Couple of hand plane questions

[Cassius Nielsen]

Hi everybody,

Recently got into wood working and had a few questions regarding hand planes since I've taken that jump. Recently picked up a Stanley #4 and #5 off of ebay that I am in the process of doing a little rehab on. Planes themselves are in fairly good shape, the irons not so much, especially on the 5. Started with an Atoma 140 and switched to 80 grit sand paper after about 30 minutes realizing this was not going to be a one session type of ordeal. Two packs of sand paper later and I've got two flat irons ready for polishing. Ordered one of the little sharpening jigs to help with the bevel, the #5's bevel is fairly rounded so wanted to start with something 25* and to get better accustomed to the 25* angle. So some questions! What HRC are the Stanley irons, or is there some variance? The iron on the #4 seems soft, 58 or so and the #5 seems like it is closer to 60. They are both sweetheart irons. Is 8k the standard finishing grit for plane irons? It seems like thats most of what I have found, I'm curious how much edge life falls off as you go higher in grits. Trying to figure out what a good sharpening progression would be with what I have. Is edge life a thing in the plane iron world or do you just go for ultimate sharpness that your steel can handle and touch up when necessary? Lastly does anyone have a finisher recommendation for sealing up the bare steel where the japanning has come off on the plane body? Not trying to repaint, I like the used look but would like to seal up the possible rust spots in the nooks and crannies. Thank you for the help.

[Jim Koepke]

Howdy Cassius and welcome to the Creek.

a few questions regarding hand planes… What HRC are the Stanley irons, or is there some variance? The iron on the #4 seems soft, 58 or so and the #5 seems like it is closer to 60.

Your guess is a good as mine. Maybe someone here has put them to the test. In my experience they are in a range of hardnesses. Two of my blades with the same 'V' trade mark seem worlds apart. One hone fairly easy the other is a real bear to hone.

Is 8k the standard finishing grit for plane irons?

This depends on the person doing the sharpening. My 8000 Norton stone does a fine enough job to make shavings to less than 0.001". Some folks like to use even finer stones. There is also stropping to finish off the edge. Before acquiring the 8000 stone a 4000 did good enough. If you ever want the experience of having a hundred different opinions from fifty people, start a sharpening thread.

Currently my sharpening is mostly done on Arkansas stones ranging from softer Washita type stones up to a surgical black followed by stropping.

Lastly does anyone have a finisher recommendation for sealing up the bare steel where the japanning has come off on the plane body?

The few planes of mine that have been 'touched up' with paint have been done with high gloss black engine enamel. At one time it was a dollar a can at the local Home Depot. It needs warm weather to dry unless the wife will let you warm it in the oven set to low.

You are welcome for the help. You may like to visit the Neanderthal Archives > https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?103805

It is even more enjoyable if you pay $6 to be a contributor so you can view the images.

jtk

[steven c newman]

To "seal up any nooks and crannies" I just load up an old, cheap paint brush with a bit of 3in1 oil....and give things a nice thin coating....Bare metal, as well....then an old rag to wipe any excess off...as the cast iron will soak up quite a bit....won't hurt a thing....and the Rust Bunnies hate the oil....make sure all the flaky spots no longer have flakes for the rust to hide under...

[mike stenson]

Yea, every shop should have a couple oily rags. As I've gotten older, I've become my grandfather, there's an oily rag at every tool storage area and all tools get a wipe down before being put away.

[Cassius Nielsen]

Thank you guys.

No need to start a sharpening thread hehe. Ive got a whole slew of synthetics and jnats for kitchen knives. I'll stick with my back bone synthetic 6k for now and break into the jnats once I actually use this thing for a bit and see how far I can take it. I'll check out the engine enamel. I've got a layer of oil on them at the moment after the break down and cleaning. I'm anal about rust, but less anal about greasing the tools up when I'm done with them so anything to prevent it all together is right up my alley. Thank you guys.

[Jim Koepke]

I'll check out the engine enamel.

Many folks have personalized the color of their own tools. Black always seemed good enough. The smoothness of the plane against the hand is what always made a plane feel better to me.

Don't worry about ruining a "valuable collector plane" unless it really is verifiably worthy of collecting. Many planes will increase in value over time by being a good user.

jtk

[Jerome Andrieux]

Is 8k the standard finishing grit for plane irons? It seems like thats most of what I have found, I'm curious how much edge life falls off as you go higher in grits. Trying to figure out what a good sharpening progression would be with what I have. Is edge life a thing in the plane iron world or do you just go for ultimate sharpness that your steel can handle and touch up when necessary?

There is no gold grit standard. 8000 or strop is OK.

Edge retention gets better:

1. With steel properties (some roll, some chip, ...)
2. With finer finish (a coarse grit leaves a ragged edge)
3. With higher angle (30 to 35 is recommended)

That said, you need to “refresh” the edge when the results is not up to your standards, so it may vary a lot between a smoother and a scrub plane, poplar and oak, etc.