James Taglienti
03-25-2012, 9:52 PM
This is a pretty good way to repair a plane tote that has a somewhat clean break in it. First I remove it from the plane. Then I fold it in half along the break, like closing a book. 228023228024
I line up the two broken faces as perfectly as I can, and clamp the pieces in a vise, making sure they project enough to be worked on. This is the most crucial part and it can take as long as 5 minutes just for me to get them like I want. Usually there are a couple high spots in the center of the break that I knock off with a chisel. This helps to determine if the parts are lined up perfectly. 228025228026 At this point I may realign them, or call good enough. If they are aligned nicely, I will plane them perfectly flat, making sure that I take each pass across the entire area. Its important to establish some good flat points early on, and then stay on that plane until both pieces are nice and smooth, with a crisp outline. I don't take them out of the vise to test fit. I'm afraid I will never get them back in correctly. Instead i use a ruler to check for flat. When I'm happy with the flat, I will take the pieces out and glue and clamp them. They should line up straight when viewed from the back, but there will be a transition line from one to the other that has to be filed away. I will leave this on the back of the tote as its easier to shape an outside curve. 228028A little creative clamping will help you if you use pva glue. Watch for slippage. Its almost guaranteed. I use mostly CA any more. Once the glue is set, the clamps come off and I use a wood file to blend the transition where the joint is. I take my time here and will blend halfway up the tote if I have to. I used to try to do this with just a piece of sandpaper but I could never get the joint perfect as I can with a file. Usually I make sure to clamp the end that needs the most wood removed, so i can press a little harder. Then I sand with 220 and 320. 228037Here is a picture of the tote after sanding. I remove all the file marks with 220, and with the 320 I will sand the wood again, and also scuff sand whatever lacquer is left, sometimes scuffing the whole piece. I apply one coat of lacquer with a flux brush or a rag (redneck i know), and I will smear it over everything I scuffed earlier. Then i barely let it dry because I am impatient, and I scuff it with 0000 steel wool and then rub it with a clean cloth to polish it out a bit. The tote is now 1/16" shorter than factory, but nobody will notice. The finished repair is here:228038228036 Thanks for reading.
I line up the two broken faces as perfectly as I can, and clamp the pieces in a vise, making sure they project enough to be worked on. This is the most crucial part and it can take as long as 5 minutes just for me to get them like I want. Usually there are a couple high spots in the center of the break that I knock off with a chisel. This helps to determine if the parts are lined up perfectly. 228025228026 At this point I may realign them, or call good enough. If they are aligned nicely, I will plane them perfectly flat, making sure that I take each pass across the entire area. Its important to establish some good flat points early on, and then stay on that plane until both pieces are nice and smooth, with a crisp outline. I don't take them out of the vise to test fit. I'm afraid I will never get them back in correctly. Instead i use a ruler to check for flat. When I'm happy with the flat, I will take the pieces out and glue and clamp them. They should line up straight when viewed from the back, but there will be a transition line from one to the other that has to be filed away. I will leave this on the back of the tote as its easier to shape an outside curve. 228028A little creative clamping will help you if you use pva glue. Watch for slippage. Its almost guaranteed. I use mostly CA any more. Once the glue is set, the clamps come off and I use a wood file to blend the transition where the joint is. I take my time here and will blend halfway up the tote if I have to. I used to try to do this with just a piece of sandpaper but I could never get the joint perfect as I can with a file. Usually I make sure to clamp the end that needs the most wood removed, so i can press a little harder. Then I sand with 220 and 320. 228037Here is a picture of the tote after sanding. I remove all the file marks with 220, and with the 320 I will sand the wood again, and also scuff sand whatever lacquer is left, sometimes scuffing the whole piece. I apply one coat of lacquer with a flux brush or a rag (redneck i know), and I will smear it over everything I scuffed earlier. Then i barely let it dry because I am impatient, and I scuff it with 0000 steel wool and then rub it with a clean cloth to polish it out a bit. The tote is now 1/16" shorter than factory, but nobody will notice. The finished repair is here:228038228036 Thanks for reading.