Bringing old planes back to life

[Frederick Skelly]

I find that I really enjoy taking an old plane thats been lying fallow for years and bringing it back to life.When I start it, she cuts crappy. Maybe the sole isnt flat, maybe the iron needs flattened and sharpened, etc. Then, after a few evenings' effort, she's a fully functional tool again, making nice shavings. Sometimes, just bringing her back to life scratches my shop itch for the week and I dont feel like doing any actual projects for a few days. :0

Does anyone else get a kick out of this like I do?

I realize this sounds odd coming the day after I started a thread about upgrading my tools to more modern pieces. But all week Ive been working to tuneup a second wooden dado plane I bought in really nice condition. She just wouldnt give me a good dado, and today I finally got it right. She just hums. To get there, I even got to learn to anneal metal - something I hadnt done before (the nicker iron had been hardened by an earlier owner). The tool was in superb physical condition without a mark on it, nor any severe rust. But the blade was dull, the nickers were very worn and mishapen and the sole was 1/16" out of flat. It was a fun little project.

Fred

[Dave Parkis]

I understand completely. I spend a LOT more time rehabbing tools than I do woodworking. I just started a hand tool group at my woodworking club so I can spend even more time working on tools and sharing them with others.

[Jim Matthews]

I consider this one of the most seductive traps to derail my woodworking.

There is little I know of that is more satisfying than bringing a genuine
workman's tool back into 'fighting shape'. The problem lies in the
satisfaction I feel afterwards that keeps me out of my shop.

My last wooden plane project was a similar briar patch.
Great plane, now. It took me the better part of 12 hours
to get it widdled into proper trim.

I consider the two pursuits complementary and contradictory at the same time.

[steven c newman]

Well, I might like to do this sort of thing, now and then
full till.jpgbig family.jpg
Whether iron bodied or wooden ones, doesn't make much difference...

[don wilwol]

it started with restorations for me, and morphed into collecting as well. Along with a website to help document some of the history I dig up. timetestedtools.com

[Shawn Pixley]

I find that I really enjoy taking an old plane thats been lying fallow for years and bringing it back to life.When I start it, she cuts crappy. Maybe the sole isnt flat, maybe the iron needs flattened and sharpened, etc. Then, after a few evenings' effort, she's a fully functional tool again, making nice shavings. Sometimes, just bringing her back to life scratches my shop itch for the week and I dont feel like doing any actual projects for a few days. :0

Does anyone else get a kick out of this like I do?

Fred

I am the opposite. I can and do rehab tools. But for me it is a means to an end. Every hour I spend in this, is time against actually building what I want. It is a good and necessary evil, just like cleaning the shop.

[Jim Koepke]

There is much enjoyment to be found in raising the dead, or at least old left for dead tools.

Many of the tools in my shop wouldn't be there if not for my ability to fettle the metal. Surely there are more tools in my shop that required a little TLC than ones that showed up ready to go. Heck, even some of the "ready to go out of the box" tools have had a little refinement to make them my own.

It is always joy for me to find an old plane, brace, bits or some chisels for a few bucks that can be put to work with a little effort on my part.

There is also a special kind of joy in using a plane that was a pile of rust from the late 19th century that is now able to take shavings in the sub-thousandths of an inch range.

Surely none of my old restorations are as valuable as some of the modern equivalents. To me, and hopefully to my kin, they are priceless.

Though now that my shop is fairly well equipped there isn't as much rust hunting being done. It is missed. Often when in the local used tools store I mention to the person behind the counter that I just came in for a bit of aroma therapy.

jtk

[Richard Hutchings]

I've enjoyed reaping the benefits of old tool restoration but it gets old after a while. After acquiring and restoring enough tools to get some work done, I'm now looking to see how the other half lives. Lee Valley here I come.

[Jeff Heath]

Everybody has a hobby, right? I work in the shop every day for a living. At night, after dinner, I go back up to the shop, but then I'm playing. I used to play around rehabbing tools, and still do occasionally. These days, I'm more into restoring OWWM's and metalworking machines, too. That is, until my favorite walleye and smallmouth waters are no longer under ice. Then, fishing takes over my life......

[Stew Denton]

Hi Fred,

I enjoy it a lot, like some of the others, and it gives me a lot of satisfaction seeing an old plane (or saw) doing a great job again. I am just getting started learning a finer grade of woodworking than I have done in the past, and am slowly (my wife would say quickly) buying the planes and restoring them.

I am really fond of the old Stanley planes, and don't think that I have any business buying and using collector grade planes, so for me, the only option it to restore them. It started out with a 605 Bedrock that was my dads, then came a #4 Ohio smoother that was my grandfathers (I need to do more work on that one to finish it up.) Once I got used to using a nicely restored, sharp, and good quality vintage plane, it really began to grow on me, and my wife thinks it is an obsession. (She's wrong of course, she just doesn't know about the number of different types of planes a wood worker needs......right?)

That said, I don't need any more Jack planes, and in fact need to cull some of those from the herd already, but don't have some other types and sizes that I hope to have and use. However, I need to start reminding myself that I don't need any more Jack planes, but when the price is really really right at a flea market, they are hard to resist. The big problem is the size of my work area, I don't have a shop, and don't have room for extra things.....so some of the Jack planes need to go to make room for more needed items rather than many duplicate Jacks.

If I didn't buy them I wouldn't need to restore them, but in fact, am working on a 605 1/2, and I have another Jack plane, a Stanley Bailey type 12 #5, setting on my table saw right now waiting its turn. However, I have a #7 that is in pretty nice shape right now, but it needs the iron flattened and sharpened so I can use it for a project for a friend of mine, and I would like to make it look a little nicer. That project for the friend is waiting, so the type 12 #5 will have to wait a little longer. I need to keep reminding myself....I don't need any more Jack planes (or handsaws).....but maybe.....could use a 608....? (My wife would say....maybe not.)

At any rate they are fun to restore.

Regards,

Stew

[Phillip West]

I enjoy rebuilding old tools..All of our blacksmith tools(other than those we made ourselves) are usually north of 100 years old..The youngest is one of our anvils. A 205 pound fisher made in 1920..Our power hammer is 101 years old this year.

[David Turner]

My wife liked to shop antique stores so instead of just walking around, I decided I would start collecting planes. Now after some 40 years of shopping I have plenty. A complete set of 23 Stanley's, #1 thru #8C and a complete set of Bedrock's (less #602C). Enjoyed putting a lot of them back into service and you are correct, there's a lot of satisfaction in seeing something returned to usefulness.

Also have gathered during that time some 60 wooden side escarpment planes. Hollows and rounds, side beads, etc. They are very frustrating to get operational again. If you want a real challenge, try some old side escapement planes.

David Turner
Plymouth, MI.