Help identifying planes

[Matt Day]

Hi all,

I picked up the plane in the first two pictures (photo 9 and 10) at the Habitat Restore for $5, and thought with a few parts and a little work I could make a user out of it (my thought was to use it to trim up tenon's until I get a shoulder plane). As you can see, the lever cap was snapped at some point and there is no fence (which I don't really need). There are no markings on the plane other than "Made in the USA" and the blade is stamped as Craftsman. I think this is a Sargent 79 made for Craftsman?

The second plane (photo 7 and 8) I got for parts along with a Stanley 39 7/8" (which is also missing some parts). I realized when I got home that though they are similar, I think they were made at very different times and the parts are not interchangable - the lever cap screws are different sizes and the lever cap is also different. I think this is also a Sargent 79 made for Craftsman?

Now that I'm more familiar with these particular planes, should I just put them to the side and keep looking the correct vintage cheap parts planes at flea markets? Or are there some good resources out there (ebay?) to buy parts for cheap? I'm out a total of $25 for all three planes, so I'm not

[Bill Houghton]

From here, the unbroken one looks like a Stanley 78*. And, yes, the various makers did NOT copy each other exactly. Several sources could probably get you set up. Google "Brass City Records" for one good source (call Walt Quadrato, don't e-mail him, and do it when you've got ten minutes to talk) or "Fine Tool Journal" (you can e-mail Clarence Blanchard, and he'll respond). A slightly more expensive but reliable source is Pete Niederberger, whose e-mail address is pniederber@aol.com. For obvious reasons, I'd focus on the complete plane.

*Indicators: the adjusting lever; the extra horizontal rib running along near the top of the side, inside; and the hollow handle, which was a more complex job to cast. Sargent didn't spend that extra money, although they did cast a "rhino horn" on the front of the plane to make it easier to grip, a feature that's especially nice on the dado planes.

[Matt Day]

Thanks for the detailed reply Bill. I'll start seeing if I can source the parts. Any idea how I may be able to date the planes to make sure I am getting the right era parts?

[Bill Houghton]

My experience with Stanley has been that they're pretty stable on thread sizes/pitches, fence designs, and so on. Not sure on Sargent.

A little information here, although some of it's brand-specific and you'd have to kind of imagine it over to Craftsman.

For the Craftsman logos that you may find at the tops of the plane irons (look on the side opposite the bevel on the cutting edge; often needs a lot of cleaning to find): http://web.archive.org/web/200310031...vertical=SEARS

For the Stanley-made plane: http://www.supertool.com/StanleyBG/stan10.htm#num78

For the possibly-Sargent-made plane, there's very limited information. You can try here: http://www.sargent-planes.com

[Rodney Walker]

Here's another possible parts source.
http://www.stjamesbaytoolco.com/stanley.html
Prices don't seem unreasonable to me though I haven't personally ordered from them yet.
I bought a clean Craftsman one last summer. Mine is missing the fence and rod assembly though.
Rodney