So, how many of the custom plane users have misplaced the button head screw? Decided to try mine without the chip breaker. Put that little screw in a ‘safe’ spot. Not so much. D’oh. Am I the only one?
[OP]
Contributor
So, how many of the custom plane users have misplaced the button head screw? Decided to try mine without the chip breaker. Put that little screw in a ‘safe’ spot. Not so much. D’oh. Am I the only one?
Contributor
I mean, you're not the only one to lose a screw, that's for sure.
Get yourself a big, powerful magnet on a stick. I do a lot of work on stuff with tiny bits lie clocks, cameras, electronics, fishing reels, etc, and am always losing screws and springs. They can jump off and run away a lot further than you'd ever imagine. But get yourself a big powerful magnet on a stick and just sweep the room, including behind and under everything, and it'll usually reappear. It's somewhere. And if the magnet is strong enough, it'll find it from a good distance out.
Contributor
Another solution might be to find a well stocked hardware store to see if they might have a replacement.
Maybe someone reading this has a Veritas Custom plane and a thread gauge to discern the thread count whether it is Metric or SAE.
I have a few button head screws, but not sure of size or thread at the moment. As far as I know they are all SAE and may have to be cut to length.
jtk - who tries to keep a well stocked hardware store in my shop, after all, the nearest place to buy hardware of any kind is about 10 miles away and they don't stock much.
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
Contributor
Just a quick story that relates. I also use lots of small parts in the work I do. A couple of years ago I was making something that used a couple of tiny compression springs (to drop in a hole and actuate a small locking pin). These springs were about 5/16-inch long and .060 or so in diameter. They were hard to handle. I was doing the final assembly and reached for one of the two springs, (I only had two). I fumbled it and I heard it hit the floor then it disappeared. I searched for a long time with flashlights, magnets, my shop dusting brush, down on my hands and knees. It just vanished. I ended up drilling out the hole so I could use the next size up spring, which I had more of.
Fast forward a year. I'm painting the baseboards in my studio and as I am nearing the end of the run on the wall behind my assembly table, I notice a speck of something in the corner, sitting on top of the baseboard, tucked right up next to a door casing. Sure enough, it was the spring! It had fallen off the bench, bounced once on the floor and landed on its end on the top of the baseboard! There it remained for a full year, undisturbed, until I found it while painting. The magnets didn't find it because I assumed it was on the floor, not perched 5-inches above the floor!
DC
Contributor
You can also try panty hose on a vacuum. It has to be pretty clean, because the panty hose (or anything that will work as a filter to pass air but trap whatever you're looking for) will clog up constantly, especially if you have a lot of wood shavings and sawdust around.
Contributor
on i’m gonna put a big cardboard box in my shopping write A Safe Place on it. I have way too many safe places now and can’t find anything
[OP]
Contributor
As usual, Lee valley is great. I asked how much one is and now it’s on its way gratis. It was my own stupidity but they got me. Great work Rob!
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