Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 34

Thread: Why aren’t there many stainless steel body hand planes?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2017
    Location
    New York City
    Posts
    176

    Why aren’t there many stainless steel body hand planes?

    Title pretty much sums it up, why aren’t there many stainless steel body hand planes on the market? I think Bridge city makes some, and there are a few brass/bronze planes around, but I would think there would be allot of demand for some?

    in my NYC non temperature control shop, corrosion is a constant battle, and I’d love some stainless plane bodies.
    Last edited by Bill Dindner; 10-17-2018 at 10:06 PM.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    In the foothills of the Sandia Mountains
    Posts
    16,622
    Probably cost of manufacturing. SS doesn’t cast as easily, machine as easily, or grind as easily. I think there are some high end SS planes available but they’re also high priced.

    LN sells some planes made out of rust free bronze at reasonable prices.
    Please help support the Creek.


    "It's paradoxical that the idea of living a long life appeals to everyone, but the idea of getting old doesn't appeal to anyone."
    Andy Rooney



  3. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Bruce Page View Post
    Probably cost of manufacturing. SS doesn’t cast as easily, machine as easily, or grind as easily.
    That might be it. Stainless was about my least favorite material to work with as a machinist. It somehow had the bad qualities of many metals rolled into one.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    In the foothills of the Sandia Mountains
    Posts
    16,622
    The worst I have machined was 21-6-9 stainless steel for nuke reactor hardware. It made 304 seem like aluminum in comparison.
    Please help support the Creek.


    "It's paradoxical that the idea of living a long life appeals to everyone, but the idea of getting old doesn't appeal to anyone."
    Andy Rooney



  5. #5
    Stainless steel is expensive to start with. Everything about machining it is PITA. It is non-magnetic, doesn’t hold a sharp edges as long as A2, D2, S2 M2 or HSS. It doesn’t heat treat very easily.

    The only thing I love about stainless steel is, it welds beautiful.

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Matt Mattingley View Post
    Stainless steel is expensive to start with. Everything about machining it is PITA. It is non-magnetic, doesn’t hold a sharp edges as long as A2, D2, S2 M2 or HSS. It doesn’t heat treat very easily.
    D2 steel is 11-13% chromium, which is to say nearly stainless steel.

    So called "PM V11" is stainless steel. Probably its ease of machining was a big factor in its choice for chisels.

  7. #7
    I have a BCTW block plane that has a SS body. Very nice plane and pricey too.

    Jack

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2016
    Location
    South West Ontario
    Posts
    1,502
    You could think about some wooden body planes, then you only have to watch the blade rust!
    I do wonder if when i’m 90 I will prefer lighter wooden planes, until then I wipe thin oil on all my tools. The summers here are very hot and humid but my tools show almost no rust. Saw blades are the first to show some discolouration.
    ​You can do a lot with very little! You can do a little more with a lot!

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jun 2013
    Location
    Neither here nor there
    Posts
    3,831
    Blog Entries
    6
    As already said, it's the cost of materials, and the more difficult (and costly) casting and machining. I know this all too well as I shape a 200 pound 316 stainless steel centerboard for a boat. I'm working on it a little at a time. It's hard stuff. Bronze is a more favored choice- less costly, easier to machine, and easier to cast- plus it looks cool.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Putney, Vermont
    Posts
    1,042
    I always hated those darn long stringy chips coming off the cutter while doing lathe work. Formed a lot of 17-4 and 17-7 for the medical industry iot various bariatric, guns, surgical guns. Stamps and pierces, forms, really well in progressive dies. Inconel 600, Hastelloy steels, what a pain to draw and form.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Apr 2008
    Location
    East Virginia
    Posts
    830
    Quote Originally Posted by Matt Mattingley View Post
    The only thing I love about stainless steel is, it welds beautiful.
    Don't forget, it warps beautiful when you weld it, too!

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    Helensburgh, Australia
    Posts
    2,700
    Quote Originally Posted by Jacob Reverb View Post
    Don't forget, it warps beautiful when you weld it, too!
    Carbon migration can also be a problem.
    Chris

    Everything I like is either illegal, immoral or fattening

  13. #13
    Quote Originally Posted by Warren Mickley View Post
    D2 steel is 11-13% chromium, which is to say nearly stainless steel.
    Yeah they have some similarities. But their end product with heat treat are quite different.

    There is a major reason why I use D2 in my blanking punches and my form punches and not stainless steel. Maybe you can elaborate on how they nearly the same. Sometimes I send my D2 out for Nitride to give a Rockwell value of 72 candy coating, on the 60–62.

    I build one of a kind tools... from small US tank transmission gears to F-18 landing gear. Everything I build is somewhat custom... I just finished this product of the week. Bronze bushings, drill rod pins heat treated, D2 pins heat treated, A2 Crosshair scope plates. No processing left the shop. It was all done internally in a one-man shop.

    Don’t get me wrong some of my customers ask for a third-party certification which I need to provide. With CMM or external heat treat certifications. This is a game that nobody wants to get into. Have i told you yet,I hate my job??

    Cast iron or cast aluminum are some of the most stable products. Cast-iron being the best ware resistant of the two, Make for the cheapest product. Cast-iron just simply Rusts if not taken care of. But it is super stable. What I mean by super stable, is it does not move very much in years to come.

    This is my project from last week.
    B91EFC7C-DF4D-453D-9E1D-336DC1539608.jpg5A268513-96A3-4B8A-96F5-5539D65F7BA0.jpgD9AB8F99-A0CC-4A44-9392-CF594EE9BA24.jpg
    Last edited by Matt Mattingley; 10-19-2018 at 12:03 AM.

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Aug 2013
    Location
    Princeton, NJ
    Posts
    7,254
    Blog Entries
    7
    Probably it would increase the cost by 3x or more and for very little utility. Not to mention very difficult for the end consumer to reflatten if ever necessary.

    Ive done quite a bit of work with stainless, I love welding it, but machining far less so.
    Bumbling forward into the unknown.

  15. #15
    Machining it is not a problem if you are well tooled. There are carbide inserts designed specifically for stainless steel with interrupted cut and continuous cut. Some of the harder tool steels that are not a interrupted cut I use ceramic inserts . For jig grinding i diamond or stone cutters.

    I giggle from reading this from another thread. It’s not going on the space shuttle!

    If you want to buy a NASA plane. You will pay NASA prices.

    I will jig grind every dowel hole At $30 a piece for set up & $30/hole. About 4 dollars apiece for each screw and dowel. Machine time 10 hours at $62 an hour, jig grinding $270ish... I Purchased stainless steel 304-316 at about 8-$10 a pound... are use a square volume of .2833 pounds per cubic inch then I double that for chip volume.

    My quick calculation would be about $2000ish for a 12” plane... anyone up for that???
    Last edited by Matt Mattingley; 10-19-2018 at 12:44 AM.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •