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Thread: Stanley 46 questions

  1. #16
    Join Date
    Jan 2016
    Location
    Asheville, NC
    Posts
    92
    Hi Lowell, I only get tools I'll use -- typically I have a specific use in mind before I get it. In this case, I'm restoring a panel door on a late 19th century cabinet for a friend. I could use a router but somehow, the situation calls for the same care that went into the original. Plus; then I'll still have the plane.

    Allen, the only new steel I've ever bought is O1 because it's so easy to quicken. But for all I know, any kind of tool or high speed steel will quench well enough to cut wood at low temperatures. Certainly no plane blade I make ever has to cut hickory at 25,000 RPM. I've usually tempered it low. If it chips, I'll throw it back in the oven another 25 degrees hotter and try again. You can't go the other way. sh

  2. #17
    I found my 46 minus cutters at a garage sale for 15 bucks and the cutters on Epay for $85 more. Figure I got a bit lucky and I had some real cleaning to do, but they can be found.

  3. #18
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Michiana
    Posts
    3,047
    I got my #46 with one cutter for $18 at a flea market. I saw one yesterday at an antique mall for $150.
    Sharp solves all manner of problems.

  4. #19
    Join Date
    Jan 2016
    Location
    Asheville, NC
    Posts
    92
    Thanks guys. I don't visit a lot of flea-markets. I don't have the time and the only ones close by are mostly CD players and Chinese baby clothes. Considering this area used to be a nexus of handmade furniture, there isn't much residual tooling left. Same goes for stationary equipment.

    I keep a few favorite searches on the Bay. That's a puzzlement too. One guy will put a buy-it-now price three times higher than eventual selling-price of the same unit in the auction below it. Another guy says he doesn't know much about his inventory. WYSIWYG. Pictures show rust, a busted mount and no cutters. $200 or best offer. Maybe somebody's got to have it but I don't even like to negotiate that far from actual value. Nice examples maybe but not a plane that was an outhouse doorstop for 50 years.

    I'll keep looking and good luck with all your gear. sh

  5. #20
    Join Date
    Jan 2016
    Location
    Asheville, NC
    Posts
    92
    I won a nice No. 46 on the Bay a couple days ago. The plane itself is complete with everything but the slitter. You can pay dear for the depth stops if those aren't included. The wraparound stop (which this doesn't have) goes for a couple hundred US -- fine for collectors but my planes sit on a shelf. There is a lonely #45 cutter in the slot but no #46 irons ... so ...

    After I won the auction I ordered a piece of precision O1 steel from McMaster Carr measuring 3 1/2" x 18" x 1/8". I picked that width because that is about the length of the longest cutter in the set. My plan is to use an angle grinder to rough a 45 degree bevel almost to the edge of the steel on about a foot of one long edge. That's a lot faster than using a bench grinder on individual pieces. And getting it too hot isn't an issue -- yet. I toyed with the idea of rounding the edges on the other side but think I'll wait until I'm sure I haven't botched the cutting side first.

    Then I'll lay it out something like the diagram below and use a 4" cutting wheel and a cheap (but very effective) Harbor Freight attachment so it cuts like a circular saw. I don't know who among you have ever used a cutoff wheel but they leave a really nice edge.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTlzcDJqcWU


    I'll jig-up to cut these as exactly as I can because the edges will only need a little deburring.

    When the parts arrive I'll add some posts on how I cut the steel, harden and temper it and add the obligatory fine shaving shot.

    Thanks for reading and I'll be in touch, sh
    Attached Images Attached Images

  6. #21
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Longview WA
    Posts
    27,347
    Blog Entries
    1
    Congrats on the win Skip.

    You can pay dear for the depth stops if those aren't included.
    I found a box/common nail with the proper diameter shank works fine for a depth stop. I ground down one side.

    The sides of the blades are also beveled. It will likely be obvious how much to fit snugly in the slot in the body and the sliding skate/rail.

    Hoping to see more when you get it working.

    jtk
    Last edited by Jim Koepke; 07-20-2016 at 12:02 AM. Reason: wording clarification
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  7. #22
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Charlotte NC
    Posts
    189
    My 46 is a sweetheart, so not sure what type that makes it. I was lucky to find one with 10 cutters, fence, the knicker and depth stop, all nicely packaged in the fingerjointed box. I am a big fan of skewed planes, the 289, the 140. And you are right, there is no 3/4 in cutter in my set up. I dont use it much but its a thing of beauty.

  8. #23
    Join Date
    Jan 2016
    Location
    Asheville, NC
    Posts
    92
    Thanks guys, I was thinking I would need to put a shim on the angle grinder base to replicate the side skew but want to actually have the plane in my hand before I get too creative. Maybe I should just buy a common size cutter from Eric for measurements. There is an older thread here about those angles that I'll research when the numbers have a visual reference.

    I got the wider piece of steel so I could clamp it firmly with a fence and lop off the cutters like slicing bread. I do have a couple DIY jigs for my bench grinder to clean the sides of narrow plate stock but it would be much better to clip it clean the first time.

    Cheers, sh

  9. #24
    Join Date
    Jan 2016
    Location
    Asheville, NC
    Posts
    92
    The article wasn't at SMC. Here is the reference:

    http://swingleydev.com/ot/get/25547/thread/

    looks like a 20 degree parallelogram on the long edges and about 29 degrees across the short edges. The latter is a consensus measurement and not critical for rough work. I'll get that more precise when I grind it post-heat treating.

    I pulled the Harbor Freight guide out of the box and it shouldn't be much trouble to retrofit it for a 20 degree slant cut. At $8, I'll probably just bend the supports and get another for 90 degree cuts.

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