original finish on Stanley transitional plane?

[Skip Helms]

Hi All,

I just got a fixer-upper No. 36 on Ebay. Usually I would leave as much character as possible but the body looks like it had black mold on the sides. That's more personality than I'd like so I plan to carefully sand off the spots. The tote and knob are clean and the rest of the parts are fine.

I've found lots of articles on how people restored theirs but haven't seen anything on the original finish. Any thoughts on how they left the factory? Thanks, sh

[Jim Koepke]

If you look at Patrick's Blood and Gore (a Google search brings that up as the first hit) he mentions varnish.

My guess is spray shellac would be fine.

jtk

[Skip Helms]

I usually have some shellac mixed so I'll hit it with that when I get the chance. Thanks Jim, sh

[don wilwol]

I believe the original finish was laquer.

I use tru oil.

[Kevin Hampshire]

Skip, glad to hear you're not using BLO on your transitional. If you like more of an original or vintage look, you may wish to avoid sanding.

I've had excellent luck with a light scraping (just where it's needed) followed by wiping on garnet shellac. This approximates and compliments the patina of most transitionals.

[Pat Barry]

Skip, glad to hear you're not using BLO on your transitional. If you like more of an original or vintage look, you may wish to avoid sanding..

Why is that? I did that myself. Why is it a mistake?

[lowell holmes]

I have a transitional plane in a display cabinet. I've never used it. It was a gift.

The question I have is why use it since I have an abundance of metal planes to use?

I favor my Bedrocks, but I must admit a #5 1/2 Bailey is one of my favorite planes.

[steven c newman]

BLO?
refurbbed planes.jpg
Two coats on each....wax the sole, and away they go. These two are about half the weight of an iron bodied #7.....

[John Vernier]

I recently used some basic Zinnser Bullseye amber shellac from the local hardware store to touch up the finish on an old Stanley transitional smoother. It matched the original finish perfectly.

[Paul Sidener]

Hi All,

Usually I would leave as much character as possible but the body looks like it had black mold on the sides. That's more personality than I'd like so I plan to carefully sand off the spots. The tote and knob are clean and the rest of the parts are fine.

Before you start with sand paper try a good cleaning first. Mix up 1 part boiled linseed oil, 1 part Murphy's oil soap and 2 parts paste wax. Rub in that mixture with 0000 steel wool, then buff dry with a clean rag. You might have to do that a couple times. You will be surprised how well it works. I keep some in a mason jar, it works great. It will let the plane keep some of the personality of the plane.

[Mike Brady]

Why is that? I did that myself. Why is it a mistake?

Oil makes beech look very blotchy and darkens the end grain. I have found beech planes to be very difficult to refinish and look anything like they did when newly made. You have to see a NOS plane to see what I mean. When Carl Bilderbeck was alive he had several of them. The finish was very yellow and even in tone. I have no idea how they achieved that, but I sprayed amber shellac on some new beech totes and knobs that I made and that finish was very close to original.

[lowell holmes]

What is a NOS plane? I never heard that expression before.

[Kevin Hampshire]

In trying to answer the OP's original question, I don't know what the exact finish is that was used on transitional planes.

But, my experience is that sandpaper followed by BLO gives nothing at all close to the original or a vintage finish. While the judicious use of a scraper followed by an appropriately toned shellac can closely resemble a NOS finish or a vintage finish.

These were some quick shots and the colors aren't exactly right. The plane with the BLO is much darker and very blotchy. The difference is very pronounced in person versus these photos.

This plane was almost NOS (New Old Stock) but somebody had messed with it before I got it.

IMG_6881.jpg


A plane that was "oiled" up with BLO
IMG_6880.jpg

Vintage user condition finish

IMG_6882.jpg

IMG_6879.jpg

[Kevin Hampshire]

This may be a better sample.

Can you guess which plane has the BLO on it?


IMG_6883.jpg

[steven c newman]

Starting to sound too much like "MY way or the highway"?
side view.jpg
What came in the mail. Left the wood alone..
IMAG0282.jpg
The Stanley No.29
IMAG0004.jpg
Ohio No. 035

The "yellow" someone was trying to replicate, well on the ones I've been rehabbing, the yellow was...PAINTED on. Looked more like "b. s. yellow" and was rather ugly.