LA Jack bit the dust

[James Watson]

Last week, my Veritas LA Jack took a nosedive off the bench onto the concrete floor. The sole is now convex front-to-back, with the bend centered near the mouth. When placed on a flat surface, the nose is raised by about 0.018". Is there any hope for fixing this?

[David Weaver]

Is there any hope for fixing this?

credit card will do the trick. If it didn't have a sliding mouth, I'd say just lap the crap out of it, but that's a pretty fair bit of material. You can still lap it and try it, but I don't know if it will affect the fit of the sliding mouth piece if the whole assembly is no longer coplanar.

[Rick Fisher]

I agree.. Credit card .. give the number on it to Lee Valley and they will send a replacement ...

Sorry to hear that happened.

[James Watson]

Thanks, guys. I figured that would be the case, but was hoping for a miracle cure. :-)

[David Keller NC]

Well, if it bent rather than shattered (which would've been the fate of an antique Stanley), you could consider the idea of bending it the other way. Assuming it's useless to you as-is, there's no harm in trying. I'd do it with a vise screw so that the bend in the other direction can be controlled....

[Zach England]

It may be worth contacting Lee Valley to see if they can send you just the casting and mouth at a discount over an entire plane. I am not sure if this is realistic, but Lee Valley has accommodated a few odd requests from me before.

[Zach England]

credit card will do the trick. If it didn't have a sliding mouth, I'd say just lap the crap out of it, but that's a pretty fair bit of material. You can still lap it and try it, but I don't know if it will affect the fit of the sliding mouth piece if the whole assembly is no longer coplanar.

I didn't get this at first. I was picturing using a credit card to shim the bottom of the plane off the workpiece or something. You had me really scratching my head.

[Rob Lee]

PM sent James...

Cheers -

Rob

[Randy Reitz]

Who was that masked stranger?

[george wilson]

If the LV plane is made of DUCTILE iron,which I am quite sure it is,or it would have broken right off(too tired to Google it).You should be able to bend it back that much. You can only hope to get most of that bend out of the plane,and at least get the sole flatter to the point that you might be able to lap the rest out. Be careful to not over do bending it back. It could crack yet from being bent more than 1 time.

I have bent back badly strained c clamps made from ductile iron,bent a LOT more than your plane,and they bent back o.k..

I suggest placing the plane on a STRONG,flat surface,such as a thick steel plate-not your table saw!! Put shims under the spot where it is most convex,and apply clamps to each end to pull it down. You will have to bend the sole a little beyond flat to allow for spring back when you release the clamps. However,increase the shims by small amounts,test bend,and add more discretely. You do not want to over bend and have a hollow sole left.

There will most likely be some degree of distortion even though you may get the sole close to flat. But,at least,you can get the sole flat enough to avoid ruining the mouth of the plane by excessive lapping.

Check with LV first,and see if the can offer you any service with your problem. Maybe they can.

[Rick Fisher]

Hmm.. Either Rob Lee is gonna fuel up the jet and sent a team of white coats to the scene of the accident..

Or there is some other solution in the mix ..

I emailed them the other day because I lost the #4-40 x 1/4" nut that holds on the cutter on my marking gauge .. got a response the next day saying they could mail me another..

Consistently good service from Lee Valley..

[Tony Shea]

Just the fact that Rob takes the time to even contact a person with issue's concerning his tools is something out of this world. I mean after all the responses I see of Rob's on here why would I ever not send my money in their direction. Am amazed every day by their incredible customer relations.

[Jerome Hanby]

I second that. I get a little beat up on the shipping but knowing that I'll always get first rate merchandise and that they will bend over backwards to take care of any problem make that a very small cost.


Just the fact that Rob takes the time to even contact a person with issue's concerning his tools is something out of this world. I mean after all the responses I see of Rob's on here why would I ever not send my money in their direction. Am amazed every day by their incredible customer relations.

[James Watson]

Just the fact that Rob takes the time to even contact a person with issue's concerning his tools is something out of this world. I mean after all the responses I see of Rob's on here why would I ever not send my money in their direction. Am amazed every day by their incredible customer relations.

Amen! There are some great companies out there that will bend over backwards for you when they make a mistake. But how many will go out of their way like this when the customer has just made a bone-headed move like this?! Thanks, Rob!!

And thanks to George, David, and the many others who share their knowledge on this site. I hardly ever post, but I can't tell you how much I've learned by searching the archives and checking in here several times a week.

Now, I think I'll go take some pics of that stash of yet-to-be-rehabbed Stanley's and post 'em in the classifieds section... so I can place another LV order soon!