Rob Luter
01-01-2020, 10:22 AM
I recently came into some very old Stanley Spokeshaves (a #53 and #54) discussed here (https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?278807-Stanley-53-shave-iron-where-to-buy). My quandary was where to find decent replacement cutters. Ron Hock had one available but it wasn't quite the right size and it was pretty spendy. These shaves will be used for rough work and frankly I'm cheap.
Creeker Richard Line suggested I look at the Kunz replacement cutters at Highland Woodworking as he's had a positive experience with the same cutter I was looking for. I'll be honest, every Kunz tool I've seen to date struck me as pretty low quality. That said, the cutters were cheap ($7) so there wasn't much downside risk. I rolled the dice on the Kunz irons from Highland. The transaction was painless and delivery was quick. Size wise they're pretty close to the Stanley. Width is identical but the blade slot is about 1/16" wider. The locking screw head doesn't gain as much purchase as a result and getting things locked down is a bit fussy. I may be able to fix that with a washer. The irons are much thicker than the originals (.094” vs .063”) and as a result the range of mouth adjustability is limited. That said, it’s not an issue. There’s plenty of adjustment left. The extra heft is a welcome surprise.
For others considering these replacement irons, quality seems very good with a good edge right out of the package. I spent some time flattening the backs and removing tool marks. One had a pretty good hump in it but the other was quite flat already. Once the backs were lapped I put a proper cutting edge on them. Once installed and dialed in they really worked well, cutting much better than they did with the OEM cutters. I spend an hour or so with them on a carving project using air dried Mulberry wood and the edges held up well. For $7/ea., these were a deal.
422679
Creeker Richard Line suggested I look at the Kunz replacement cutters at Highland Woodworking as he's had a positive experience with the same cutter I was looking for. I'll be honest, every Kunz tool I've seen to date struck me as pretty low quality. That said, the cutters were cheap ($7) so there wasn't much downside risk. I rolled the dice on the Kunz irons from Highland. The transaction was painless and delivery was quick. Size wise they're pretty close to the Stanley. Width is identical but the blade slot is about 1/16" wider. The locking screw head doesn't gain as much purchase as a result and getting things locked down is a bit fussy. I may be able to fix that with a washer. The irons are much thicker than the originals (.094” vs .063”) and as a result the range of mouth adjustability is limited. That said, it’s not an issue. There’s plenty of adjustment left. The extra heft is a welcome surprise.
For others considering these replacement irons, quality seems very good with a good edge right out of the package. I spent some time flattening the backs and removing tool marks. One had a pretty good hump in it but the other was quite flat already. Once the backs were lapped I put a proper cutting edge on them. Once installed and dialed in they really worked well, cutting much better than they did with the OEM cutters. I spend an hour or so with them on a carving project using air dried Mulberry wood and the edges held up well. For $7/ea., these were a deal.
422679