David, I think Cameron has a good idea about roughing up the surfaces. But I think I’d call Lee Valley and discuss the problem. They may already have...
I had a scrub plane at one time and had that problem- seems like a poor design- heavy cut, larger forces, but only a small amount of friction holding...
You gotta pay to play, unfortunately, with this kind of thing...or be willing to do all the work (driving, trailer+truck, loading/unloading, rigging,...
Losing the work you've put into it is how view routers :). Really bugged me watching router-based TV shows years ago when they'd zip the thing around...