Plane Idiot

[Chuck Fischer]

Guys I messed up big, got this old Lakeside 5 1/2 plane off of ebay, even asked for more photos from the person auctioning it off, after going back and looking at the photos better I don't know how I missed it, someone drilled a hole right through the bottom of the plane!!!! Who would do such a thing... from the looks of it, it was used ... a lot.

Any ideas, I'm only out 20 bucks (including shipping) I like these early Lakesides because they were made in chicago (I live in the suburbs) , I inherited a Lakeside #7 from my grandfather, and they are pretty decent copy's of the stanlys... I'm mostly a user not a collector.

Well look at these photos and tell me what you think.






Chuck

[Chris Padilla]

Can't you just roundover that hole or will shavings get stuck in it and mess things up? Maybe you could fill it with some epoxy or weld in some metal and grind it back????

I basically have no clue but that never seems to stop my fingers typing...stop it fingers...stop...I said S T O P!!!!

[Dave Right]

I'd weld it and grind flat.

[Chuck Fischer]

i have a buddy with a welder, maybe I'll try that, but what about the handle, the idiot tapped the hole straight up and down. I think I'd have a problem making a handle for it. Any ideas there?

Chuck

[Steve Cox]

Occasionally someone drilled a hole in order to hang the plane on a nail. If I see this right, the hole is in the middle towards the back of the plane. The simple answer is "so what?". It's not in a critcal area and really won't affect the performance of the plane. There are lots more "holes" in the bottom of a corrugated plane.

[Bob Smalser]

No problem....my 19-dollar #5 has a hanger hole that doesn't affect its usage one tiny bit.

No welding, please unless the weldor is experienced in cast iron...and even then many won't do it because what the necessary preheating will do warpage/crackage-wise. There are a few very-different flavors of cast iron and the different techniques that go with them...and no way to test what yours is. A crapshoot of sorts.

Fill and braze it. MAPP gas, silver braze and flux from your local welding supply (I like the brownells.com gap-filling Fusion-brand braze ground in its own flux.)...ream the hole and fashion a steel plug, both surgically clean...butter the plug with ground braze....preheat your plane in an oven as hot as you can get it....remove and heat the hole/plug til the braze flows....1100 degrees or so....then bury the plane in a bucket of ground limestone and leave it there for 24 hours to cool very slowly.

Then clean it up and reflatten the sole using wet-or-dry paper on the jointer table.

[Gene Collison]

[QUOTE=Chuck Fischer]Guys I messed up big, got this old Lakeside 5 1/2 plane off of ebay, even asked for more photos from the person auctioning it off, after going back and looking at the photos better I don't know how I missed it, someone drilled a hole right through the bottom of the plane!!!! Who would do such a thing... from the looks of it, it was used ... a lot.

Any ideas, I'm only out 20 bucks (including shipping) I like these early Lakesides because they were made in chicago (I live in the suburbs) , I inherited a Lakeside #7 from my grandfather, and they are pretty decent copy's of the stanlys... I'm mostly a user not a collector.

Chamfer the hole and use it, the hole won't hurt it in any way. somebody probably drilled it to hang it on a nail. I wouldn't touch that plane with a torch, with cast iron anything can happen and usually does, minimum a warped plane body. If you don't like the hole, fill it with filled epoxy.

Gene

[Michael Cody]

Chamfer the whole if you must but I don't think it will affect anything either.. Make a new handle, sharpen the iron, smooth the chip breaker, flatten the bottom so the toe, heel, edges and in front of the mouth are all in the same plane and use it ..

I to have a couple of planes with holes to hang them from nails... never noticed it affecting anything except they pick up some crud when flattening the bottom but not in use.

[Dan Moening]

Gentlemen,

Chucks quandry isn't simply that his plane has a hole in it. It's that this particular hole goes up through the casting into the area where the tote is supposed to be fastened from above by a screw through the tote. In fact, widen to a 3/8" through hole thereby removing the ability to attach the tote via normal methods.

Chamfering the hole on the underside will serve to eliminate the chance of catching the hole edge ...a good, and simple solution.

My recommendation is to use a set-screw, driven from below, into a captured nut in the tote. This will allow you (or whomever) to make a repair should the tote become broken in the future.

[Bill Murphy]

Hi Chuck,

It looks like the previous owner stripped the threads for the longer, rear tote bolt. He needed to drill a through hole because the tapered tap dictated it.

Just a thought.

You have to make sure the new screw doesn't protrude through and ruin your work.

Bill Murphy
Reading, PA.

[Chuck Fischer]

Thanks guys, you've made my day. I'll definatly save this baby and get her working good. I'll post some photos when she is done, but don't hold your breath, I've got a few christmas gifts in the works right now, this plane might have to wait a while.

The plan is to chamfer the hole and use a set screw from the bottom into a captured bolt in the bottom of the tote. This should be the best fix that I could make.

The blade is used, but there is enough there to make it work for now. Someday when I get some money together and I find myself grabbing this plane more and more I will probably get a high carbon blade from Hock.

Thanks again guys for all the responses.
Chuck