Stanley #80 surface results

[Jebediah Eckert]

I purchased a Stanley 80 and put it to use. First I flattened the bottom and cleaned it up. I'm pretty sure I did a good job sharpening the blade and rolling over the burr. It seems to be taking shavings as it should. Maybe I was expecting too much but it doesn't seem to leave that great of a surface. It seems to leave a rough "pilly" surface, kind of like the one left when I use a card scraper. I wasn't expecting it to leave the same surface as a smoothing plane but I guess I thought it would be better then the card scraper. I can see getting use out of it leveling panels after a glue up, but it lacks as a finishing tool.

Some people seem to get great results with them. Did I do something wrong or am I getting the same results as others?


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[Rob Luter]

Nope. You'll still need to sand a bit after a scraper. The #80 is my favorite. I have four at the ready at all times. It's a personal problem. :D

[Jebediah Eckert]

Thanks Rob for the response. I guess I just read a few posts, and watched a few videos, that described it as giving a "finished surface".

It certainly will be handy and I'm glad I gave it a try.

Do the shavings in the picture look correct for a properly sharpened blade?

[Stewie Simpson]

Jeb; you might need to re-check the turned edge on your scraper blade. It sounds like it hasn't been formed correctly.

regards Stewie;

[Sergey Petrov]

Does the edge have to be turned on the 80 like it does on a card scraper? I recall reading an old manual where one could just sharpen it at 45°. I have tried mine like that on very busy wild Olive grain and it left a very nice finish.

[Rob Luter]

Thanks Rob for the response. I guess I just read a few posts, and watched a few videos, that described it as giving a "finished surface".

It certainly will be handy and I'm glad I gave it a try.

Do the shavings in the picture look correct for a properly sharpened blade?

With a freshly turned hook on the blade you are able to get a nice finish, but not the same quality as a well tuned smoother (at least in my experience). I found that the more care you take in preparing the blade the better it works. I sharpen the edge at 45 degrees with the same process I'd use for any plane iron, making sure the bevel and the backside are finely finished. Following that I turn my hook with a burnisher. It may be going a little overboard, but it sure works nice.

[Rob Luter]

Does the edge have to be turned on the 80 like it does on a card scraper? I recall reading an old manual where one could just sharpen it at 45°. I have tried mine like that on very busy wild Olive grain and it left a very nice finish.

You can do either (or both). I guess it depends on the wood you're working and what your expectations are.

[Jebediah Eckert]

I sharpened it to a 45 using a guide, polished the back flat, and the bevel to the same grit I use for my smoothing plane. I then took a burnisher and took one or two soft swipes. After doing so it seemed as though I had a nice even burr turned over. Maybe the burr is to heavy?

Do you find a heavy burr, or a very slight burr works best?

It seems some of you are getting a near finished surface using this?

If that is the case maybe I should start over and try again?

[Derek Cohen]

Hi Jebediah

Are those shavings in the photo representative of all you made? If so, there is a definite issue with the blade.

Here is what is possible using a Stanley #112 planing Tasmanian Oak ...


http://www.inthewoodshop.com/WoodworkTechniques/Thick%20verses%20thin%20112%20Scraper%20Plane%20bl ades_html_m1531a516.jpg



http://www.inthewoodshop.com/WoodworkTechniques/Thick%20verses%20thin%20112%20Scraper%20Plane%20bl ades_html_m10de3756.jpg

Of course, the advantage of the #112 is that the blade angle may be adjusted.

What you should first do, is to remove your blade and push it by hand as if it were a card scraper, holding the blade at the angle it would be in the #80.

Can you achieve decent shavings that way? No, then try different angles and see where the sweet spot lies. If you are way off, then the angle of the hook you rolled is either too steep or too shallow. Re-hone and try rolling the hook again. It should be between 10-15 degrees. Also try the blade without a hook. It will work that way, just less aggressively.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Jebediah Eckert]

I will give that a try, thank you.

[Prashun Patel]

I do not roll a burr on my 80 scraper blade. I sharpen it as I do my smooth plane blade, just at a steeper angle.

It produces a reasonable surface on harder woods for me.

[Jebediah Eckert]

I do not roll a burr on my 80 scraper blade. I sharpen it as I do my smooth plane blade, just at a steeper angle.

It produces a reasonable surface on harder woods for me.

i was hoping you would chime in, I remember you had good results. Thank you.

[Prashun Patel]

Um, not nearly as good as Derek's. To be honest, Jebediah, I use my 80 only when I have issues like grain switching directions around panel seams or around knotty areas.

[Rob Luter]

Hi Jebediah

Are those shavings in the photo representative of all you made? If so, there is a definite issue with the blade.

Here is what is possible using a Stanley #112 planing Tasmanian Oak ...


http://www.inthewoodshop.com/WoodworkTechniques/Thick%20verses%20thin%20112%20Scraper%20Plane%20bl ades_html_m1531a516.jpg



http://www.inthewoodshop.com/WoodworkTechniques/Thick%20verses%20thin%20112%20Scraper%20Plane%20bl ades_html_m10de3756.jpg

Of course, the advantage of the #112 is that the blade angle may be adjusted.

What you should first do, is to remove your blade and push it by hand as if it were a card scraper, holding the blade at the angle it would be in the #80.

Can you achieve decent shavings that way? No, then try different angles and see where the sweet spot lies. If you are way off, then the angle of the hook you rolled is either too steep or too shallow. Re-hone and try rolling the hook again. It should be between 10-15 degrees. Also try the blade without a hook. It will work that way, just less aggressively.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Wow! Time to bust out my #112 and try to emulate that. I see your blade angle is much steeper than anything I've tried. Maybe that's the ticket?

[david charlesworth]

For the Stanley 80 hook angle is crucial.

The blade must be well sharpened at 45 degrees,

The burnisher must be hard.

The hook is turned by burnishing gently at 45 degrees (blade is horizontal).

Taking 6-8 gentle strokes the burnisher must finish at 15 degrees from the vertical.

This works extremely well.

best wishes,
David

[lowell holmes]

http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/a_better_way_to_sharpen_scrapers

[Patrick Chase]

Jeb; you might need to re-check the turned edge on your scraper blade. It sounds like it hasn't been formed correctly.

regards Stewie;

Specifically the hook may be too aggressive.

An 80 *is* a scraper though, so I wouldn't expect the results to be any better, particularly if the same person is honing and using both.

[david charlesworth]

A scraper blade with a hook is an edge tool.

Should cut very well. See Derek's photo.

David

[Patrick Chase]

A scraper blade with a hook is an edge tool.

Should cut very well. See Derek's photo.

David

Yeah, I should have been clearer that "I wouldn't expect the results to be any better" doesn't mean I'd expect them to be bad at all. I was specifically responding to the OP's assertion that an 80 isn't a scraper :-).

[robert dankert]

fwiw here are Stanley instructions:

https://c1.staticflickr.com/2/1632/25917766744_4382d1c9db_c.jpg

[Stewie Simpson]

I wont bother going through the list of advantages a well tuned scraper can deliver to the user, but will note the Stanley #80 has a tension screw on the back of the main body that allows the user to alter the depth of shaving taken. That this type of scraper plane has a fixed negative bed angle should point to the fact that a turned edge needs to be applied to the cutting edge of the blade, to allow this plane to function effectively.

[Joe Bailey]

Right you are Stewie

Stanley's own supplied instructions call for a multi-step scraper prep which ends with the turning of a hook

[Jebediah Eckert]

fwiw here are Stanley instructions:

https://c1.staticflickr.com/2/1632/25917766744_4382d1c9db_c.jpg

Wow, thanks. Had not seen this before. I should have some time to try all these tips tomorrow and see what works for me. I do know the #80 is a type of scraper, it just seemed from what I read, and instructional videos it left a finished surface a bit better then a card scraper.

Even as I have it working now it will be useful, if I can improve the surface a bit.....even better.

[Derek Cohen]

What Stanley do not point out is a recommended angle for the hook. As David and I have suggested, it lies between 10-15 degrees, and possibly closer to 15 degrees. More than this and it is akin to a blade with a reduced clearance angle (it stops cutting).

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Stewie Simpson]

fwiw here are Stanley instructions:

https://c1.staticflickr.com/2/1632/25917766744_4382d1c9db_c.jpg

90-75 = 15 degrees.