Stanley No 53 spokeshave

[Allen Fulmer]

I recently picked up a No 53 spokeshave(antique) and it does not have an adjustable throat. However I was wondering if this would be a feasible solution for a tighter mouth. Sanding/grinding down an old used up spokeshave blade to a thinner thickness to move the blade closer to the front of the mouth. If I had to take a guess I would assume that as long as the ground blade was flat and sat flat on the frog, it wouldn't be an issue? Thoughts?

[Jim Koepke]

Allen,

Can you post a picture of your spoke shave?

My understanding of the #53 is there are springs near the bottom of the top plate and the thumb screw increases pressure on them which then closes up the throat.

jtk

[Bill Houghton]

In addition to Jim Koepke's confusion, which I second, I am puzzled as to how grinding a blade thinner would close up the mouth, unless you were planning to use it as a shim. Let's stick with the non-adjustable throat idea for a minute - such as you might find on a Stanley 51, 52, 151, etc. Why not go for a thicker blade than stock to close up the mouth? I got a couple of the Lee Valley replacement blades for Stanley shaves of the numbers I just listed, and I actually had to file the shave to get even a tiny mouth on the shave.

[Allen Fulmer]

My phone isn't letting me upload the picture but it's a Stanley with "baileys patent" etched on one handle and "Aug 31 1858" on the other. I said No 53 because that's what the seller told me it wasn't. It's not an adjustable throat so it doesn't have the thumb screws you are referring to. It's a fixed mouth.

I was referring to using the grinded blade as a shim to pack out the actual blade closer to the mouth. Yes I could get a new thicker blade, I was just trying not to have to file the mouth and I had an extra used up blade laying around that I could turn into a shim.

[Richard Line]

Why don't you try using 1 or 2 layers of cardboard (not corrugated cardboard, the solid kind as on the back of a table) as shims to try out the idea. You may even find they work just as well a metal shim for this.

[Bill Houghton]

It's possible that you have a collectible shave, so, before you do any messing about with it, do some research. There's one on That Auction Site right now with a buy-it=now price of $450, but this is probably absurd. Completed listings show one selling for $37, which is still way more than you'd have to pay for an equivalent newer shave. So check around.

And I'll concur with Richard, if you do decide to make it a user: try cereal box cardboard first. You can stack it up until you have the mouth you need, which will tell you the thickness of whatever shim you decide on.

[bridger berdel]

playing cards are thin and stiff. formica samples are thick and stiff. google may not be your friend on that one....

[Allen Fulmer]

It's possible that you have a collectible shave, so, before you do any messing about with it, do some research. There's one on That Auction Site right now with a buy-it=now price of $450, but this is probably absurd. Completed listings show one selling for $37, which is still way more than you'd have to pay for an equivalent newer shave. So check around.

And I'll concur with Richard, if you do decide to make it a user: try cereal box cardboard first. You can stack it up until you have the mouth you need, which will tell you the thickness of whatever shim you decide on.

Its funny you say this, when I was looking on eBay I found the one I bought and it was $25. Then there was another one, the exact same Spokeshave in much worse condition from a different seller who had it listed at $499. I thought he was crazy, and maybe he is, but I've seen them go for about what I paid for mine. I will do a little more research, as well as try the card board idea as that won't hurt anything.