Help with Veritas low angle spokshave

[Matthew N. Masail]

I just bought this tool. it's looks great and seems to work well except that any time I need to power through the cut, even a little, the blade gets pushed back, the wedge screws don't seem to have enough force to hold it. I'm scared to rough up the blade sides where it contacts the screws because it might make the blade narrower and make the problem worse. Am I missing something maybe? I used conservators wax to protect the blade, as I don't yet have a tool cabinet, so I'm going to try remove it from the sides and see, but I feel like the wedges should hold in any case.

[Tim Put]

From the instructions on the website (http://www.leevalley.com/en/shopping/Instructions.aspx?p=44848):

Note:
The mating surfaces between the blade and the body, and the blade and the stem, can be quite smooth. As such, the blade may slip in use when dealing with harder woods or heavier cuts. To ensure the blade remains securely clamped when using the spokeshave, thoroughly clean the mating surfaces with a suitable solvent to ensure they are free of lubricants/waxes, etc. Also, scuff the blade (perpendicular to the slip path) on the top face where it mates with the body and on the bevelled ends where it mates with the blade stems, using 60 or 80 grit sandpaper.






http://www.leevalley.com/en/images/item/Instructions/05p3201f.jpg







Figure 6: Scuffing the blade.

[Matthew N. Masail]

Thanks. I removed the wax and it helped, also found clamping one wedge screw down further than the other makes applying pressure easier. I got both the regular and the low angle, from quick tests both seem wonderful (-:

[Michael Ray Smith]

I had the same problem at first with mine. I hadn't seen the instructions from the web site until now (thanks, Tim!), and I just lived with it for a while. Eventually, the problem seemed to sort of solve itself, which I now know was probably because the wax wore off and maybe because repeated tightening of the screws might have marred the surface a bit. Even though it's now an infrequent problem, I'll try the scuffing trick.

Despite that problem, I LOVE this spokeshave. Maybe even more than my Millers Falls No. 1, which I often use even if I'm not dealing with a tight inside curve. (Sounds like a baseball pitch, doesn't it?)