Does my 60 1/2 need a new iron?

[Dave Gaul]

I purchased an old Stanley 60 1/2 a few weeks (or longer) ago from Mr. Leach, and finally got around to flattening the sole & honing the blade. The iron was pretty far from flat, so I took a lot of time to work it. I think I may have gone too far, because now the cap iron doesn't tighten down enough to hold the iron steady. I thought about grinding the cap iron screw down a little so I can tighten it more, but I'm thinking it's probably a better idea to replace the iron?

I have a Hock blade in my cart right now on a site, so if I REALLY HAVE to I guess I could bring myself to buying one!;):rolleyes:

[Chen-Tin Tsai]

Personally, I'd go for the Hock iron. After going through the paces of learning to flatten, sharpen and hone plane irons with the old, thin Stanley irons, I've found that aftermarket irons are light years ahead in terms of flatness and edge-holding ability. Now, I'm getting ready to replace all of the irons in my planes with Hocks or LVs.

[Andrew Gibson]

I never even bothered with the stock iron in my 60 1/2 I went right to a LV O1 iron. I am very pleased with it.

I would say go for the Hock or a LV you wont be disappointed

OOh you may also check to make sure there is not gunk built up in the cap screw hole. This could stop you from being able to fully adjust the screw and lock your iron down.

[Jim Belair]

I would say go for the Hock or a LV you wont be disappointed

+1

Sounds like you've already made the decision Dave, you just needed some back up. Happy to oblige. :)

Jim B

[James Scheffler]

The LV block planes irons are a bit thicker than the ones from Hock. I was glad that I went with LV for my 1960s (blue paint) Stanley 9-1/2, as I had trouble tuning that one to eliminate chatter. The Hock iron might have worked ok. I don't really know because I didn't try the Hock, but the thicker LV seemed like good insurance. I have been pretty happy with the Hock O-1 blade I got for my No. 4.

Jim S.

[Dave Gaul]

CT, I spent a loooong time getting this and another block plane blade flat!

Andrew, I did check for gunk and I checked the threads, all good there.

Jim, Thanks, if I ever need "back up" for tool purchasing, SMC is definitely the place to get it!!!

I'll be ordering my irons today, thanks guys!

Jim, didn't see your post yet when I started this post... I'll definitely consider the LV/Veritas irons. Might stick with Hock only because I can get free shipping at Hartville, and I need a couple router bits on sale there too...

[Zach England]

I have an old 60 1/2 iron you can have if you want it.

[Dave Gaul]

I have an old 60 1/2 iron you can have if you want it.

Thanks Zach, but I think I'll pass. The one I have is in good shape just to have an "original" and I want to give a modern iron a try...