Stanley Jointer #7

[Gregory Mosher]

Hi folks,

I've always used power tools for the most part, since formerly doing carpentry, mainly finish, those are what are used. As well as for a hobbyist like myself, they're readily available at modest prices and do a fast accurate job.

However, I have a love affair with hand tools (on lonesome evenings while perusing an unnamed forum, i've seriously contemplated selling every power tool I own, which is mostly dewalt, milwaukee bosch etc contractor grade gear for hand tools I could never typically afford as they don't earn me money) and would love to switch entirely over to it. Don't ask me why I'd forego a jointer & planer, but something just feels right about hand tools.

ANYWAY.. The #7 Jointer. It's in good shape, really. but I'm a tad bit of a fool when it comes to planes. Does this bevel go up or down, or is it simply a preference? And it seems like despite my playing around with the frog and blade adjustment, I can't seem to put it forward to get more than a nibble off of the wood. any thoughts?

[Jim Koepke]

Howdy Gregory,

The blade's bevel on a Stanley #7 goes bevel down. If the cap iron (chip breaker) screw isn't tight enough, it will move and the blade will not. For a jointer, the leading edge of the cap iron can be set back from the blade's edge about 1/32". For fine smoothing work it can be set much closer.

If this doesn't fix your blade adjustment situation you might have an incorrect cap iron.

Here is an old post of mine on getting an old #7 into working order:

https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?114373

Hopefully something in there may be of help.

jtk

[Jim Koepke]

Another thought came to mind after posting. Another common problem may be a matter of sharpness. A dull blade can act as you described.

jtk

[Rob Luter]

I had a perhaps similar saga with a #7. I found a beautiful specimen at an antique store. Sweetheart era, 100% japanning, zero rust, nearly unused. The best part? It was marked "Plane" and priced stupid cheap. After verifying the bottom was flat, obsessive blade prep to assure the sharpest of edges, setting of the chip breaker to a favorable distance, adjusting the mouth opening with the frog adjustment (blade bevel down) to assure a nice shaving; my results were hit and miss. Literally. The "nibbles" I was getting from the wood were few and far between. The shavings were nice, but they were short and skipped around. It didn't take too long to realize the issue wasn't the plane, but the lumber. It wasn't flat. I determined where the high spots were and hit them with a #3, trued things up with a #5, and then put the #7 to work. Now it performed like one of those Rob Cosman demo planes.

[Jim Koepke]

It didn't take too long to realize the issue wasn't the plane, but the lumber. It wasn't flat.

DOH!!!

This didn't even register with me. Almost none of my boards off the band saw or from a mill is flat. The 'thip-thip-thppity-thip' sound of going over rough wood is just a bit of the beat until the plane starts to take a full length shaving. Sometimes the short areas at the ends or the middle of a board will be taken down individually, occasionally by switching to a shorter plane.

jtk

[Gregory Mosher]

Ah! Makes sense... I didn't even think of that. Also.. On a side note, do you folks know where I could buy parts to match a #5 stanley jack plane? if there are websites for that?

[steven c newman]

nhplaneparts would be a good start...

[Jim Koepke]

Ah! Makes sense... I didn't even think of that. Also.. On a side note, do you folks know where I could buy parts to match a #5 stanley jack plane? if there are websites for that?

nhplaneparts has just about every part for Stanley planes you may need. The international postage can be more than most of the parts are worth.

It also depends on which parts you need. There are four basic frog configurations and at least a couple knob configurations that don't play well together.

jtk

[Andrew Seemann]

Ah! Makes sense... I didn't even think of that. Also.. On a side note, do you folks know where I could buy parts to match a #5 stanley jack plane? if there are websites for that?

#5 Stanleys are so common and cheap, that watching for complete plane in better shape often makes more sense than repairing one (this applies to #4s, #3s, and block planes also). At least until your hand tool addiction gets to the point of Jim's and mine, where you just look for the needed part in your box of spare plane parts and shelf of garage sale parts planes.

[Jim Koepke]

#5 Stanleys are so common and cheap, that watching for complete plane in better shape often makes more sense than repairing one

One time with a later type #5 with a tall knob rubbed my preference for a low knob the wrong way. My strategy was to look for the most beat up looking planes on ebay with decent wood on the tote an knob. One appeared with very bad images. The seller said the wood looked good. At the end of the bidding, my winning bid & shipping was less than the actual cost of the shipping because the seller or ebay quoted incorrectly. There was about a 25¢ difference, no big deal.

The plane arrived and it was in decent condition. It is still one of my favorite #5s in the shop. The other plane was sold for what it cost me.

My other 'favorite' #5 was bought at an estate sale for $10.

Often you can buy a complete plane for parts at less than what the individual part would cost.

jtk