there is play in the screws, and the iron's squareness to the mouth is determined by the position of the frog and the yoke.  This is one of the finer points of setting up a plane.  Another tip is to loosen the screw holding the U shaped bracket that engages with the frog adjustment screw, then adjust the frog appropriately, then tighten the bracket screw.  This misalignment causes many problems.  I'm giving you pearls here!  

[photobug]

This misalignment causes many problems.  I'm giving you pearls here!  

Yep went in to put a new 90 line on the blade to check that.  I did find the frog not aligned.  I did not heat the garage the last two days because i was doing short days in the shop, moving in lumber and some planing of cauls.  I think my attempts at setting up the plane were sloppy.  Tomorrow I will heat the garage, wear my glasses, get all things working in my favor to get the parts aligned properly.

Here are photos of my plane and the parts.  Let me know if you see anything needing help.

[Admiral]

Yep went in to put a new 90 line on the blade to check that.  I did find the frog not aligned.  I did not heat the garage the last two days because i was doing short days in the shop, moving in lumber and some planing of cauls.  I think my attempts at setting up the plane were sloppy.  Tomorrow I will heat the garage, wear my glasses, get all things working in my favor to get the parts aligned properly.

Here are photos of my plane and the parts.  Let me know if you see anything needing help.

Your chipbreaker is correct and from what I can see all parts are correct and original; once you fettle and locate the frog properly you should be in business.  Remember to loosen the frog adjustment bracket screw, tightening only after the frog is properly set.  

Another thing, the "U" shaped bracket is sometimes a tad too high and bumps up against the cast part of the frog at the top of the bracket, when the bracket is installed and the screw tightened loosely it should allow for some lateral "swing" and if it doesn't this could be restricting the frog's adjustment.  Does not happen often, but the fix is to grind 1/16th off the top of the bracket.  I do this on maybe one out of 30 planes, so again, not common but when it does appear it can be an issue.

There's only so many parts to a bench plane, so sooner or later you can figure it out.

Although this has nothing to do with your original problems, you might want to take the chipbreaker to the stones to smooth the bottom mating surface, matching the angle that exists, sandpaper any burr that results on the front curved edge, then check how it mates with the back of the iron, you should not see light when tightened down.

[photobug]

I do this on maybe one out of 30 planes, so again, not common but when it does appear it can be an issue.

There's only so many parts to a bench plane, so sooner or later you can figure it out.

Although this has nothing to do with your original problems, you might want to take the chipbreaker to the stones to smooth the bottom mating surface, matching the angle that exists, sandpaper any burr that results on the front curved edge, then check how it mates with the back of the iron, you should not see light when tightened down.

Admiral, I really appreciate your input on this.  You mention doing this on one in 30 planes.  That speaks to your experience with planes.  This is my 5th plane I own.  I have flattened the soles and sharpened the blades to the best of my ability but have only gotten my block plane to work up to my expectations.  Early this year as winter was setting in, i had to fix a wooden window in my wife's craft room, as it had swollen and would not close.  I had tuned up my block plane and had to reach out the window blindly to shave off the bottom of the window.  When beautiful full length, full width shavings curled off the bottom, I had to call my wife into the room to show off my woodworking prowess.

I have been using glass and sandpaper as my sharpening system, but have two more sharpening implements coming this week to upgrade my capabilities, without have to replace sandpaper.  I will tune the plane and chipbreaker then.  Then onto the other planes.

[DFJarvie]

Do a search online for some information. I know Tommy Mac did an article on this in FWW. I’ve seen others that may help.

[photobug]

Do a search online for some information. I know Tommy Mac did an article on this in FWW. I’ve seen others that may help.

I just looked up Tommy Mac and learned from his video on planes.  One other thing I learned from it is not to overheat your blade.

I used a high speed dual wheel grinder to bring the edge down to remove a chip.  I fear I may have overheated the blade in grinding it down.

[Bibliophile 13]

If you did over-heat the blade, you'll know it by how quickly the edge goes dull.

Fortunately, you can usually grind it back past the ruined steel and start all over again. Grind with the blade perpendicular to the wheel until you're past the bad stuff. Then adjust your tool rest and re-grind the bevel.

When you do grind a bevel, it's a good idea not to grind all the way to the edge. (Also, keep a bucket of water on hand to quench the blade frequently.) Grind until you're almost at the edge, but be willing to finish up on a coarse whetstone or other comparable sharpening media.

[omark]

When put together I can't get the iron to retract for a shallow shaving cut. The only thing I can think of is the iron is still too long and I need to grind it back some more so it is shorter. Attached are photos of the setup. What can I do better?

Making iron shorter will not solve this problem -- even if you grind 1 inch off, with the same chibreaker [and its setting] it will still stick the same! If this is not obvious then take you time to familiarize further with construction of the plane ...

As "Joe Bailey" correctly mentioned it may be wrong chipbreaker (I would say older than the plane).
The difference I experienced is probably about 3/32 in, which is difficult to guess from picures.
If you have other planes you should be able to test other part quickly.

[bandit571]

Either it is a "bailey" from a Transitional Plane ( #35 ?) or it is from a Sargent Tool Co. plane.    Could also be from a Worth/Pexto made plane..

IF you have another plane with a 2" wide iron....swap between the two planes, and see.