If you don't have one, make one.

[Wayne Jolly]

I hope this is the right forum for this. It is about machining on a metal lathe, but it is for a hand plane. Doesn't seem to fit anywhere really, but this seems the closest to me.

Anyway, I bought a Stanley #71 router plane off of that auction site a week or so ago. While I was waiting for it to arrive I did more research on hand planes in general and learned about depth stops for the #71. I thought . . .hmmm, a depth-stop might be good. So today I got bored (which is another way of saying that I didn't want to do what I had to do) and I took a shot at making one. I haven't finished it yet . . . probably . . . but I think it is in a useable state. All made from some scrap metal I had laying around.

The rod is made out of a piece of 304 SS that was a failed attempt at something else. I think the metal is a little soft so it won't stand up to years of use, but it should do for my uses. I think the small diameter of the rod needs to be changed a little too. I wasn't really thinking too much about using it and the small diameter is just over 1/4". I think I should have make it just under 1/4". And the very bottom edge might still be a little too sharp and it needs to be rounded just a little more.

The other piece, the shoe, was turned out of some mystery metal that I picked up at a scrap yard a few years ago. Most likely something like A36 steel. I don't know if I am going to go to all the trouble to trim the shoe into a more "Stanley" like appearance or just leave it, but my inclination for now is to just leave it. And of course, I need to get appropriate thumb screws.

Well, this wasted a good 1/2 day and it's lunchtime. Not enough time in the day left to do what I was supposed to be doing, heh heh heh. Now tomorrow . . . hmmm . . . what to do tomorrow to put it off some more . . .

Thanks for looking.

Wayne

[Matt Lau]

Nice!
By the way, you may want to check out Derek Cohen's website.
He's done similar in the past.

[Jim Koepke]

Looks good, too bad you had to drill and tap the bolt hole in the plane body. Oh well, some collector will be upset in the next century or two.

jtk

[Wayne Jolly]

I didn't do any drilling in the plane body as the hole and threads were already there. All I did was to run a tap through the existing hole for the thumb screw to chase a little of the rust out of the threads.

Wayne

[Jim Koepke]

I didn't do any drilling in the plane body as the hole and threads were already there. All I did was to run a tap through the existing hole for the thumb screw to chase a little of the rust out of the threads.

Wayne

Maybe it is just me, but the bolt looks a lot bigger than what Stanley originally installed. It could also be that someone else who had it before you did the work.

Stanley tools of that vintage do not use standard threads on their tools.

I am not sure what would be on a Stanley #71 since my router plane is a Sargent.

jtk